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McDonald Hopkins’ new Litigation Finance Practice Group is one of the first of its kind and unique to the legal market

CLEVELAND, April 23, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — McDonald Hopkins LLC has announced the creation of a practice group dedicated to the relatively new and exciting phenomenon of litigation finance. The firm’s Litigation Finance Practice Group is one of the first of its kind and is unique in the legal market.

Litigation finance enables plaintiffs and law firms to use the “value” of causes of action in affirmative litigation or arbitration proceedings to secure funding from third party “litigation funders” by monetizing potential recoveries from litigation.

The litigation finance industry is relatively new to the United States, and it is growing rapidly. Litigation funders are expanding in size and growing in number. In the last several years, many of the industry’s early entrants have expanded their footprint and attracted additional capital while new litigation funders have entered the U.S. market. At the same time, law firms and litigants are becoming more familiar with litigation finance and more comfortable using it.

McDonald Hopkins’ Litigation Finance Practice Group will be co-chaired by members Jim Giszczak and Marc Carmel. Giszczak is chair of the firm’s Litigation Department and serves on McDonald Hopkins’ board of directors and executive committee. Carmel works in the Business Restructuring Services Department. Before joining McDonald Hopkins, he worked at one of the largest United States based litigation funders as director and leader of its involvement in the bankruptcy and restructuring sector.

“We are excited to announce the creation of McDonald Hopkins’ Litigation Finance Group,” said Giszczak. “The group capitalizes on the experience of McDonald Hopkins’ lawyers in the litigation finance industry and in commercial litigation.”

“We see litigation finance as a natural fit for the firm for several reasons,” said Carmel. “First, our attorneys are collaborative. This is particularly helpful with litigation finance because we bring together attorneys with several different proficiencies to help our clients. Second is the breadth of the firm’s litigation experience. McDonald Hopkins’attorneys have extensive backgrounds in the areas of law in which litigation funders seek to invest. Third is the firm’s entrepreneurial spirit. And maybe most importantly, the rare experience we have in how litigation finance works. We have attorneys who have represented clients who have sought out and secured litigation funding, and we have represented litigation funders in helping them perform due diligence.”

The Litigation Finance Practice Group includes members from the firm’s Litigation Department, Intellectual Property Department, and Business Restructuring Services Department.

McDonald Hopkins will represent plaintiffs who are seeking litigation funding for individual cases and portfolios of cases and law firms who are seeking litigation funding for portfolio cases. Plaintiffs can be businesses of all sizes, including small, middle market and Fortune 500 companies. The firm will also represent litigation funders who are seeking assistance with due diligence as they evaluate potential investments.

About McDonald Hopkins

Founded in 1930, McDonald Hopkins is a business advisory and advocacy law firm with locations in Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Miami, and West Palm Beach. With more than 50 service and industry teams, the firm has the expertise and knowledge to meet the growing number of legal and business challenges our clients face. For more information about McDonald Hopkins, visit mcdonaldhopkins.com.

CONTACT:  
David Carducci  
McDonald Hopkins LLC  
600 Superior Avenue, East, Suite 2100  
Cleveland, Ohio 44114  
Phone: 216.348.5814  
Email: dcarducci@mcdonaldhopkins.com

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Announcements Commercial 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 Commercial

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 Commercial 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.