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Omni Bridgeway continues US expansion with new operations in Miami and Chicago

Omni Bridgeway is delighted to announce the expansion of its operations into Chicago and Miami with the additions of investment managers and office heads, Maryanne Woo in Chicago and Lauren Alexander in Miami. We also welcome Enrique Molina, who joins Omni Bridgeway as an Investment Manager in Miami.

Maryanne joins Omni Bridgeway to continue building out the company’s Midwest presence. She has over two decades of experience as a trial attorney in Chicago, handling complex disputes in state and federal courts involving product liability, multi-district litigation, mass tort, and shareholder derivatives issues. Prior to joining Omni Bridgeway, she was a litigation partner at Reed Smith LLP, where she focused on issues surrounding disruptive technology and artificial intelligence.

In Miami, Lauren brings local market knowledge and subject matter expertise in key areas such as bankruptcy, restructuring, multidistrict litigation, and commercial disputes. She has nearly 15 years of litigation experience in the Miami office of Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP, where she represented clients in a range of matters relating to contract disputes, business torts, antitrust, fraud, and asset valuation disputes.

Enrique joins Omni Bridgeway from King & Spalding in Miami, where he focused on international arbitration and litigation. With more than 6 years of experience, Enrique has handled numerous investor-state disputes involving Latin American parties in a broad range of industries including energy, mining, banking, and transportation.

“We are thrilled to continue our nationwide growth in Chicago and Miami, two of the fastest growing litigation markets in the US,” said Jim Batson, Omni Bridgeway Managing Director and co-Chief Investment Officer for the US. “With Lauren and Enrique on board, we are excited to become one of the first commercial litigation funders to provide on-the-ground resources and expertise for law firms and corporations in Miami.”

Managing Director and co-Chief Investment Officer for the US, Matt Harrison, added, “Maryanne’s wide-ranging litigation experience and deep market knowledge are the perfect match for the dynamic Chicago market. Both Miami and Chicago are known for their sophisticated litigators and corporations who need an experienced risk management partner to navigate the financial complexities of high-stakes disputes. Omni Bridgeway is ideally situated to be that partner.”

ABOUT OMNI BRIDGEWAY

Omni Bridgeway is the global leader in legal finance and risk management, including dispute and litigation finance from case inception to post-judgment enforcement and recovery. Listed on the ASX, Omni Bridgeway operates from 25 international locations.

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Announcements Commercial

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.

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.