How Litigation Finance Can Help People With Disabilities

Did you know one in five Americans have a disability of some kind? This is not a statistic that is quoted all that often and on the outset may not seem related to litigation finance at all.  But recently Tony Coelho, who served as a Representative for California in the United States House of Representatives, connected the two. Mr. Coelho, who suffers from epilepsy after a car accident in his teenage years, has been an avid advocate for rights of all disabled Americans.

Every year there are some Americans who become disabled due to an accident at an unsafe work place.  These Americans have legitimate personal injury claims and deserve compensation for their injury.  However, they likely will not be able to return to work while their case is pending.  So without help, how are these Americans supposed to pay their medical bills or everyday costs of living?

Mr. Coelho suggests that this is where litigation finance can help people with disabilities.  By giving plaintiffs money up front, litigation financiers can help to cover their everyday costs while they await a verdict from their case.

However, there are multiple people and organizations advocating for regulation and changes to be made to the litigation finance industry.  These regulations are not surprising as regulation generally follows extensive growth like what we’ve seen in the litigation funding industry over the past few years.

But it is important to consider the proposed litigation, weighing the costs and benefits.  For example, the New York state legislature is considering a bill from Erik Dilan that includes robust oversight, licensing, and disclosure provisions to regulate legal funders.  While at the same time there is an alternative bill circulating in the Senate that includes far less regulation and oversight, and includes gratuitous rate caps on legal funding advances.

As Americans, we may not be directly sitting in the Senate or in our state legislatures but we do vote for our politicians and we have a right to speak our minds.  Therefore, it is important that as more and more regulation is discussed and suggested, the American people care about this issue.  Not only to protect people with disabilities like Mr. Coelho advocates for but to protect all people so that there can be more justice from our legal system.

Topics:  litigation finance, alternative litigation finance, third-party funding, justice

Works Cited: Tony Coelho, Legal Funding Helps Advance Protections for the Disabled, Timesunion (May 15, 2018).