Burford Capital the litigation finance behemoth wants not just to bankroll lawsuits but to buy stakes in actual U.S. law firms. The move isn't your garden-variety PE play; it's a direct challenge to the profession’s no-capital-external-to-the-firm orthodoxy.
Burford, under the ever-quotable Jonathan Molot, (pictured above) told the Financial Times he is floating a structure ripped from healthcare and accounting playbooks: split a law firm into two entities, a lawyer-owned practice handling client work, and a Managed Service Organization (MSO) holding assets and providing back‑office muscle in exchange for a cut. It's a classic “external capital without violating ethics rules.”
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Burford Capital’s move to not just finance lawsuits but also seek ownership in the firms they’re funding is a bold shift in the litigation finance landscape. This will definitely impact the way law firms approach their partnerships.