Trending Now
  • Consumer Legal Funding Is Not Third-Party Litigation Financing, ARC Argues
Announcements Commercial People Moves

Omni Bridgeway doubles U.S. team in 12 months, announces key promotions and new hires

October 5, 2022

Omni Bridgeway doubles U.S. team in 12 months, announces key promotions and new hires

Omni Bridgeway is pleased to announce expansion and key promotions within its U.S. team, which has grown by over 100% in the past 12 months.  In New York, Sarah Tsou has been appointed Senior Investment Manager and assumes the role of Portfolio Manager – Global Intellectual Property overseeing Omni Bridgeway’s widely recognized IP business and team of dedicated IP professionals. This portfolio role underscores Omni Bridgeway’s unique global IP capabilities and worldwide footprint spanning key IP markets. Fiona Chaney, who heads the company’s Los Angeles office, was also recently appointed to Senior Investment Manager and Legal Counsel. Fiona also serves as co-lead of the company’s insurance initiatives. We also congratulate Chris Citro (New York), who has been promoted to Investment Manager and Legal Counsel, with a focus on patents and other intellectual property matters. Further building out the company’s dynamic IP team is Phillip Goter who recently joined as Investment Manager and Legal Counsel. Phil’s arrival marks Omni Bridgeway’s continued expansion on-the-ground including new operations in the Midwest. Based in Minneapolis, Phil joins from Fish & Richardson with over a decade of experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in high-stakes disputes involving patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, antitrust and competition law, and FDA clearance. Phil is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Minnesota Law School and a member of the Expert Network for Lunar Startups, an incubator specializing in growth and innovation for diverse, high-potential entrepreneurs. In Washington D.C. we welcome Matt Leland as Investment Manager and Legal Counsel. Matt joins us from King & Spalding LLP where he was a commercial litigation partner and successfully litigated diverse legal issues for corporate plaintiffs and defendants in the energy, manufacturing, healthcare, pharmaceutical, and construction industries. Matt helped clients recover substantial damages in many of his cases, which often involved contract and commercial disputes, government reimbursement claims, unfair business practices, civil RICO, protection of trade secrets, and trademark infringement. Prior to this, Matt was a partner at McDermott Will & Emery LLP. On the business side, we welcome Joseph Cho as Corporate Counsel based in New York. Joe joins us from Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP where he represented public and private companies in complex mergers and acquisitions. His previous experience includes private practice at Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati PC. The U.S. team has also grown its slate of associate investment managers, legal counsel, and business support, doubling Omni Bridgeway’s U.S. headcount to over 45 in the past year.  Andrew Saker, Omni Bridgeway’s Managing Director & CEO and Chief Strategy Officer – US notes, “We are delighted to welcome Phil, Matt and Joe, and congratulate our investment team colleagues in their promotions. We are committed to attracting and retaining the top talent in the U.S. market who bring a unique combination of legal expertise and financial innovation, to result in the best outcomes for clients. Our model is more than financial – we are skills, plus capital. Companies and law firms in the U.S. are responding to our offering, and this is reflected in our continued growth.”

Announcements

View All
Announcements Commercial

Court of Appeal Shuts Down BHP’s Attempt to Overturn Mariana Liability Judgment

By John Freund |

The Court of Appeal of England and Wales today refused BHP’s application for permission to appeal the High Court’s landmark liability judgment in the Mariana disaster litigation.

The High Court found BHP responsible for the 2015 collapse of the Fundão tailings dam in Mariana, Minas Gerais, Brazil, concluding that BHP is liable for the disaster under both the Brazilian Civil and Environmental law.

The Court of Appeal heard BHP’s application for permission to appeal the decision on 12 March after BHP was refused permission to appeal by the High Court in January.  BHP asked the court for permission to contest the findings that it was a polluter, and that it had knowledge of the risks associated with the dam before the collapse. The mining company also challenged the finding that all claimants brought their claims in time.

The Court of Appeal’s refusal marks a further victory for the hundreds of thousands of Brazilian victims who have spent over ten years pursuing justice, and a major setback for BHP. The High Court’s liability judgment remains in force, and BHP has exhausted the ordinary routes by which it could seek to overturn it.

In today’s ruling, the court concluded that BHP’s proposed grounds of appeal have no real prospect of success and there is no other compelling reason for the appeal to be heard.  The decision means that the parties will proceed to the trial of Stage 2 of the proceedings, which will determine issues of causation, loss and damages. The trial evidence is to be heard from April 2027 to December 2027, with closing submissions listed for March 2028.

