Australian funder CASL raises $155m

Australian litigation funder CASL has secured $155m in investment capital in its inaugural capital raising, with significant global institutional support.

CASL was established in late-2020 by John Walker and Stuart Price to create an Australian focused litigation funder with the scale and financial resources to service, support and grow the local litigation finance market.

Stuart Price, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of CASL said “CASL has secured the largest capital pool dedicated to Australian litigation finance. This is a strong endorsement of the CASL team, a recognition of the opportunities that exist and are emerging within the market, and a reflection of the credibility of Australia as a destination for global institutional investors.”

CASL will combine the capital from its domestic CASL Fund with the institutional capital to offer litigation finance to claimants, law firms, insolvency practitioners and corporates.

Mr Price said “The CASL Fund will close on 31 July 2022 for domestic investors. These investors in the CASL Fund recognise the strength of the asset class as a true alternate investment, which delivers credible ESG outcomes for the community, whilst being uncorrelated with shares, bonds or property. In the past three decades, nationwide economic and financial stress caused a surge in disputes and business failures leading to a growth in litigation. Litigation finance emerged to support parties to prosecute their claims through a world class legal system, which was often financially out of reach for those that were wronged.”

John Walker, Executive Chairman of CASL, was one of the earliest pioneers of litigation finance on a global scale, and had the vision, drive and determination in 1996 to create an industry which did not exist.

Mr Walker said “A strength of CASL is that its team has the track record and reputation, built over decades in the trenches with the lawyers, barristers, insolvency practitioners and experts on some of the country’s largest, most complex and historic disputes. There is no substitute for these relationships and experience.”