The End of the Investment Period of Calunius Litigation Risk Fund 3

The Members of Calunius Capital LLP (“Calunius”) wish to announce that; (i) The investment period of Calunius Litigation Risk Fund 3 has now ended, the commitment of investors’ capital having been completed in a portfolio of carefully selected cases. No new investments will now be made from that Fund; (ii) The partners of Calunius are not seeking to raise another fund at this stage; (iii) This decision follows several recent favourable settlements of cases, including but not limited to, Calunius’ largest Fund 1 investment in Rusoro Mining Limited’s successful claim against Venezuela. (iv) The four partners of Calunius will all be fully engaged in working with the Funds’ counterparties and their legal teams to ensure the successful conclusion of the remainder of the investment assets in the existing portfolios of the three Calunius Funds. (v) Calunius will remain a Funder Member of the ALF and each of its Funds will remain compliant with the capital adequacy requirements of the ALF on all cases under investment.

Calunius supports claims against Truck Cartelists in England & Wales

Calunius is pleased to support an application for a collective proceedings order from the Competition Appeals Tribunal (CAT) in order to obtain compensation for as many cartel victims as possible. Please click on the headline to access the full Press Release.

Calunius supports Australian listed company in arbitration against Egypt

As reported in GAR, Calunius is working with Australian investors with regard to a claim for compensation against the government of Egypt relating to investments into a tantalum mining project. For access to the article by clicking on the headline, a subscription to GAR is needed.

GAR Live Energy Disputes

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin participated in a panel discussion on 'Monetising awards and emerging enforcement options and markets' with fellow senior market participants. Please click on the headline to access the full programme.

Chambers and Partners Ranking of Litigation Funders

Calunius is pleased to be ranked in Band 1 of the Chambers and Partners guide for providers of legal capital, and to be recognized as a 'highly respected funder with a "good team" and a long history in the funding space'. Please click on the link to access the full guide.

IV Arbitration Open 2018

Calunius' co-founder Mick Smith was 'Talking Arbitration' with eminent members of the arbitration community at the Open de Arbitraje 2018. Please click on the headline to access the full programme for the event.

Calunius supports claims against VW in Austria

Calunius is pleased to be working with COBIN in its efforts to obtain compensation from the Austrian courts for owners of Volkswagen diesel cars who have suffered loss as a consequence of the emissions scandal. COBIN has launched pilot proceedings already and plans to bring further proceedings in due course. Please click on the headline for a recent media article (in German) about the project.

Hamburg International Arbitration Day

Calunius' Christian Stuerwald conducted a workshop and gave a presentation at the Hamburg International Arbitration Day, which focused among other things on Third-party Funding in International Arbitration. The topic of Christian's presentation was 'Third Party Funding in Germany and Europe - Views from a Funder'. Click on the headline to access the programme.

Rusoro wins enforcement against Venezuela

A US court has confirmed a US$1.3 billion ICSID additional facility award in favour of Canadian mining company Rusoro against Venezuela, rejecting arguments that the arbitrators exceeded their authority in calculating damages or that enforcement should be stayed pending a challenge to the award in France. In a judgment on 1 March, Judge Richard Leon in the US District Court for the District of Columbia confirmed the award, which Vancouver-based Rusoro obtained in 2016 in a claim under the Canada-Venezuela bilateral investment treaty financed by Calunius. An article on the decision is available on GAR, click on the headline to access it.

Competition Law Conference

Calunius' Christian Stuerwald participated in a panel discussion about 'Private Enforcement of Competition Law' at the event, among the topics discussed were: Implementation of the EU Damages Directive in the region, Jurisdiction and forum shopping, Risks and opportunities for in-house lawyers and Funding options. Click on the headline to access the programme.

1st edition of The Third Party Litigation Funding Law Review

The England & Wales Chapter of the 1st edition of The Third Party Litigation Funding Law Review, edited by Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin, can be downloaded by clicking on the headline.

1st edition of The Third Party Litigation Funding Law Review

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin is the editor of the recently published 1st edition of The Third Party Litigation Funding Law Review. Click on the headline to read Leslie's Preface. It starts promisingly with the words 'One afternoon in February 2008, my phone rang...'

Round Table Discussion on Third Party Funding: Downsizing Expenses and Adding Value

Calunius' Mick Smith participated in a round table discussion at the AIPN's "International Energy Markets and Dispute Resolution Solutions". The event brought together professionals from diverse backgrounds and featured presentations on the Energy Charter Treaty and its impact on energy-related investments in Portugal and the new AIPN Model Dispute Resolution Agreement. Click on the headline to see the full programme.

SIArb Commercial Arbitration Symposium 2017 & Launch of Third Party Funding Guidelines

The SIArb Commercial Arbitration Symposium, now into its eighth year, provides a distinctive and interactive forum for participants to discuss current issues and developments in the field of commercial arbitration. This year, one of the sessions provided an opportunity to discuss third party funding of disputes with representatives of five leading litigation and arbitration funders operating in Asia. Calunius partner Mark Wells participated in the panel discussion on 'Third-Party Funding of International Arbitration in Asia – Current Issues and Implications for Practice'. Click on the headline to access the full programme.

