Supreme Court of Ireland leave of third party litigation

Woodsford Litigation Funding Limited welcomes the 25 July 2016 decision of the Supreme Court of Ireland to grant leave for an appeal brought by Persona Digital Telephone Limited and Sigma Wireless Networks Limited on the question of the legality of third party litigation funding.  You can read the Supreme Court’s decision here.

The Supreme Court, composed of Denham C.J., McKechnie J., and Dunne J., stated:

“In light of constitutional principles of access to the courts, and thus access to justice, the Court considers that the applicants have raised issues which are of general public importance… As the application may involve the issue of access to justice, and access to the courts, it is a matter of significant importance”.

Steven Friel, Chief Investment Officer at Woodsford Litigation Funding, said:

“We offer an access-to-justice product, funding meritorious claims that would otherwise be thwarted by the costs and risks involved in litigation. I know from experience that there is a demand, particularly from the Irish SME sector, for third party litigation funding. That demand exists because litigation is expensive and uncertain, prohibitively so for many Irish businesses. If the Supreme Court eventually rules that litigation funding is permitted in Ireland, it will mean that Irish parties who are lawfully entitled to compensation, for example due to a breach of contract by a large multinational corporation, or mis-selling of financial products by an international bank, can make use of the financial resources and the strategic experience of professional funders like Woodsford to get justice from the Courts”.

Mr. Friel is a solicitor admitted in England & Wales and in Ireland. He has an international reputation for litigation work, noted by the Legal 500 as having

“the sort of knowledge that one only gets with years of accumulated experience in heavy or complex litigation” and a “strong commercial grip on the relevant legal provisions and financial aspects of cases.”

Woodsford is not directly involved in the Persona/Sigma litigation.