This course will provide students with an overview of litigation finance, with an emphasis on topics related to third-party litigation funding for commercial matters in the United States. We will cover subjects such as the principal drivers of demand for litigation finance, historical challenges to third-party funding, and the current state of the industry, including courts’ analyses of litigation funding arrangements and recent efforts relating to regulation. Reading for the class will include a combination of articles, case law, legislation, and expert commentary.
By the end of the course, students should have an understanding of the factors that led to the rise of third-party litigation funding, its place in the U.S. legal ecosystem, and practical and professional responsibility-related considerations around litigation finance transactions that can be utilized in their future practices. This class is pass/fail.