Lord Justice Fraser wrote in the decision: “I do not accept that any of the grounds relating to BHP’s liability for the dam collapse are reasonably arguable. I do not consider that there is any foundation for the different complaints that the trial judge failed to engage with BHP’s case."

Jonathan Wheeler, lead partner for the Mariana litigation at Pogust Goodhead, said: “The Court of Appeal has now joined the High Court in finding that BHP’s grounds of appeal have no real prospect of success - an emphatic and unambiguous outcome. BHP remains liable for the worst environmental disaster in Brazil’s history, and it will not be given another bite at the cherry.”

“Our clients have waited more than a decade for justice while BHP pursued every procedural avenue to avoid accountability; those avenues are now closed. We are focused on securing the compensation that hundreds of thousands of Brazilians have been owed for far too long.”

Announcements Commercial

Loopa Finance Wins at the Lexology European Awards 2026 in the Litigation / General Counsel Category

By John Freund |

Loopa Finance has been recognized as the winner in the Litigation – General Counsel Team category at the Lexology European Awards 2026, one of the leading recognitions in the international legal sector.

The award was received in London by Ignacio Delgado, General Counsel Europe at the firm, on behalf of Loopa Finance’s European team, composed of Ignacio Delgado (General Counsel Europe), Marina Gouveia (Investment Manager), Fernando Pérez Lozada (Senior Investment Manager), and Fernando Folgueiro (Managing Partner).

The Lexology European Awards recognize outstanding legal teams across the region through a methodology that combines independent research, quantitative and qualitative analysis, and thousands of nominations supported by clients and industry peers, as well as the annual research conducted by the Lexology Index (formerly Who’s Who Legal) and Client Choice.

The selection process is based on performance evaluations related to effective communication, commercial understanding, technical expertise, strategic management, and team strength, and is supported by a global community of more than 940,000 subscribers.

This recognition positions Loopa Finance’s European team among the leading practitioners in complex litigation and strategic legal management in Europe.

“This award reflects the strength of a team operating across two continents that understands litigation not only from a legal perspective, but also through financial analysis and risk management. It is the result of collective work and a rigorous, strategic approach to structuring complex disputes,” said Delgado during the ceremony.

More Than an Award: Validation of a Model

The award comes at a time of consolidation for the firm. Loopa Finance recently completed its rebranding process, evolving from Qanlex to Loopa Finance and reinforcing an identity aligned with its growth in continental Europe and its broader international positioning.

It also coincides with the closing of Fund III, raising €65 million to finance complex litigation and arbitration across Europe and Latin America, significantly expanding the firm’s investment capacity and supporting the continued growth of its platform in the region.

This milestone adds to the firm’s recent rankings, including its Band 1 classification by Chambers & Partners in Latin America and Europe, its recognition as “Highly Recommended” by Leaders League across multiple jurisdictions, and the inclusion of members of its team among the Thought Leaders in Third-Party Funding by the Lexology Index. Together, these results confirm the strength of Loopa Finance’s model and the consolidation of its team as a reference in the strategic financing of disputes at an international level.

About Loopa Finance

Loopa Finance is an investment fund specializing in the financing and monetization of litigation and arbitration across continental Europe and Latin America, supported by a technology-driven model and rigorous risk analysis. The firm provides capital to cover legal costs or monetize ongoing claims through non-recourse structures, where the recovery of the investment depends exclusively on the successful outcome of the case, assuming the financial risk of the dispute while fully aligning its interests with those of clients and law firms.

Announcements Commercial

Pravati Capital Partners with SEI to Bring Litigation Finance to Registered Investment Advisors

By John Freund |

One of the oldest litigation finance firms in the United States has announced a strategic partnership aimed at expanding mainstream investor access to the asset class.

As reported by Business Wire via Yahoo Finance, Scottsdale-based Pravati Capital has partnered with financial services firm SEI to provide registered investment advisors with structured access to litigation finance as an alternative investment option. The collaboration will leverage SEI's distribution platform to make litigation funding opportunities available within advisor portfolios.

The partnership reflects growing institutional interest in litigation finance as an alternative asset class. Historically, litigation funding has been difficult for mainstream financial advisors to access on behalf of their clients, with the market largely dominated by specialized funds and institutional investors. The Pravati-SEI arrangement seeks to bridge that gap by creating a more accessible pathway for advisors seeking diversification through non-correlated investments.

The announcement underscores a broader industry shift as litigation finance continues to move from a niche strategy toward greater acceptance within traditional wealth management channels. As the global litigation funding market grows — projected to reach over $25 billion in 2026 — partnerships like this one may signal a new phase of institutional adoption.