Photo of Ayse Yazir by Eli Meir Kaplan.
We’re delighted to introduce the 2023 Lawdragon Global 100 Leaders in Litigation Finance.
These professionals have changed the balance in disputes worldwide through financial wherewithal. Far from encouraging litigation, they have ensured cases can be fairly fought on both sides. They have developed products and markets that hone the battlefield and provide a true conduit to access to justice.
The world of litigation finance has come so far in a relative moment’s time – something like 20 years. That’s when Harbour’s Susan Dunn became one of the world’s first litigation funders setting forth to create a market that didn’t exist. And while what we’ll call background noise persists, fueled by growth pains at individual funders and the market, it’s best not to lose sight of the big picture. Billions upon billions of dollars are flowing into dedicated litigation funders worldwide, alongside growing divisions of massive private equity and other funds. Large firms increasingly rely on funders to finance their entire litigation portfolio, and spinoff firms are created routinely because of the availability of funding.
The heart and soul of litigation funding remains in London, where risk entrepreneurs are helping lawyers pay bills while developing secondary markets in litigation finance. It’s no accident that the longstanding ability of consumers to bring claims from fraud to anti-competition in U.S. courts is finding a hold throughout the world.
Our guide features the remarkable 20 or so trailblazers of litigation finance, alongside the booming talent coming from finance, law and insurance that are carrying it forward, including Ayse Yazir of Bench Walk Advisors. Also included here, designated with an asterisk, are esteemed members of the Lawdragon Hall of Fame.
We selected those recognized here through Lawdragon’s proprietary process combining journalistic research, peer vetting and submissions. Lawdragon is an advocate of inclusion in the legal profession, and this guide is 32 percent women and 17 percent inclusive.
