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Community Spotlight: Phil Goter, Partner, Intellectual Property Group, Barnes & Thornburg

By John Freund |
October 8, 2024

Community Spotlight: Phil Goter, Partner, Intellectual Property Group, Barnes & Thornburg

Clients trust Phillip Goter to enforce and manage their valuable intellectual property. Phil counsels organizations – ranging from startups to Fortune 100 companies – around the world, managing litigation through trial and appeal, thoughtfully obtaining patents and trademarks, conducting pre-suit investigations, advising on regulatory issues, conducting due diligence and freedom to operate analyses, and resolving complex disputes.

Phil leverages his business and industry experience when working with his clients, and they value his strategic thinking and trust his counsel regarding IP strategies that protect R&D investment and product markets.

Phil, who practices in the firm’s Minneapolis office, frequently works with high-tech clients in the computer software and hardware space. His keen familiarity with computer hardware, standards-essential cellular infrastructure, 5G, GPS, mobile apps, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer and network security, VoIP, wireless networking, home automation, medical devices, and cloud computing aid him in providing successful outcomes for his clients.

He has deep experience providing counsel to international businesses on U.S. intellectual property matters, including representing European and Asian consumer electronics, networking and telecommunications, and pharmaceutical companies in global IP disputes. His practice includes patent litigation in U.S. district courts around the country and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, with the majority in key patent litigation venues such as Texas, Delaware, and California.

Phil also has significant experience with complex economic matters and his cases have included competition law issues, such as monopolization, attempted monopolization, and Walker Process and sham litigation claims. He has successfully obtained lost profits verdicts in pharmaceutical cases and has commissioned and used numerous expert surveys in litigation to prove infringement, indirect infringement, rates of infringement, apportionment, lost profits, and value of the invention.

He also has in-house counsel experience. Prior to joining Barnes & Thornburg, Phil was an investment manager and legal counsel for a global, publicly traded litigation finance and legal risk management company. He advanced the company’s IP initiatives globally and handled U.S. litigation matters through the entire life cycle of the litigation funding relationship, including sourcing, evaluating, and monitoring IP and commercial investments through to resolution.

Outside of his legal practice, Phil teaches intellectual property at the University of Minnesota Law School and can often be found at the hockey rink, coaching his three children’s youth hockey teams.

Company Name and Description: With more than 800 attorneys and other legal professionals, Barnes & Thornburg is one of the largest law firms in the country. We serve clients worldwide from offices in Atlanta, Boston, California, Chicago, Delaware, Indiana, Michigan, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Philadelphia, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, South Florida, Texas and Washington, D.C. We provide guidance in more than 50 dedicated practice areas, including litigation, intellectual property, labor and employment and corporate law. We are where you need us. Find out more at btlaw.com.

Company Website: btlaw.com

Year Founded: 1982

Headquarters: Largest office is in Indianapolis

Area of Focus: Intellectual property

Member Quote: Litigation finance has become an increasingly important financial tool for IP owners, who often find themselves disadvantaged by large, well-capitalized competitors. In this lopsided dynamic, non-recourse capital from trusted legal funders gives me the ability to right the harms inflicted upon my clients.

About the author

John Freund

John Freund

Commercial

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Commercial

Singapore Court Declines to Revive $14 Million Third-Party Funding Cost Recovery Bid

By John Freund |

A Singapore court has affirmed an arbitral award denying a successful litigant's attempt to recover more than $14 million in third-party funding costs, reinforcing the principle that funding expenses are generally not recoverable from the losing side. The decision offers important guidance for funded parties weighing the economics of dispute resolution in one of Asia's leading arbitration hubs.

As reported by Law360, the dispute arose from an arbitration over control of a fintech joint venture. The prevailing party sought reimbursement of the substantial fees it had paid to its litigation funder, arguing those costs should be shifted to its opponent as part of the award.

The court rejected that argument, characterizing the funding expense as "simply the product of a risk any party engaged in dispute resolution takes." By framing the cost as an inherent risk of pursuing a claim rather than a recoverable disbursement, the court declined to allow the funded party to pass its financing burden to the other side.

The ruling underscores a recurring tension in funded disputes: while third-party funding can make claims viable, the cost of that capital typically remains with the party that engaged the funder, even in victory. Counsel in the matter included Providence Law Asia, Rajah & Tann, and Duxton Hill Chambers, with the proceedings tied to the Singapore International Arbitration Centre. For funders and funded parties alike, the decision is a reminder that recovery of funding costs cannot be assumed and must be carefully assessed when structuring the economics of a case.

Commercial

Op-Ed Urges New York to Close the ‘Champerty Loophole’ Exploited by Litigation-Funding Hedge Funds

By John Freund |

A new opinion piece is pressing New York lawmakers to close what the author calls a "champerty loophole," arguing that gaps in the state's centuries-old prohibition on financing others' lawsuits have allowed hedge funds and litigation funders to profit from the court system. The commentary adds to a broader policy debate over how, and whether, third-party litigation funding should be constrained.

As reported by the New York Daily News, the author contends that most New Yorkers have never heard of the champerty doctrine, yet its weakened application has helped turn the state's courts into what the piece describes as a playground for well-capitalized financial actors. Champerty, historically, refers to an arrangement in which an outside party funds litigation in exchange for a share of the proceeds, a practice long disfavored under New York law but now widely worked around.

The op-ed argues that the current framework permits hedge funds and litigation funders to bankroll claims for financial return while escaping meaningful regulation, raising concerns about the influence of outside capital over litigation strategy and outcomes. The author calls on the legislature to tighten the rules and restore limits the doctrine was originally designed to impose.

The piece lands amid intensifying scrutiny of third-party litigation funding nationwide, from federal disclosure proposals to state-level efforts to regulate consumer funding and non-lawyer ownership of law firms. As New York weighs its approach, the champerty debate underscores the enduring tension between expanding access to the courts and guarding against the commercialization of litigation.

Commercial

Litigation Funder Rocade Capital Acquires Law Finance Group, Creating $2.3 Billion Platform

By John Freund |

Rocade Capital has acquired litigation funder Law Finance Group LLC, the company announced Wednesday, combining the two firms into a platform with more than $2.3 billion in deployed capital. The deal marks a notable consolidation in a litigation finance market that continues to attract institutional interest as an emerging asset class.

As reported by Bloomberg Law, Arlington, Virginia-based Rocade Capital specializes in credit-style funding for mass tort and contingency-fee law firms. Law Finance Group brings a more diversified portfolio spanning appellate, commercial, and single-case investments. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

The acquisition broadens Rocade's reach well beyond its traditional mass tort niche. By absorbing Law Finance Group's book of business, Rocade gains exposure to additional practice areas and case types, positioning the combined firm to compete across a wider segment of the funding landscape.

Rocade Chief Executive Officer Brian Roth framed the transaction as a growth opportunity. "This is a great opportunity for us to grow and that's why we're bringing on the whole team and the whole portfolio," Roth said, indicating that Rocade retained Law Finance Group's personnel as well as its existing investments.

The deal reflects a broader pattern of consolidation within litigation finance, which Bloomberg Law characterized as "a niche but growing asset class." As funders scale their balance sheets and diversify across case types, combinations of this kind may become increasingly common, allowing established players to deepen their capital base and expand the range of claims they can support.