OffshoreAlert Conference

Calunius' Chairman Leslie Perrin and Christian Stuerwald participated in panel discussions at the event, which focused on ways to 'Learn to identify, evaluate and exploit financial opportunities, minimize risk, and recover assets'. Click on the headline to access the full agenda of the two day event.

Kiev Arbitration Days 2017

The Kiev Arbitration Days 2017 brought together world-class dispute resolution practitioners and prominent arbitration experts to discuss problems and perspectives of international arbitration. Calunius partner Christian Stuerwald participated in a panel discussion under the heading 'Alternative funding redux'. The conference was conducted under the auspices of the Ukrainian Bar Association. Click on the headline for access to the full programme.

ICCA and Queen Mary invite feedback on funding report

The draft report of the ICCA-Queen Mary Task Force on Third-Party Funding in International Arbitration is now available for public comment until 31 October 2017. Click on the headline to access more details.

AIPN Event "Arbitration Strategy and Funding"

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin will participated in a panel discussion on "Arbitration Strategy and Funding" hosted by the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN). The last several years have witnessed a tremendous increase in the participation of third-party funders in both international commercial and investor-state arbitration. Now more than ever, claimants are seeking external funding, either because they lack the necessary funds to commence arbitration proceedings or because they want to sustain cash-flow and offset the risk of uncertain arbitration outcomes. The panel discussed the hotly debated topics associated with third-party funding and provide an update on the latest funding products in the market.

ICCA-QMUL Task Force on Third-Party Funding - Discussion

The Lisbon University Faculty of Law hosted the first public event dedicated to the presentation and discussion of the Report of the ICCA-Queen Mary Task Force on Third Party Funding in International Arbitration. Calunius partner Mick Smith participated in the panel discussion 'The Report and the Clients & Funder’s Perspective'. Click on the headline to access the event programme.

Swiss Legal Tech Conference 2017

Calunius partner Christian Stuerwald presented a workshop titled 'An investor’s perspective: litigation funding, claims aggregation and legal tech' at this event which brought together a community of legal professionals and digital innovators in order to discuss and develop the legal industry of the future.

Litigation Funding: Analysis and New Trends of Third Party Funding

Calunius' Christian Stuerwald spoke at this event hosted by Associazione Professionisti d'Affari. The purpose of the conference was to explain the 'phenomenon' of litigation financing from both the legal and funder's perspective through the involvement of the various stakeholders: the arbitral institution, the investor, the funder, the broker, the arbitrator, the lawyer, the expert and the in-house counsel. Please click on the headline to access the full programme.

International Arbitration Club Lunch

Calunius' Mick Smith was a speaker at the Club Lunch Meeting; he addressed "Defining the indefinable - Industry Perspectives on Third Party Funding (TPF) in International Arbitration". There is lots of noise about third party funding in international arbitration circles, and somewhat less fact and knowledge. Mick demystified TPF and also provided his own perspectives on where the industry is today and where it is heading.

Advanced EU Competition Law conference

Calunius' Christian Stuerwald discussed a range of topics under the headline 'Private Enforcement: Different Parties, Different Objectives' with fellow practitioners from other stakeholders on the first day of the main conference. Monetization of cartel follow-on claims was a topic of particular interest. Please click on the headline to access the full programme and list of speakers.

N+1 Singer’s Listed Law Conference

Calunius' Mark Wells spoke at a conference described as 'London’s first ever investor gathering focused on the business of law in a listed context'. It brought together listed law-related companies and examined changing business models and investment opportunities. Click on the headline for a report on the event.

Deutsch Amerikanische Juristen Vereinigung e.V. (DAJV) - Working Group Day

The DAJV Working Group Day discussed inter alia New Approaches to Attorney Remuneration and Financing in International Litigation/Arbitration on both sides of the Atlantic in times of Digitalization. Calunius partner Christian Stuerwald joined senior practitioners in a panel discussion about this topic. Click on the headline to access the full programme.

Stans Energy obtains favourable award on jurisdiction

An arbitral tribunal in the case of Stans Energy v Kyrgyz Republic has issued an award favourable to the claimant on a number of jurisdictional objections that had been raised by the respondent state in the underlying UNCITRAL proceedings. A press release of the company can be accessed by clicking on the headline.

Calunius announces new Fund and strengthens its team

Calunius announces the closing of the Calunius Litigation Risk Fund 3 LP at a total of £100 million of capital. Calunius now advises funds totalling more than £200 million investing in large scale commercial litigation and arbitration assets. Calunius is also delighted to announce the recruitment of Christiane Deniger as Senior Case Assessor. Christiane was most recently a senior associate at a well known international law firm. Click on the headline to access the full press release.

Rusoro Awarded US$967.77 million by an ICSID Additional Facility Tribunal for the Expropriation of its Investments in Venezuela

Calunius is pleased to report that Rusoro Mining Limited has been awarded nearly US$1bn plus interest (totaling ca US$1.2bn) in its arbitration against the government of Venezuela after circa four years of proceedings. Calunius has provided financing to Rusoro since the commencement of the arbitration in 2012. Please click on the headline to access the company's press release in full.

