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10 May 2018 / Georgina Squire
Issue: 7792 / Categories: Features , Profession , Costs , Commercial
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A costs conundrum

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Can litigation funding negate a security for costs application, asks Georgina Squire

  • Litigation funding is on the rise and greater scrutiny from the courts has followed.
  • Funders have looked to the support of after the event insurance policies, but these have also been put under the microscope.
  • The ‘Arkin Cap’ is now a significant consideration for third party funders when assessing whether and at what level to provide funding for litigation.

We are all seeing a rise in litigation funding, evidenced recently by the explosion in profits of one significant AIM listed funder, Burford Capital LLC. Burford’s 2017 Annual Report shows income up by 109% to £341m and profit after tax up by 130% to £265m.

However, with this rise in funding, comes greater scrutiny by the courts of the role of funders in litigation and their potential liability to other parties. Recent case law has increased that potential liability. Funders often look to the support of an after the event

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

London Solicitors Litigation Association—John McElroy

Fieldfisher partner appointed president as LSLA marks milestone year

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Kingsley Napley—Kirsty Churm & Olivia Stiles

Firm promotes two lawyers to partnership across employment and family

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Foot Anstey—five promotions

Firm promotes five lawyers to partnership across key growth areas

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
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