Single-Case Financing

Single-case financing is the deployment of capital to fund one discrete claim or arbitration, with the funder's return tied solely to the outcome of that case. Single-case investments carry the highest binary risk profile — the funder wins or loses its entire deployment on one outcome — which is why they require the most intensive underwriting and typically command higher return multiples than portfolio arrangements. Despite the concentration risk, single-case financing remains common for very large commercial arbitrations and bet-the-company litigation where the expected value is large enough to justify the risk on a standalone basis. Law firms and claimants often prefer single-case structures for early-stage funding before a portfolio is large enough to attract a portfolio facility.

Because there is no portfolio-level offset if a single-case investment fails, funders apply their most intensive underwriting and their highest required return multiples here, often commissioning independent legal opinions before committing capital to very large standalone matters. Law firms and claimants often prefer single-case structures for early-stage funding needs before their docket is large enough to support a portfolio facility, which means funders in this segment frequently see claims at an earlier, less-developed stage than portfolio lenders do.