Legal Business’ second annual International Arbitration Summit

Calunius partner Mick Smith was participating in a panel discussion with leading arbitration practitioners on questions of award enforcement and of which countries pay awards, and which do not. Click on the headline for the full programme.

The Swedish Arbitration Association - Seminar on Third-party-funding (TPF) and After-the-event-insurance (ATE)

Calunius partner Christian Stuerwald and fellow speakers will discuss at a seminar organized by the Swedish Arbitration Association (SAA) the use of and room for growth for dispute funding in Sweden and the Nordics; these countries have a business environment that creates relatively large disputes by the numbers and a sound and transparent legal culture with reliable courts and commercial arbitration. Please click on the headline to access the programme.

Recoverability of a Funder's Fee in Arbitration Proceedings

Christian Stuerwald and Mick Smith provide brief comments on an interesting case recently decided by the High Court, in which the High Court confirmed an arbitration tribunal's decision that the success fee a claimant pays to his litigation funder is recoverable from the losing defendant in certain circumstances. The decision constitutes an further development in the growing acceptance of dispute funding as an important tool for access to justice. You can click on the headline to access the summary and comments.

Fifth Annual Damages in International Arbitration Conference - Washington, D.C.

Calunius partner Mick Smith and fellow panelists spoke about various aspects that may have an impact on determining the quantum outcomes of investor state arbitrations. Please click on the headline to access the programme and full list of speakers.

Litigation Funding Masterclass (Thomson Reuters)

Leslie Perrin presents a session on 'Litigation Funding' as part of Sweet & Maxwell's online professional development programme. The Masterclass is a 30 minute video discussing the topic and is in the format of a structured interview.

Third Party Funding and Private Cartel Damages actions in Spain

Calunius partner Mick Smith participated in a panel in Madrid that discussed Third Party Funding and Private Cartel Damages actions in Spain. It was organised by the antitrust section of the Madrid Bar Association. The panel was moderated by Oriol Armengol, partner at Perez-Llorca. Click on the headline for further information.

School of International Arbitration Alumni Conference 2016 on Regulation of International Arbitration

Calunius partner Mick Smith took part in a panel session on Regulation of Third Party Funding at the Alumni Conference of the Queen Mary University of London School of International Arbitration. He was joined by fellow practitioners to discuss updates and insights from the Queen Mary Task Force on Third Party Funding. Click on the headline to access the full program.

Conference on Third Party Funding organized by the DIA and the AIA

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin participated in a panel discussion on the use of third party funding in arbitration with fellow professionals and senior practitioners. The event was co-organized by the Association for International Arbitration (AIA) and the Danish Institute of Arbitration (DIA). Click on the headline for further information.

Cost Strategies in International Dispute Resolution - presented by DRI International

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin delivered the 'Keynote Address: Litigation Funding — A Global Perspective' at the Cost Strategies in International Dispute Resolution Seminar in Vienna on 2 June 2016. He also participated in the panel discussion 'Costing and Funding Strategies: Winning Ways and Ways of Winning' the following day. Click on the headline to access the full program.

R3 and INSOL International Restructuring Conference

Calunius' Christian Stuerwald participated in a panel discussion with fellow practitioners about ‘The rapid rise of litigation finance in cross-border insolvency’ on 22 April 2016. The panelists presented a case study and highlighted developments and differences in approach in key jurisdictions, including the UK, Germany and the USA. Click on the headline for details of the programme.

Litigation Funding in Germany - recent developments

Calunius partner Christian Stuerwald was interviewed for an article in Commercial Dispute Resolution (CDR) on recent developments concerning litigation funding in Germany. The article provides information and views from him and other market participants on the sources of finance and scope of investments in litigation funding in Europe's largest economy.

The Impact of Third Party Funding on Allocation for Costs and Security for Costs Applications: The ICCA-Queen Mary Task Force Report

The article provides a short update on the work of the joint ICCA-Queen Mary Task Force on Third Party Funding. The final work of the Task Force will be published in the form of a Report on Third-Party Funding in International Arbitration as a volume in the ICCA series by September 2016. In the meantime, a draft report on Costs has already been completed and has become available for public consultation at both QMUL website and at the ICCA website.

"Mechanics of Third-Party Funding Agreements: a Funder's Perspective"

New York International Arbitration Centre event 'When Third-Party Funders Meet Requests for Costs and Security for Costs'

Calunius partner Mick Smith participated in the presentation of a Report on Costs and Security for Costs prepared by the ICCA-Queen Mary Task Force on Third-Party Funding in International Arbitration.

IBA Conference 'Third-Party Funding and International Arbitration: a 360 degree perspective'

Calunius is pleased to have been the headline sponsor of the conference ‘Third-Party Funding and International Arbitration: a 360 degree perspective’ presented by the International Bar Association (IBA) on 3 December 2015 in London, at which all relevant current aspects of the subject were debated by senior practitioners.

