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Announcements Commercial Deals

Emerging Litigation and Corporate Boutiques Create Powerhouse Alliance

American litigation boutique Invenio LLP and emerging global legal consultancy Biztech Lawyers today announced the launch of their cross-border partnership that will now provide an even broader range of legal and strategic business advice to clients who are facing moments of emergence, crisis, or transformation, either as an organization or in navigating new asset classes or markets.

With this partnership, current and future clients alike will be able to leverage Invenio LLP’s legal and advisory work in complex dispute resolution, litigation finance, and alternative assets  – just as Biztech Lawyers’ expertise in international business, technology transactions, and aviation issues will drive these key broader capabilities. This partnership offers clients nimble and highly experienced teams that are rate-sensitive and can operate globally from operational bases throughout the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

The alliance creates a ‘firm of General Counsels’ in that it features founders who have each served as highly-regarded General Counsel of leading companies. Invenio leader Ed Gehres held the role for Miami-based investment platform 777 Partners, while counterpart Blake Trueblood served as General Counsel of litigation finance companies Justice Funds and Signal Funding. Meanwhile, Biztech Lawyers Co-Founders Anthony Bekker and Chris Spillman held the same roles at Australian-based technology unicorn Rokt and buy-now pay-later leader QuadPay. Together, the founders now offer clients the benefits of dozens of years of collective experience as advocates and business leaders in some of the most dynamic high growth industries and emerging asset classes. 

The announcement also comes on the heels of Biztech’s expansion into the United Kingdom, and the partnership will enable both firms to leverage each other’s strengths.

“We are excited to partner with Biztech Lawyers,” Ed Gehres, Managing Partner of Invenio LLP, said. “Their international network and bench strength in the USA, UK, and Australia will be a valuable asset for our clients, and we look forward to working together to provide them with the best possible legal services. Indeed, we believe this alliance will be one of a small handful of legal advisors to offer litigation finance transactional capabilities in the major markets of the US, UK, and Australia.”

“Ed Gehres and Blake Trueblood are highly respected operators with a long history of success across an array of legal service categories,” said Chris Spillman, Managing Director, Americas of Biztech Lawyers. “Their expertise in counseling growth companies in plaintiff-side litigation and litigation defense will be a huge asset for our clients when they need it most, and we look forward to working together to provide our mutual clients with the best possible legal services.”

The partnership between Invenio and Biztech Lawyers is expected to be a long-term and mutually beneficial one. The firms will work closely together to ensure that their clients receive the best possible legal services, and they will continue to explore opportunities for growth and expansion in the future.

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Announcements Comercial Legal Innovation

Sentry Expands Free Funding Market Search for Litigators

By John Freund |

Sentry Funding’s free tool enabling litigators to instantly search the funding market on behalf of clients has been expanded.

Sentry’s free ‘decision in principle’ feature enables lawyers to evidence to clients that they have conducted a broad market search, even if funding is not ultimately taken out.

Having deployed £125m in funding across a range of case types, Sentry now has access to an even broader funding marketplace, covering 34 global jurisdictions. Finance is provided by 13 funders, five of which are members of the Association of Litigation Funders.

With the recent addition of Sentry’s first US-based funder, the US offering will now be expanding over the next few months. 

A faster process

Sentry has deployed the latest technology to make the search for funding even easier. 

  • The intuitive application process now only asks questions relevant to previous answers, saving lawyers time.
  • The commercial marketplace has been redeveloped with 63 new data points added to the funder criteria matrix - improving the accuracy of case / funder matching
  • Sentry has also begun building out its AI capabilities, starting with an automated auditing tool for live case progression audits. 

Tom Webster, chief executive officer at Sentry Funding, said:

‘By broadening our reach and speeding up the process, we’re making it even easier for lawyers to raise funding. We’re also giving litigators an easy way to show clients they have fully researched the market, rather than just approaching one or two funders. 

‘The service is free to use, so even if clients decide they do not ultimately want funding or if none is available for that case, for the lawyer, it makes sense to use our “decision in principle” feature, so they can put evidence on file that they did check the market.’

Sentry Funding is an SaaS (software as a service) technology provider that gives solicitors access to a diverse marketplace of litigation funders. It works with solicitors, funders and third-party providers to ensure claimants are getting the most efficient service for their funding needs. 

The Sentry Portal also acts as a case management system that runs a transparent digital case file for solicitors, funders, after-the-event insurance providers, barristers, cost lawyers and other relevant third parties.

Announcements Comercial

NorthWall Capital Hits €2.9 B AUM on Private Credit Momentum

By John Freund |

NorthWall Capital has rocketed past €2.9 billion in assets under management after pulling in an additional €1.6 billion of institutional capital in 2025 alone. The London-based alternative credit manager says the surge reflects allocators’ intensifying hunt for scaled, multi-strategy platforms as Europe’s banks retrench and borrowers seek bespoke sources of credit.

A press release from NorthWall Capital details first-close totals across four distinct strategies. The flagship Credit Opportunities fund secured €731 million—already eclipsing its prior vintage—while the newly launched Senior Lending vehicle raised $503 million, translating to roughly $750 million of deployable firepower once leverage is applied. Asset-Backed Opportunities collected €252 million for collateral-rich loans in sectors underserved by traditional lenders, and the specialist Legal Assets platform locked down $169 million to extend the firm’s law-firm lending programme.

Founder and CIO Fabian Chrobog said the fundraising validates “the consistency of our approach” and NorthWall’s ability to craft solutions that resonate with investors and counterparties alike. With headcount slated to hit 40 by year-end, the firm plans to lean further into complex, situational credit born of bank deleveraging, regulatory shifts and sponsors’ need for certainty of execution.

Announcements Comercial People Moves

Victory Park Expands Legal Credit Leadership with Maleson Promotion

By John Freund |

Victory Park Capital (VPC), a global alternative asset manager specializing in private credit, has announced that Justin Maleson will expand his role to Managing Director, co-heading the firm’s legal credit investment strategy. The promotion underscores VPC’s ongoing investment in its legal finance capabilities and follows Maleson’s initial appointment in 2024 as Assistant General Counsel.

An announcement from Victory Park Capital details Maleson’s new responsibilities, which include sourcing, analyzing, and managing investments across legal assets, while maintaining oversight of the firm’s legal operations. He joins Chad Clamage in co-leading the strategy, working alongside team members Hugo Lestiboudois and Andrew Pascal, under the continued oversight of VPC CEO and founder Richard Levy.

Maleson brings a strong background in litigation finance and commercial law to the position. Before joining VPC, he served as a director at Longford Capital, where he specialized in originating and managing litigation funding transactions. His earlier tenure as a litigation partner at Jenner & Block further deepened his exposure to complex legal matters, equipping him with the expertise needed to navigate the nuanced legal credit space.

VPC’s legal credit team emphasizes an asset-backed lending model, prioritizing downside protection and predictable income streams. The firm aims to capitalize on inefficiencies within the legal funding market by leveraging its internal expertise and broad network of relationships. With Maleson’s appointment, VPC signals its intent to further scale its legal credit strategy, positioning itself as a key player in the evolving legal finance sector.

Maleson’s elevation comes at a time of increasing sophistication in litigation finance, where experienced legal minds are playing a pivotal role in portfolio construction and risk management. As VPC bolsters its leadership, the move may foreshadow further institutionalization of legal asset investing and heightened competition in a maturing market segment.