Burford Capital’s Equity Project turned one year old last month. The initiative – launched by senior managing director Aviva Will – is aimed at incentivizing female lawyers to take greater risks. The mechanism for accomplishing this is a $50MM fund that can only be used for claims where a female attorney is first-chair, plaintiffs’ lead counsel or on a plaintiffs’ steering committee, or if the claimant is represented by a female-owned law firm.
An LFJ Conversation with Michael Kelley, Partner, Parker Poe
Burford Capital’s Equity Project turned one year old last month. The initiative – launched by senior managing director Aviva Will – is aimed at incentivizing female lawyers to take greater risks. The mechanism for accomplishing this is a $50MM fund that can only be used for claims where a female attorney is first-chair, plaintiffs’ lead counsel or on a plaintiffs’ steering committee, or if the claimant is represented by a female-owned law firm.
As reported in Bloomberg, The Equity Project has funded numerous cases over the last 12 months, many which surpassed Will’s expectations in terms of case valuation. She initially thought the funding would go to smaller claims – those worth $2MM or less. However, the size of The Equity Project’s cases has been comparable to those of the broader pool of cases that Burford funds.
Will acknowledges that The Equity Project isn’t going to flatten the gender inequity gap overnight, however she views her initiative as sowing the seeds of future generations of female leaders in Big Law. The project’s long-term goal is to steer more women into equity partnerships and onto compensation committees at law firms. By helping women originate more claims and (hopefully) generate more revenue, The Equity Project will contribute to a cultural shift in law firms over time.