Conference “International Dispute Resolution involving Russian and CIS Parties”

Calunius partner Mick Smith led a workshop at C5’s “International Dispute Resolution involving Russian and CIS Parties“ on January 28th and 29th, 2016 in London. He was joined by senior practitioners in the field, sharing specialist knowledge and best practices with other industry professionals.

Article on Litigation Funding in Spain

Spain's economic and business newspaper Expansion recently published an article about the potential for litigation funding in Spain, especially in the currently troubled economic climate. Calunius is mentioned as one of the few litigation funders who are actively pursuing investment opportunities in the country. Click on the headline to read the Spanish language article.

Seminar on Arbitrating Corporate Disputes in Milan

Calunius partner Mick Smith participated in a panel discussion about International Arbitration - The Quantification of Damages in M&A Disputes at a seminar co-hosted by the Italian Forum for Arbitration & ADR and the Luigi Bocconi University in Milan. The full programme can be accessed by clicking on the link above.

Competition Law Litigation Panel: Private Damages Actions and Collective Redress

Calunius' Christian Stuerwald participated in a panel discussion at the recent International In-House Counsel Journal conference on 'Private Damages Actions and Collective Redress' in the context of the New Private Actions Regime from the Perspective of a Class Representative. Fellow panellists included senior representatives from Norway's Statoil and the UK's Which? consumer protection organisation.

Queen Mary and Calunius announce Inaugural Queen Mary University of London's Inaugural Working Seminar on Group Claims in Arbitration

Calunius is delighted to have co-hosted the inaugural Queen Mary seminar on Group Actions in Arbitration. Leading experts from academic, practice and arbitration institutions and international organisation discussed different approaches in common and civil law systems, the emergence of group actions in commercial arbitration and the experience with similar cases in investment arbitration.

IBA Guidelines on Conflicts of Interest

The IBA Council recently adopted new guidelines on Conflicts of Interest in International Arbitration. Read Calunius partner Mick Smith’s comments by clicking on the headline.

Calunius to speak at 'ADR in Asia Conference in Hong Kong'

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin will be speaking at the ADR in Asia Conference on 27 October on The Use of Third Party Funding in Arbitration: Is this a Developing Trend in Asia? - Leslie and his fellow panelists will examine the opportunities and misconceptions around the funding process as Hong Kong looks to harmonize third party funding regulation and establishes the legal framework necessary to permit third party funding in arbitration.

Article in The Times about Litigation Funding's self-regulatory body ALF

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin was interviewed in his capacity as chairman of ALF for an article in The Times published on 23 July 2015. The article provides an update on the activities of the litigation funding industry’s self-regulatory body.

Dutch appeals court upholds jurisdiction in cartel follow on case

The Court of Appeal in Amsterdam has confirmed a first instance decision that chemicals manufacturer Kemira could be pursued before the Dutch Courts with regard to claims that relate to the sodium chlorate cartel. Finland based Kemira is the only remaining defendant after each of the other defendants settled the claims against them; one of the settling defendants (Akzo Nobel) is domiciled in the Netherlands. In line with recent developments at ECJ level the court ruled that the case may continue in the Netherlands against Kemira, notwithstanding that the only Dutch defendant has now dropped out of the case. Calunius and the CDC group, a company of which is the claimant in the matter, announced a series of strategic investments in connection with this cartel and others on 5 October 2012.

Stans Energy reports arbitration funding agreement with Calunius

Canadian listed mining company Stans Energy has announced the entering into of an arbitration funding agreement with regard to its mining dispute with the Kyrgyz Republic. Click on the heading to read the company's announcement.

ECJ clarifies jurisdictional questions for cartel follow on claims

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) issued a judgment on important jurisdictional matters for cartel follow on cases; while it is being criticised for what it says (or does not say) about the applicability of arbitration clauses, its real practical meaning may lie in the claimant-friendly and clear decision that cartel victims can sue cartelists in the court of the cartel victim's domicile. The decision should make it easier and more predictable for cartel victims to commence proceedings against cartelists for damages.

2nd Annual GAR Live Frankfurt

Calunius partner Mick Smith participated in a lively Oxford Union-style debate about security for costs in arbitration at the 2nd Annual GAR Live in Frankfurt - you can read his Alice in Wonderland inspired position paper by clicking on the heading

Third Party Funding in International Arbitration - Conference in Rome

Calunius partner Mick Smith spoke at a Conference organized by the Italian Association for Arbitration and Arblt - The Italian Forum for Arbitration and ADR in Rome. It aimed to provide an opportunity for arbitral institutions, funders and legal practitioners to deal with the new challenges which Third-Party Funding is creating to the international arbitration community.

World Initiative of Mining Lawyers - 2015 Conference and Annual Meeting

Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin participated in a panel discussion about the risks of bribery and corruption in mining investments, and the importance of transparency on all sides, at this year's Annual Meeting of the World Initiative of Mining Lawyers.

5th Annual GAR Live London

Calunius partner Mick Smith joined inter alia Christopher Style QC, Philippe Pinsolle and Gavan Griffith QC in a panel discussion on 'Fees and funding' to talk about the current practice of dispute funding and offer thoughts on what works and where more thought/work might be needed.

