In a world driven by money, it is not always possible to gain access to justice without any sort of assistance. Legal costs can run up to the thousands, and seeing this; plaintiffs might be discouraged from taking their cases forward.
At Baker Street Funding, we aim to provide plaintiffs and their lawyers with enough bank to make sure that they, too, get a chance to fight for their cause.
In this regard, litigation finance has tremendous benefits that other forms of finance don’t necessarily have. When it comes to the plaintiffs, for example, it is noted that litigation finance helps plaintiffs fund their cases in a manner that is more flexible when compared to other forms of finance, such as bank loans.
As such, this means that all eligible plaintiff borrowers experiencing funding difficulties will be given a much-needed lifeline that enables them to weather out the storm when taking court action against defendants. Furthermore, commercial claimants will also be able to hire better attorneys using this money, thereby increasing their chances of success.
Since this type of financing is non-recourse, that means that claimants won’t have to pay back the advance until they win a settlement for their case.
Law firms and attorneys also benefit from non-recourse funding agreements. In fact, litigation finance allows law firms to accept cases that they otherwise wouldn’t be able to get, given that the plaintiffs might not be able to afford the firm’s fees.
Moreover, litigation finance also ascertains that clients will not run out of money during litigation proceedings, and the flexibility of litigation finance means that payment arrangements can be tailor-made according to the needs of different clients.
But what exactly is litigation finance?
Litigation Finance or legal funding essentially is the practice where a third-party firm or company that is not associated directly with any party in a lawsuit provides money to one of the parties that are involved in the said litigation.
The idea would be that when the lawsuit is won, the third party that finances the case will get a portion of the winnings as compensation for having financed the legal procedures that take place.
One of the most common barriers to justice is the fact that plaintiffs fear that they do not have enough capital to cover legal costs. In this scenario, litigation finance makes sure that these concerns are put to rest once and for all.
Over the past years, litigation finance has become very popular in the United States, and various parties that, include both small and big players have benefitted from it. With that being said, the United States is not the sole jurisdiction that makes use of litigation finance. On the contrary, various other countries, such as Germany and Australia, make use of litigation finance.
Australia, in particular, was the match that lit the fire when it comes to litigation funding, with a High Court of Australia ruling in 2006 making it possible for litigation finance to be extended to single and class action lawsuits.
Litigation finance, in fact, can be split into two major categories: Consumer litigation finance and Commercial litigation finance. The former relates to single cases that usually relate to personal injury or similar matters, and therefore the amounts involved in such cases are usually much lower when compared to commercial litigation finance.
Commercial litigation finance, on the other hand, usually results in more lucrative returns, given that it is used for contract and commercial disputes, enforcement campaigns, and arbitration cases. As such, commercial litigation funding can either take place vis-à-vis a single case, where capital is provided to cover the costs of a single lawsuit or multiple cases. The former is known as “portfolio financing”, and it results in the financing of multiple cases of a company or law firm.
What are litigation finance firms?
Litigation Finance firms are companies that provide plaintiffs and/or their attorneys with the funding that they so desperately need to continue taking their cases forward. Naturally, it goes without saying that different firms have different areas of focus, with some opting to take care of lower-end cases and others opting to finance high-end ones.
Major corporations, universities, small businesses, and even ordinary citizens have all benefited from litigation finance. With that being said, when deciding which firm to approach for litigation finance, it is always important to read the fine print, ensuring that you get the best deal possible.
At Baker Street Funding, we aim to offer solutions for both law firms and attorneys at a 2% flat rate, while requests for personal injury clients referred to us by law firms are usually charged between 2.95% to 3.4%. Corporate disputes have different interests, still on the lower end.
As always, we intend to aid both attorneys and their clients in standing up for what is right, and that is the sole reason why our rates are more favorable than others.
In order to make use of our favorable rates, all you have to do is to request legal funding from us. Following this, we will review your application and conduct our due diligence while also discussing any queries that we might have with you over a call. Lastly, the final step is the approval of the funding application, after which the litigation finance contract is drafted and then sent to you for your signature and approval.
Access to justice
Baker Street Funding is solely driven by the belief that everyone should have equal access to justice. More often than not, accessing justice requires certain capital that most individuals simply don’t have.
Although, on paper, everyone has the same rights, an imbalance exists between ordinary people and wealthy litigants. For this reason, our founders set up Baker Street Funding to remedy this imbalance, thereby ensuring that everyone will have equal access to their rights.
Baker Street Funding’s litigation finance is a great alternative to other forms of credit such as loans, especially given that this finance can be used to pay for a number of things, including legal expenses, court fees, attorney’s fees as well as expert witness fees. This makes it an excellent proposition for litigants aiming to finance their cases.
In simpler terms, if you’re looking for a firm whose sole mission is to give ordinary litigants a fighting chance, do not hesitate to contact us at Baker Street Funding. As always, we remain determined to help our clients reach their strategic long-term objectives, especially when justice is on their side.
