The Whac-A-Mole Game: An Empirical Analysis of the Regulation of Litigant Third Party Financing

Abstract

Using a unique private dataset from one of the largest consumer litigation financing firms in the U.S., we are the first to explore the impact of states' regulatory activity (statutory or judicial) on funders' behavior and consumers' welfare. Our comprehensive dataset includes data on over 105,000 third party funding agreements from 2000 throughout 2020 and data we compiled ourselves from court decisions, state legislation, and regulatory actions.