Listed companies in funded disputes

Leslie Perrin and Christian Stuerwald, partners at Calunius, discuss a recent cartel follow on claim settlement in the context of public companies' disclosure obligations.

30th Anniversary Conference of the School of International Arbitration Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London

Calunius is pleased to support the School of International Arbitration/Queen Mary University of London’s conference ‘The Evolution and Future of International Arbitration: The Next 30 Years'.

Excalibur case analysis from a litigation funding perspective

Calunius’ chairman Leslie Perrin comments on the recent Excalibur judgment, which clarifies certain aspects of a litigation funder’s liability for adverse costs.

Opinion on jurisdictional aspects of aggregating cartel follow on claims

A brief assessment by Calunius' Christian Stuerwald of a recent Opinion by the Advocate General that could have wide ranging effects on how cartel follow on claims are pursued in Europe.

Calunius secures extra £50m to invest in litigation and arbitration >>

Calunius Capital has raised an extra £50 million to fund litigation and arbitration after closing its second fund with new cash from both existing and new institutional investors.

OffshoreAlert's 3rd Annual European Financial Intelligence & Investigations Conference in London

Mick Smith is speaking at the session entitled: 'Litigation Funding: A Look At The Industry' at this year's OffshoreAlert Conference. The session will look at the pros and cons of the industry and explore how it works.

26th Annual ITA Workshop - Modern Enforcement of Arbitral Awards: “Show Me the Money” >>

Mick Smith joined the panel for "The Market for Awards" concerning TPF and monetisation of awards at this year's ITA Workshop in Dallas. The ITA Workshop is widely recognised as the leading conference in the field in the United States.

ICADE and Club Español del Arbitraje Under Forty >>

Mick Smith participated in a Round Table discussion on "Issues related to drafting contracts with impact in the region" at The Spanish Arbitration Club Under Forty's (CEA-40) and the Centro de Innovación del Derecho of Comillas University ICADE ICAI's first annual one-day seminar.

CMS Conference on Efficient Dispute Resolution >>

Mick Smith joined Tim Hardy of CMS Cameron McKenna to discuss 'Managing commercial risks of disputes - third party funding' at CMS' conference in Zurich.

Litigation Summit 2014 >>

Calunius Capital LLP participated in DKN-Networks' Litigation Summit 2014 in Berlin. Leslie Perrin and Christian Stuerwald spoke on 'Managing Global Litigation Costs Risk'. See above for more details.

Shareholder Protection and Corporate Governance Forum >>

Mick Smith spoke at C5's Forum on "Litigation Funding: What Are Your Options?" - a copy of the brochure is attached.

"... Calunius Capital, one of the world's most reputable funders"

Craig Chiasson, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, writes about the viability of third-party funding in his article entitled "Canada: Financing Disputes - The Third-Party Funding Option" and gives mention to Calunius Capital.

22nd Advanced EU Competition Law 2013

Calunius Capital LLP is pleased to have been part of IBC Legal's 22nd Annual Advanced EU Competition Law Forum this year.

CDR Conference 2013

Mick Smith was one of the speakers who took part in the discussion on Third Party Funding at the CDR Litigation Day on Wednesday, 13 November 2013.

Conference: 21st ITF Public Meeting: The Economic and Financial Aspects of Investor-State Arbitration

Mick Smith spoke on 'The Financing of Claims' at the 21st Investment Treaty Forum Public Meeting: The Economic and Financial Aspects of Investor-State Arbitration. Mick commented: “My fellow panel members and I enjoyed the discussion with a well-informed audience, and found a pleasantly surprising degree of consensus on issues such as disclosure that affect our industry”.

Guildhall Commercial Seminar

Leslie Perrin spoke at the Guildhall Chambers' 6th annual seminar in Bristol as Chair of Calunius Capital LLP and the Association of Litigation Funders. This year's seminar focused on 'Damages claims – the foundations, formulation and litigation funding'. Leslie shared the session with Adrian Palmer QC of Guildhall Chambers; the topic: 'Damaged based agreements and funding of mid tier commercial claims'.

Annual Conference of the International Bar Association 2013

Mick Smith spoke at this year's IBC Annual Conference in Boston at the session on 'Hot topics in arbitration'. The Preliminary Program is attached.

Recent developments in German and British litigation proceedings

Christian Stuerwald spoke at the British Chamber of Commerce in Germany, UK Region's conference on "Litigation and Arbitration Funding of large commercial disputes in the UK and Germany". Please click on the title above for more details.

Vor Gericht mit Hilfe der Prozessfinanzierung ('Before the Court with the help of Litigation Funding')

"Before the Court with the help of Litigation Funding" - Calunius Capital LLP was mentioned in an article in one of Germany’s leading daily newspapers, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), as a leading provider of litigation funding, in particular in the area of cartel follow-on actions.

Financier Worldwide - TalkingPoint - April 2013

Mick Smith participated in Financier Worldwide's April 2013 edition of TalkingPoint. The topic: Opportunities for Third-party Litigation Funding. He was joined by Tom Custance at Fox Williams LLP and James E. Tyrrell at Patton Boggs LLP.

