Funding explained

Litigation funding involves paying the legal bills of a claimant in exchange for a share of the proceeds on success.

If there is no success in the litigation, there is no repayment. Litigation funding is an investment in the litigation alongside the claimant. It is not a loan.

As well as covering a claimants’ own costs, a litigation funder can cover liability for the other sides’ costs. Litigation funders can also cover anything ordered to be paid into court by way of security for costs or amounts payable to the defendant for interlocutory hearings. In arbitrations they can pay the institutional fees and those of the arbitration panel.

Litigation funding is not a new concept. Harbour has been at the forefront of its development and increasing acceptance in the UK.

Harbour has funded more cases, over a longer period, than anyone else.

Litigation funding gives claimants the opportunity to seek recoveries which they might not otherwise be able to pursue. Increasingly it provides a solution to corporate claimants to hedge their costs in litigation.  Having Harbour alongside also sends a powerful message to the defendant that they cannot  adopt a ‘scorched earth’ approach of trying to run up costs or demanding security in the hope that the claimant will not be able to afford to continue with their claim.

A funder may fund a case but cannot control the way a claimant conducts their litigation. The claimant is permitted to run the litigation in exactly the same way they would have had they been paying the bills.

At Harbour we respect the integrity of the litigation process and leave the litigating to the lawyer and the law firm chosen by the claimant.

The value to a claimant of working with an experienced funder like Harbour is that we understand litigation. We understand that it does not always go according to plan and that it can often both take longer, and cost more, than anticipated. By taking a long term approach to litigation, we achieve results for claimants that would otherwise not be possible.

Our case study selection demonstrates our success in a range of situations.