BURFORD CAPITAL INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LLC

Thesis

Burford Capital Investment Management LLC is a global finance and asset management firm founded in 2009, specializing in commercial legal finance. Their core strategy involves providing non-recourse capital and risk solutions tied to large, complex commercial litigation and arbitration disputes, rather than smaller consumer cases. They focus on areas where their underwriting expertise, scale, data, and reputation provide a competitive edge, with a selective approach to funding requests. Geographically, they operate globally with a significant presence in the US, UK, and major arbitration venues, having offices across the Americas, Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Middle East. Their strategy is divided into Principal Finance, where they invest their balance sheet capital into legal finance assets (single-case finance, portfolio arrangements, law firm finance, claim monetization), and Asset Management, which manages capital for third-party investors. They also engage in asset recovery and law firm equity investments. The firm launched with a $130 million fund and as of April 2025, had approximately $3.4 billion in AUM, with their Asset Management segment managing $3.2 billion of third-party capital in 2023. They committed over $950 million in 2025. While specific check sizes are not detailed, their focus on large disputes and ability to accommodate significant financial needs suggests substantial investments, with a meaningful investment into a firm of McDermott Will & Schulte's size likely requiring hundreds of millions of dollars.