Arbitration Funding Masterclass (Thomson Reuters)

Mick Smith reviews the principal issues that arise when considering and/or using third party funding to finance arbitration and how they are handled in practice. Following on from "Litigation Funding", this masterclass is essential for legal professionals and businesses involved in commercial and international arbitration.

To purchase a copy of "Third Party Funding in International Arbitration" please use this link to take you through to the publisher’s website.

Third-party funders face tougher rules

Leslie Perrin, ALF’s Chair, reveals the introduction of tougher rules to ensure its members have the capital needed to fulfil their commitments.

No hALF measures

Edward Machin’s article highlights the high standards for membership to the Association of Litigation Funders, the obvious advantages of engaging its members and the risks involved in a market that is still very young and constantly changing. (CDR - subscription only.)

Conference: International Disputes Resolution involving Russian and CIS Companies

Calunius Capital LLP was a Session Sponsor at the 2nd Annual Conference: International Dispute Resolution Involving Russian and CIS Companies. Leslie Perrin spoke on Thursday, 28th February on 'Funding for Litigation and Arbitration: Overcoming Practical Difficulties and Enhancing your Chances for Success in Dispute Resolution'. Dany Khayat from Mayer Brown mediated.

Seminar - Introduction to Litigation Funding

Leslie Perrin gave an introduction to the legal, commercial and regulatory aspects of the funding of large scale commercial litigation and arbitration in both domestic and international contexts

Litigation Funding - Funding The Fight

Third Party Funding is making an impact and is here to stay ...

The Association for International Arbitration - newsletter

The Association for International Arbitration has published the January 2013 edition of their monthly newsletter "In Touch" which includes a book review by Yaroslava Sorokhtey of Third Party Funding in International Arbitration which contains a chapter by Mick Smith entitled "Mechanics of Third-Party Funding Agreements: a Funder's Perspective" - see page 4.

32nd Annual Meeting of the ICC Institute of World Business Law - Third Party Funding in International Arbitration

Calunius Capital LLP sponsored the ICC's 32nd Annual Meeting in Paris and hosted the evening's Cocktail Reception. This year's conference addressed Third Party Funding in International Arbitration.

The great treaty funding debate

The debate over the benefits of funding treaty claims continues in this article by Edward Machin in this week's Commercial Dispute Resolution.

Investment Funds looking to fund cases in Spain.

Calunious is mentioned in the Spanish periodical Expansion in an article on the growing cost of disputes and the business opportunity for international funding (Spanish language).

Calunius invests in pan-European cartel litigation worth hundreds of millions

CDC and Calunius announce strategic investments by the Calunius Fund

3rd Annual GAR Live London

Mick Smith will be discussing the benefits of litigation funding at this year's GAR Live debate “This house believes third party funding is the greatest development since sliced bread”

ADR in Asia Conference 2012. Party Autonomy: Does Party Autonomy Help or Hinder the Arbitral Process?

Mick Smith spoke at the ADR in Asia Conference held in Hong Kong on 'Third Party Funding - Who Holds the Purse Strings in an Arbitration? (And How Does that Affect the Arbitral Process)'. The ADR in Asia Conference is organised annually by the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre.

Acquisition International | The Growth of Litigation Funding

Leslie Perrin contributed to August's Sector Spotlight focus - The Growth of Litigation Funding.

CDC and Calunius announce strategic investments by the Calunius Fund

The CDC Cartel Damage Claims group of companies (“CDC”) and Calunius Capital LLP are pleased to announce a series of strategic investments in CDC by the Calunius Litigation Risk Fund LP (“the Calunius Fund”), a market leader in the funding of complex commercial litigation and arbitration.

Rusoro initiates arbitration against Venezuela before ICSID

Local news report on the Rusoro Mining Ltd. v. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela arbitration

NAI Young Arbitration Practitioners

The Netherlands Arbitration Institute created the working group NAI Young Arbitration Practitioners (NAI Jong Oranje) in order to offer anyone under forty years old who is interested in arbitration a platform for discussing various current and practical topics. Mick Smith and Lisa Bench of Conway & Partners NV will be speaking on the topic of Third Party Funding in The Netherlands this September.

Bolivia claim attracts third-party funder

Rurelec completes $15.45 million Fund Raising - Mick Smith comments in Global Arbitration Review’s recent article.

Rusoro Reports Closing of Arbitration Costs Financing

Funder on board for new Venezuela claim

Rusoro and Calunius join forces to fight Venezuela nationalisation

Third party litigation funding and the future of the voluntary code

Leslie Perrin, Chairman of Calunius Capital is speaking in his capacity as Chair of the Association of Litigation Funders on “The future of the market - growth, standards and the voluntary code”. The seminar is being run by the Westminster Legal Policy Forum.

Conference on Arbitrations between Russian and German parties

Christian Stuerwald was invited to give a presentation on arbitration funding for companies that do business with CIS countries at a conference in Hamburg. The conference was co-hosted by the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce and the Russian-CIS Arbitration Network (“RCAN”).

