Litigation funder Validity Finance has announced that Joyce D. Slocum, currently President and CEO of Texas Public Radio, has joined its board of directors.
Ms. Slocum began her career practicing law with prominent law firms based in Dallas, Texas. She soon moved into an in-house practice, spending almost 10 years at The Southland Corporation, and later serving for more than 14 years as general counsel and head of global legal and business affairs for HIT Entertainment. She joined NPR as General Counsel in 2008, continuing in that role until being appointed Interim President and CEO in 2011. She culminated her time at NPR as Chief Administrative Officer from 2012 through 2013. Slocum has served President and CEO of Texas Public Radio for eight years. Shortly after assuming that role, she was elected to the NPR Board of Directors, including as the chair of its Audit Committee, which oversees the company’s litigation and risk management matters.
“I have known Joyce for over 25 years, and have observed her business acumen and innovation in all of her many legal and management roles. She brings to Validity a keen understanding of how in-house counsel view litigation strategy, planning and budgeting. Her views will be a valuable complement to the perspective of retained counsel that Allen Fagin, former managing partner of Proskauer Rose, brings to the board,” said Validity CEO Ralph Sutton.
“Litigation finance is a significant tool to help increase access to the courts for companies that seek to bring affirmative litigation, in addition to dealing with matters they are obligated to defend,” Ms. Slocum commented. “The mitigation of risk and additional control over budget and timing of expense can be immensely helpful to in-house counsel in crafting and obtaining management buy-in to a strategic plan to protect a company’s assets. I’m pleased to join the Validity board because I believe their client-centric approach to the opportunities provided by this emerging industry will appeal to in-house practitioners.”
Ms. Slocum’s appointment to the Validity board followed shortly after its announcement that it has raised a new managed fund of $70 million – the firm’s second “sidecar fund – alongside its permanent capital.
In addition to Slocum and Fagin, Validity’s board is comprised of Jonathan Bilzin, Co-President, managing director of TowerBrook Capital Partners; Michael Carpenter, former chair/CEO of Citigroup Alternative Investments; Dewey Shay, CEO/founder, Unison Site Management; and Ralph Sutton, CEO, Validity Finance.
