with both Legalist and Longford seeing tremendous growth in terms of exposure and assets under management in that time. At the same time, the intervening years have also seen some challenging developments in the litigation funding space, including some high-profile fund closures and periods where attracting new capital has been very difficult. Still, the industry's trajectory remains on a favorable upward curve and in a sign of continued health, new funds piloted by experienced industry hands have been launched.
Court officials have warned that the defender services program will no longer have funds to pay appointed attorneys for representing criminal defendants who can't afford representation.