ICC YAF Event - Third Party Funding in International Arbitration

Christian Stuerwald was invited to speak at a Round Table discussion organised by the ICC YAF (Young Arbitrators Forum) to discuss Third Party Funding in International Arbitration which was held in Frankfurt on 25 May 2012. Christian spoke on the Code of Conduct for Litigation Funders in England & Wales, funders’ key commercial considerations, adverse costs/security for costs risk and the difference he perceives between the German and London markets.

Auf Wiedersehen Allianz: litigation funding in Germany

Christian Stuerwald, the former head of litigation funding at Allianz UK and now Partner with Calunius Capital, comments in Aleks Vickovich's article on litigation funding in Germany and Allianz’s withdrawal from the market. (Please note that only subscribers to CDR magazine will be able to view the article.)

DBAs under scrutiny

This article appeared in Litigation Funding magazine and reported on an event held at Herbert Smith’s offices in January. Leading experts, including Leslie Perrin, examined the impact of contingency fees which are due to be introduced in April 2013.

Calunius is pleased to be working with Oxus Gold plc.

The third way

Third party litigation funding was the topic discussed by The Lawyer’s panel this week and Calunius’ Christian Stuerwald was asked for his reaction.

Emerging Risks on Dual Frontiers: Perspectives on Potential Liabilities in the New Decade

Leslie Perrin, Chairman of Calunius Capital LLP, is a guest speaker at this forthcoming conference on the topic of Third Party Litigation Finance.

Litigation funders respond to US calls for increased regulation

All hell broke loose last week in the world of litigation funding. There was a debate in the House of Lords on the Legal Aid and Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill which included half an hour on litigation funding. This was instigated by an extraordinary lobbying effort by none other than the US Chamber of Commerce, the mouthpiece of Global Big Business and Enemy of Access to Justice, whose main purpose in life is to preserve the inbuilt advantage in litigation held by the biggest of businesses. The US Chamber rightly perceives litigation funding and the Access to Justice that it gives to SMEs as a serious challenge to the US Chamber’s members. The Chamber’s position has stimulated a series of replies from litigation funders. Here you will find a selection starting with articles in CDR (above) and Rachel Rothwell’s article in Law Society Gazette (below). A copy of the Parliamentary Briefing prepared by the Association of Litigation Funders of England & Wales can also be found below.

Storm raging over investing in litigation

Parliamentary Briefing - Litigation Funding and Access to Justice

Litigation: asset or liability? How contingency fees could change commercial litigation

Litigation powerhouse, Herbert Smith, recently held a seminar to discuss how anticipated changes to the costs and funding regime are likely to change the litigation landscape. Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin, was one of the speakers along with Lord Justice Jackson. Here is a copy of Herbert Smith’s bulletin following the seminar and a link to a fuller version of the report on Herbert Smith’s "litigation notes" blog.

Litigation Funding: Status and Issues

A report to be published later this month by researchers at the University of Oxford comes to the conclusion that litigation funding is useful in granting access to justice; the report further addresses the question whether effective regulation is needed within the sector to protect the integrity of all parties. Calunius participated in the market survey carried out by the researchers and we hope that with the help of the newly established Association of Litigation Funders, third party funders will agree to abide by the new Code of Conduct for Litigation Funding. For further information, please refer to the University’s website.

Taking on Tbilisi: litigation funding in action

If you are fortunate enough to subscribe to Global Arbitration Review you can read an article by Calunius’ Christian Stuerwald and Mick Smith deliberating the Fuchs and Kardassopoulos v Georgia ICSID case. It is unusual that details of an investment treaty claim supported by litigation funding are released into the public domain.

Third-Party Litigation Funding: Movements in the German Marketplace

Lecture by Lord Justice Jackson on the ALF Code of Conduct

At a reception in the Painted Room of The Royal Courts of Justice on Wednesday 23rd November, Lord Justice Jackson delivered a lecture on the Code of Conduct of the Association of Litigation Funders of England and Wales. Since the Code of Conduct itself emerged as a result of recommendations in Lord Jackson’s report (chapter 11), his views on the Code are seen as essential reading for anyone interested in litigation funding. The lecture is reproduced in full in the attachment.

Code of Conduct set up for litigation funders

A very interesting piece on the Code of Conduct appeared in the Financial Times on 24th November (for those of you behind the paywall you’ll find it dated 23rd November).

CJC and ALF press release - 23 November 2011

In the flurry of excitement around the launch of the Association of Litigation Funders of England and Wales and their Code of Conduct Leslie Perrin, now Chairman of both the new Association and of Calunius, thought you might like to see the press release issued on 23 November by the Civil Justice Council and the Association.

Voluntary code & membership body launched for third party litigation funders

Code for third-party ligitation funders gets green light

The Calunius Chairman, Leslie Perrin, has been a member of the Civil Justice Council Working Party which has now completed its task of devising a Code of Conduct for Litigation Funding in England and Wales. More to follow but here is a teaser from the Law Society Gazette.

