Woodsford Litigation Funding

Est: 2010*

HQ: London

Total Staff: 11

Names to know for insolvency litigation funding at your firm: Steven Friel; Charlie Morris; Jonathan Barnes

Assets under management: No AUM as such. Woodsford is corporate seed funded by a family office, so it funds from its own balance sheet and re-invests the proceeds from successful investments back into the business. It has a medium term (five-year) objective to commit £100 million to litigation funding.

Percentage of assets devoted to insolvency cases: Around 25% of commitments to date have been in respect of cases where the claimant is a liquidator acting on behalf of an insolvent estate, or where the claimant is the assignee of claims from an insolvent estate.

Minimum/maximum claim size: £5 million/no maximum

Examples of cases:

-        Funding the liquidators of a holiday company who had brought claims for damages for breach of fiduciary duties to the company against its high-profile managing director.

-        Funding a £70 million unlawful means conspiracy claim assigned by a liquidator to a claimant.

-        Investing in support of the liquidators of a number of offshore investment vehicles in a high-value and high-profile real estate project.

*In 2012 Woodsford strengthened its existing ties with IM Litigation Funding by acquiring the IMLF name, website and on-going rights relating to certain invested claims.  IMLF started funding insolvency claims 2002 and was chaired by Chris Morris (head of Deloitte insolvency from 1975 to 2000).