Litigation funding. Some years ago, RAND, GlobalTort, and some others saw funding as a big deal. Others denied and complained, and indeed the US Chamber of Commerce continues to complain instead of finding the silver linings that certainly do exist.
Today, litigation funders are generating significant profits, and now Chicago has its own litigation funding group comprised of lawyers and financiers. The relevant information is collected in various posts and business magazine articles over the last week – a new post on the D & O Diary provides a good collection of article links and information. Perhaps the key quote is the following:
"The April 6, 2013 Economist article, entitled “Investing in Litigation: Second-Hand Suits” (here), reports that litigation funders are posting “fat returns.” The article cites the results of two of the publicly traded litigation funders. Juridica, which is listed on the London AIM exchange, on March 15, 2013 reported that during the prior year the company had made cash profits of $38 million on fund of $256 million under investment. Last year, the company “offered the highest dividend yield on London’s AIM market.” Burford Capital, which is also traded on the London AIM but is newer and bigger than Juridica, “boasts a 61% net return on invested capital in 2012.”