The growing acceptance of litigation funding

The current issue of industry magazine ‘Litigation Funding’ features an article by Calunius chairman Leslie Perrin and Calunius head of underwriting Christian Stuerwald on the growing acceptance of litigation funding by corporate claimants. The article describes two cases supported by the Calunius Fund, and the way the corporate minds in each case came to the conclusion that litigation funding was the right thing to do both from a risk management perspective and to allow them to concentrate on core business activities.

Allianz to discontinue Litigation Funding business – other providers rate the business highly

The Allianz litigation funding subsidiary in Germany today announced that it will discontinue its business activity; the group wants to concentrate on its core activity. Existing litigation funding agreements will be complied with until the cases are concluded, but no new cases will be funded. Because the average lifetime of a funded case is between 2 and 3 years, this means that the company will still be active in the market for the coming years. Calunius‘ Christian Stuerwald, who worked for Allianz until 2009, comments on the development as follows: “The subsidiary has become the victim of its own success in my view; after the humble beginnings of 2002 the industry and the company with it grew steadily, which led to greater demand for the funding of large commercial claims directed against very large corporate entities. Due to the fact that Allianz is one of the largest insurers in the world, numerous conflicts of interests ensued where the group acted as insurer of defendant companies. This irresolvable systemic conflict is in my view the best reason why litigation funding for large commercial disputes should be done by solvent and independent entities like Calunius.”

"The Essential Costs, Damages, Insurance & More Update for Commercial Litigators"

Mick Smith was a keynote speaker at "The Essential Costs, Damages, Insurance & More Update for Commercial Litigators"

Elvis v RCA Recordings

Litigation Funders to “The King”. It is with immense pride that Calunius is able to announce that the Calunius Fund is funding litigation by Elvis Presley Enterprises against the successors to RCA Records, now part of the Sony Group. The case alleges that the Buy Out Agreement of February 1973, whereby RCA acquired the world-wide rights to the entire Elvis Presley back-catalogue was a “Conspicuously Disproportionate” bargain and that the Court should step in and impose “Equitable Remuneration” on the deal, particularly in the light of recent changes in German law that have extended the period of copyright protection to 50 years. The case is proceeding in the Munich Regional Court under German copyright law. Most cases that are funded by the Calunius Fund are confidential. However, in these circumstances, Elvis Presley Enterprises have agreed that publication was in the best interests of the litigation and we are delighted to have the opportunity to shine some light on the progress of our business as it becomes one of the leading names in large scale international commercial litigation funding.

Elvis Presley Estate Sues to Recover Ringtone Revenue

It’s not often we turn up in Hollywood but we’re mentioned in a piece on Elvis Presley in yesterday’s The Hollywood Reporter.

All shook up

In the riot of press coverage over the Elvis case, this report in The Lawyer struck us as well-balanced and perceptive.

Litigation Funders poised to prove finances in place

As you can see Calunius helped The Lawyer to prepare this article, but that did not prevent The Lawyer from getting a few things “not quite right”. Lord Justice Jackson broadly approved Litigation Funding in his Review of Civil Litigation Costs, saying “[litigation] funding is beneficial and should be supported”. It is public knowledge that he set out three issues to be covered in a voluntary Code of Conduct; withdrawal by the funder, the funder’s role in settlement negotiations and capital adequacy requirements to be imposed on funders. All these issues are now the subject of discussions in a working party chaired by Michael Napier QC and working under the auspices of the Civil Justice Council. Leslie Perrin, the Chairman of Calunius, is a member of the working party. There is no reluctance whatsoever on the part of reputable funders to face these issues. In fact there is genuine enthusiasm on most funders’ part to set a high bar for the industry’s conduct, especially when it comes to financial soundness. In this respect, observers should bear in mind that Calunius Capital, which has been authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority as an Investment Adviser since June 2007, acts as the adviser to the Calunius Litigation Risk Fund LP (“The Calunius Fund”), a £40 million private fund based in Guernsey. The Calunius Fund is authorised and regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission.

Although we don’t agree with some of its findings, it is a useful look past the current MoJ consultation on Jackson and gives one man’s view of a brave new post-Jackson world.

Litigation fund raises £40m

Calunius Capital raises £40m fund

Specialist broker raises £40m to invest in litigation cases

An overview of dispute resolution - litigation lawyers report a definite uptick in disputes work.

Top 20 cases of 2011

The pioneers of third-party litigation look for a market

Third-party funders to form association to oversee code of conduct

Litigation Finance follows credit crunch

Litigation Costs under scrutiny in the UK

Addleshaws secures funding for £50m litigation

Leslie Perrin is a key-note speaker at: "So You Want to Be a Non-Executive Director?" - 14 April 2011

Leslie Perrin & Christian Stuerwald spoke at "Maximising Opportunities in Litigation Funding" - 25 May 2011

Round Table on Investment Law and Investment Arbitration

Calunius’ Christian Stuerwald spoke at the 7th Annual Meeting of the ‘Gespraechskreis Investitionsrecht und –schiedsgerichtsbarkeit’ (Round table on investment law and investment arbitration) about ‘Managing the costs of investment protection treaty claims by way of Litigation Funding agreements’ in Frankfurt on 16th November 2011.