Breaking litigation finance news and analysis of interest to the full range of stakeholders, including claim holders, law firms, corporate legal departments, investors, and more. Industry trends, emerging practices, and expert insight and commentary on subjects ranging from international arbitration to access to justice.
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Third Party Funding in International Arbitration – Rising Interest, Rising Protections for Funded Parties
Marla Decker
Third party funding of international arbitration disputes has been a hot topic for some time, and more and more we see its globalization take hold. Third party funding and international arbitration are a natural fit because of the great risks, high costs, and large amounts at stake in international arbitration disputes. Third party funding allows those costs and risks to be mitigated by the funder in exchange for a share of the potential award. In the past year, we have seen a noticeable uptick in the number of claimants seeking funding for international arbitration claims. (Lake Whillans funds U.S and Canadian litigation as well as domestic and international arbitration).
Read MoreBoaz to Deliver Keynote Address at NYC’s Litigation Funding Conference
Lee Drucker
On Friday, April 28, leaders of the litigation finance industry will gather in New York City at the 2017 Litigation Funding Conference to discuss the current state of litigation funding, as well as number of other topics relevant to the industry. The conference is a chance for legal and financial professionals to network with others in the industry and learn about the most pressing topics affecting litigation finance today.
Read MoreDefense-Side Litigation Funding – In Practice
Lee Drucker
Litigation funding is not just for plaintiffs. We, at Lake Whillans, provide defense-side financing using a unique transaction structure. While our approach does not work for all defense-side litigation or arbitration, in the right circumstances, our structure provides for a straight forward transaction that allows a defendant to optimally protect its business.
Read MoreRacing to The Start Line: Singapore & Hong Kong Take Steps To Permit Third Party Funding
Marla Decker
Recently, the race in Asia has led Hong Kong and Singapore to introduce legislation that would enable the use of third-party funding in arbitrations seated there. Lake Whillans funds litigation and arbitration globally, and we asked Nicholas Lingard, Robert Kirkness and Emily Stennett of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s international arbitration practice in Asia to detail the recent developments in Hong Kong and Singapore.
Read MoreHow-To Win Clients and Influence Funders: A 2-Part Series
Marla Decker
In Part I of this series, I shared observations from my vantage point as a litigation funder on what works when pitching to potential clients. In this Part II, I will share my views on how to best present your client’s case to a financier. It may seem that to obtain financing, you would present a funder with the best aspects of your client’s case, including the facts and law on their side. At a minimum, this is of course necessary, but there is more. Here are a few tips.
Read MoreHow-To Win Clients and Influence Funders: A 2-Part Series
Marla Decker
As a member of the litigation finance community, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a varied cross-section of attorneys and one truth has emerged: business development is a pressure every practitioner is facing. Perhaps your New Year’s Resolution this year will include improving the efficacy of your business development efforts. If so, this series is for you. In Part I of this series, I’ll share my observations about what I’ve seen work in winning business. In Part II, I’ll share my thoughts on the related skill of how to best present your client’s case to a funder.
Read MoreUK High Court Affirms Arbitral Ruling that Party Can Recover Litigation Finance Costs
Marla Decker
The High Court decided an appeal brought by Essar Oilfield Services, which challenged an award granted in an ICC arbitration to Norscot Rig Management, in which the arbitrator directed Essar to pay not only Norscot’s damages and attorneys’ fees, but also Norscot’s costs of litigation financing. In the dispute between the two oil and gas companies, Norscot used financing to pay for its £647,000 in attorneys’ fees, and, as a result of the successful arbitration, Norscot was obligated to the funder for the greater of three-times that amount or 35% of the damages award. (The amount of the damage award has not been reported.) Essar challenged the arbitrator’s authority to award the litigation finance costs in the High Court.
Read MoreLitigation Finance: Creating a Code of Conduct
Lee Drucker
In mature industries, there is usually a set of rules outlining best practices for individuals and organizations. In newly developing industries, however, best practices are less clear, and once established spread more slowly. In order to promote the development of best practices in litigation finance, we recently identified key aspects of a funding arrangement that we believe will lead to the best results for a claimholder. Companies considering a litigation financing offer should consider the following principles and their importance:
Read MoreThree Ways Litigation Finance Changes Your Job: Inside & Out
Lee Drucker
This post was contributed by Bill Patterson; he was the general counsel of Business Logic where he oversaw a “bet-the-company” litigation. He now manages complex litigation at Swanson, Martin & Bell. You can contact Bill at bpatterson@smbtrials.com.
Litigation finance is here to stay. Having worked as outside counsel, in-house and now as outside counsel again, I can confidently make that statement. There are three fundamental ways litigation finance changes your job, whether you’re inside or out.
Read MoreLake Whillans’ Life Sciences Law Firm Index
Lee Drucker
In order to help entrepreneurs in the life sciences sector, we are creating an annual ranking of the top law firms that help these entrepreneurs protect their interests throughout the lifecycle of their business.
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