Addleshaws and three funders have signed up around 500 individuals to bring the claim against the law firm and a foreign business national over advice they gave on technology investment schemes, which they claim were unsuccessful.
The group action, which is still to be filed, is being funded through a groundbreaking financial litigation package combining conditional fee agreements, after-the-event insurance (ATE) and third-party funding.
Brokers Calunius Capital and The Judge arranged the package which is provided by Allianz ProzessFinanz, QBE and Brit Insurance.
It is thought that the ATE package, which stands at around £10m, is one of the largest to date in the
The group allege that the foreign national and a former partner at the law firm are jointly liable for their role in the formation and administration of a number of technology investment schemes between 2002 and 2005.
Legal Week has not published the names of the prospective defendants as a claim form has not yet been issued.
Addleshaws’ team is being led by disputes partner Michael Green with
Green said: “[This] is a significant milestone in securing redress for our clients, in that the funders’ and ATE insurers’ due diligence and decision to invest in the case represents an independent verification of the merits of the investors’ claims. This is a powerful message for any funded claimant to send to any defendant and its insurers.”
Mick Smith, one of Calunius’s founders, commented: “To close this deal in the last few weeks when most financial markets have seized up is another positive step for litigation funding.”
A spokesperson for the law firm said: “This relates to work done a number of years ago by a partner who left over two years ago to join another firm. Beachcroft is instructed to handle this and we will contest liability.”
