A recent order in a case between Laser Trust and CFL Financing is turning heads. The English High Court has made three cost orders against CFL. The court determined that the funder exerted an excessive amount of control over the case it had funded.
An LFJ Conversation with Michael Kelley, Partner, Parker Poe
A recent order in a case between Laser Trust and CFL Financing is turning heads. The English High Court has made three cost orders against CFL. The court determined that the funder exerted an excessive amount of control over the case it had funded.
Pinsent Masons explains that litigation funders can be exposed to adverse costs orders if they overstep boundaries to exercise control over-funded cases. Justice Marcus Smith stated that ordering a non-party to pay costs is highly unusual, and would not typically happen to funders. However, if third parties exert excess control over a case, they may be required to do so.
Michael Fenn of Pinsent Masons suggests that this judgment should be considered a reminder to all funders to beware of the influence they exert in the cases being funded. Monetary consequences can follow if too much control is exercised by third-party funders.
