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Litigation Funder Validity Finance Expands to Israel, Taps Noted U.S. Litigation and International Arbitration Lawyer Eli Schulman to Head the First Israel Office of a U.S. Funder

TEL AVIV (June 2, 2020) – Leading U.S. litigation funder Validity Finance has opened its first international office, in Tel Aviv, recruiting prominent international-disputes lawyer Eli Schulman to head its Israel operations. Validity is the first U.S.-based funder to open an office in Israel.

As co-founder of boutique litigation firm Schulman & Charish LLP, with affiliates in New York and Israel since 2010, Mr. Schulman has extensive experience representing Israeli clients in complex U.S. business litigation and international arbitration. He has advised companies across Israel’s dynamic high-tech sector, as well as those in established industries and the State of Israel itself.

Validity’s new Israel office marks the company’s fourth, alongside U.S. offices in New York, Chicago, and Houston.

“This is a new day in Israel. We’re pleased to be the first U.S. funder on the ground, helping Israeli businesses secure critical capital to monetize commercial disputes and manage economic risk in a way that doesn’t drain operations and growth,” said Validity CEO Ralph Sutton.

“We’re especially pleased to have Eli Schulman on board to lead our efforts in Israel. In addition to being an outstanding international disputes lawyer with a track record of success, he has experience using litigation funding in his own practice. With his reputation and appreciation for the needs of Israeli clients, Eli is uniquely qualified to help Israeli companies and law firms finance disputes on fair and ethical terms,” commented Sutton, who has known Mr. Schulman for years.

A frontier for entrepreneurship, Israel leads the globe in per capita R&D spending, with a record number of startups, access to venture capital and more companies listed on the NASDAQ than China. Validity expects to invest in outbound cases on behalf of Israeli companies involving a range of contractual disputes, patent infringement, and other matters resolved in U.S. courts or international arbitration.

Dispute Funding During COVID-19 Crisis

Validity, like many other companies, has been operating remotely since mid-March. It has seen a significant increase in new case leads since then. These leads arise from law firms looking to stabilize their operations and a large number of clients in newfound need of capital for continued litigation.

Validity’s Chief Risk Officer, Dave Kerstein notes, “We are committed to sustaining clients and law firms during the pandemic, and, as the sole US-based firm to operate in Israel, we anticipate many opportunities.”

Israel’s handling of the coronavirus crisis has won praise across the globe with a wider return to business expected in the near term, and attending litigation and arbitration in need of capital.

Mr. Schulman is recognized among leading dispute-resolution practitioners worldwide by Legal 500 and Chambers, which most recently described him as “dedicated and sophisticated.” He has been active in the international-arbitration community, including as a member of the ICC Commission on Arbitration and ADR. He is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Schulman clerked for then-Chief Judge Michael B. Mukasey of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Mr. Schulman worked in elite litigation practice at Cahill Gordon in New York and Kellogg Hansen in Washington, D.C. Mr. Schulman also served in the Department of International Affairs at the Israeli Ministry of Justice.

A former Fulbright fellow at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mr. Schulman received his A.B. from Columbia University and holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

“I’m delighted to join Validity’s exceptional team of former trial lawyers and investment professionals to expand dispute funding arising in Israel,” Mr. Schulman said. “While running a New York- and Israel-based disputes firm the past decade, I saw first-hand the need for companies to finance legal challenges. I’m excited to be Validity’s point person for disputes that emanate from Israel.”

About Validity: Validity is a commercial litigation finance company that provides businesses, law firms and individuals with non-recourse financing for a wide variety of commercial disputes. Validity was founded in 2018 with $250 million in committed, one of the largest first-round capital raises in the U.S. market. The firm announced an additional $50 million in capital in 2019. Validity believes that capital and legal expertise combine to help solve legal problems on behalf of clients. Validity’s mission is to make a meaningful difference for clients by focusing on fairness, innovation, and clarity.  For more, visit www.validity-finance.com.

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International Legal Finance Association (ILFA) Announces End of Year Gala and Inaugural Legal Finance Awards

By John Freund |

 The International Legal Finance Association is pleased to announce its annual End-of-Year Gala Dinner on November 13, 2025.  The event will take place at The Law Society in London, bringing together leading figures from across the legal finance industry for an evening of celebration and reflection on the year’s achievements.  

The dinner will be accompanied by the inaugural Legal Finance Awards.  The awards are designed to recognize and honor excellence across the legal finance ecosystem. They will spotlight the achievements of funders, law firms, brokers, advisors, and other key contributors to the continued growth and innovation of the industry. Nominations for the awards are now open, with the nomination form available here

“The Gala Dinner is a chance for our members and guests to gather in person and celebrate the progress we've made over the year,” said Rupert Cunningham, Global Director of Growth and Membership Engagement at ILFA. “We are especially excited to launch the Legal Finance Awards, which will shine a light on the outstanding work and impact of professionals across our field.”

Tickets for the Gala are on sale now, with discounted pricing available for ILFA members.  More information can be found here.

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.

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.