Burford offers a range of legal finance solutions to alleviate the challenges law firms and their clients face as they work to meet financial deadlines at the end of the year. One solution is fee and judgment acceleration.
For law firms, Burford can purchase a portion of a firm’s outstanding hourly or contingent-fee receivables, enabling the firm to generate immediate revenue. For clients with a judgment, settlement or other positive result in place, Burford can purchase some or all of the outstanding legal receivable and convert it to cash.
Below, we provide case studies illustrating the many forms acceleration can take.
Acceleration for law firms
Recognizing revenue at year-end
An AmLaw 75 firm wanted to recognize as much revenue as possible by year-end to optimize partner distributions and meet internal revenue goals. Burford purchased seven figures’ worth of the firm’s hourly receivables at a cost-effective rate that represented significant savings compared to what the firm would likely have received from negotiating timely but discounted client payments (and without lowering the bar for future payment cycles).
Accessing debt-free business capital
A plaintiff firm’s most significant contingent-fee matter had been resolved, but payment of the settlement—and the firm’s fee—was delayed by the court approval process. Burford accelerated the firm’s contingent fee, enabling the firm to pursue new endeavors without sacrificing partnership draws
Acceleration for companies
Pursuing new business lines
A company that previously had entered into a staged-payment settlement needed capital to pursue a new area of business. Burford provided financing to accelerate the settlement, converting future payments spread over several years into a single lump sum for the plaintiff.
Accelerating patent licensing payments
A small startup licensed its Wi-Fi patent to a global technology company, with licensing fees spread out over 20 years. In order to continue scaling its business, however, the startup needed immediate access to capital. Burford accelerated the startup’s future payments as a lump sum, enabling the startup to continue growing without disruption to the business.
Acceleration for defendants
Settling litigation over time
A defendant company needed funds to settle litigation, but preferred not to pay the full settlement in one cycle for accounting purposes. Burford provided financing to immediately pay the plaintiff on the company’s behalf, allowing the defendant company to pay Burford back over time and avoid potential cashflow issues resulting from making the payment all at once.
