On the latest episode of the LFJ Podcast, we spoke with Mani Walia, Managing Director, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer and Siltstone Capital. Siltstone is a Houston-based alternative investment firm that invests in litigation finance claims, focusing on $500,000 to $5 million funding requests. Siltstone is also producing LitFinCon, the inaugural litigation finance conference in the Houston area, set to take place on March 2nd and 3rd of 2022.
Below are some key takeaways from the discussion:
Re: Siltstone’s focus areas
Siltstone was founded nearly ten years ago in 2013 by a group of entrepreneurial, energy focused investors. Our team being entrepreneurial, was able to recruit folks with a very interesting set of backgrounds—not just energy sophistication on the nitty gritty of energy assets, but a legal team that understood that there might be value in claims.
Through the course of our energy work, we discovered that there may be times that we have to evaluate cases and see if there is any merit to a potential case. And that’s where my addition to the team was something that shaped how we look at things. I have a litigation background and am honored to have learned how to case pick from one of the premiere litigation firms in the country.
We had the impetus to start a litigation finance fund focused on energy because of the unique skills set that our team displays. So these two strategies are distinct, they have different bases and stakeholders—but there’s overlap.
Re: Limited Partners and Structuring of Funds
I’ll note that our funds are separate, so we have a set of funds that are tailored to the energy investor, and then a separate set of funds for those who might want exposure to litigation finance. We’re proud to have successfully closed our second such litigation finance fund in December of last year, 2021.
Some folks want a little exposure in both areas, in particular because of the uniqueness of our team—the energy expertise and the focusing on finding value in energy litigation.
Re: Types of Claims: Jurisdiction, Single case v Portfolio, Sizes?
First, we’re really proud to have entered into a very collegial space. Most of the litigation finance brethren that we have have helped pave the way for entities like us.
We’re guided by our experience, so we enjoy a laser-like focus with helping provide solutions only in the commercial context. We haven’t ventured outside into consumer finance or injury cases.
We also, for the same reasons, enjoy funding patent infringement cases. Earlier in my career, I tried patent infringement cases and by actively litigating a case or subject matter you really develop the ability to understand what makes a case meritorious or advantageous or what makes the case not good. So those are the two sub-focuses in our commercial lending. We enjoy looking at single case risk or portfolio funding.
Q: On ESG Investing & Access to Justice
At the end of the day, the job of a funder is to make sure there’s access to justice for somebody who thinks he or she should have a day in court. Embedded in that is an inherent ESG leveling-the-playing-field thought process.
Learn more about Siltstone’s upcoming event, LitFinCon (the inaugural litigation finance conference in the Houston area), here.
