Litigation Financing

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A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to litigation financing; providing a 2
short title; designating part I of ch. 69, F.S., 3
entitled "General Provisions"; creating part II of ch. 4
69, F.S., entitled "Litigation Financing"; creating s. 5
69.101, F.S.; providing definitions; creating s. 6
69.103, F.S.; requiring courts to consider potential 7
conflicts of interest that may arise from the 8
existence of a litigation financing agreement in 9
specified circumstances; creating s. 69.105, F.S.; 10
prohibiting specified acts by litigation financiers; 11
creating s. 69.107, F.S.; requiring certain parties 12
that enter into specified litigation financing 13
agreements to serve specified notice; providing 14
requirements for such notices; providing that certain 15
information is not required to be included in such 16
notices; authorizing courts to take specified actions 17
relating to such notices; prohibiting foreign funders 18
from taking specified actions; providing construction; 19
providing penalties; creating s. 69.111, F.S.; 20
providing that a litigation financing agreement is 21
void and unenforceable in specified circumstances; 22
providing for enforcement of specified violations 23
under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices 24
Act; authorizing a court, an agency, or a tribunal of 25

HB 1157 2026

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competent jurisdiction to impose fines or other 26
sanctions for certain violations; providing 27
severability; providing applicability; providing an 28
effective date. 29
30
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 31
32
Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Litigation 33
Investment Safeguards and Transparency Act." 34
Section 2. Sections 69.011, 69.021, 69.031, 69.041, 35
69.051, 69.061, 69.071, and 69.081, Florida Statutes, are 36
designated as part I of chapter 69, Florida Statutes, and 37
entitled "General Provisions." 38
Section 3. Part II of chapter 69, Florida Statutes, 39
consisting of ss. 69.101, 69.103, 69.105, 69.107, and 69.111, 40
Florida Statutes, is created and entitled "Litigation 41
Financing." 42
Section 4. Section 69.101, Florida Statutes, is created to 43
read: 44
69.101 Definitions.—As used in this part, the term: 45
(1) "Foreign funder" means a foreign person, foreign 46
principal, or sovereign wealth fund that provides funding 47
directly or indirectly under a litigation financing agreement. 48
(2) "Foreign person" means a person or an entity that is 49
not: 50

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(a) A citizen of the United States; 51
(b) An alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence in 52
the United States; 53
(c) An unincorporated association, a majority of members 54
of which are citizens of the United States or aliens lawfully 55
admitted for permanent residence in the United States; or 56
(d) A corporation incorporated in the United States. 57
(3) "Foreign principal" means: 58
(a) The government or a government official of any country 59
other than the United States; 60
(b) A political subdivision or political party, or an 61
official thereof, of a country other than the United States; or 62
(c) A partnership, an association, a corporation, an 63
organization, or other combination of persons organized under 64
the laws of, or having its principal place of business in, a 65
country other than the United States whose shares or other 66
ownership interest is owned by the government or a government 67
official of a country other than the United States or owned by a 68
political subdivision or political party, or an official 69
thereof, of a country other than the United States. 70
(4) "Health care practitioner" has the same meaning as in 71
s. 456.001. 72
(5) "Litigation financier" means a person engaged in the 73
business of providing litigation financing. 74
(6) "Litigation financing agreement" means a transaction 75

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in which a litigation financier agrees to provide financing to a 76
person who is a party to or an attorney or a law firm 77
representing a party in a civil action, an administrative 78
proceeding, a claim, or other legal proceeding in exchange for a 79
right to receive payment, which right is contingent in any 80
respect on the outcome of such action, claim, or proceeding or 81
on the outcome of any matter within a portfolio that includes 82
such action, claim, or proceeding and involves the same counsel 83
or affiliated counsel. However, the term does not apply to any 84
of the following: 85
(a) An agreement wherein funds are provided for or to a 86
party to a civil action, an administrative proceeding, a claim, 87
or other legal proceeding for such person's use in paying his or 88
her costs of living or other personal or familial expenses 89
during the pendency of such action, claim, or proceeding and 90
where such funds are not used to finance any litigation or other 91
legal costs. 92
(b) An agreement wherein an attorney consents to provide 93
legal services on a contingency fee basis or to advance his or 94
her client's legal costs, and where such services or costs are 95
provided by the attorney in accordance with the Florida Rules of 96
Professional Conduct. 97
(c) An entity with a preexisting contractual obligation to 98
indemnify or defend a party to a civil action, an administrative 99
proceeding, a claim, or other legal proceeding. 100

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(d) A health insurer that has paid, or is obligated to 101
pay, any sums for health care for an injured person under the 102
terms of a health insurance plan or agreement. 103
(e) The repayment of a financial institution, as defined 104
in s. 655.005(1), for loans made directly to a party to a civil 105
action, an administrative proceeding, a claim, or other legal 106
proceeding or such party's attorney when repayment of the loan 107
is not contingent upon the outcome of such action, claim, or 108
proceeding or upon the outcome of any matter within a portfolio 109
that includes such action, claim, or proceeding and involves the 110
same counsel or affiliated counsel. 111
(f) Funding provided to a nonprofit organization, exempt 112
from federal income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of the United States 113
Internal Revenue Code, provided that the nonprofit organization 114
uses the funding only to provide pro bono legal representation 115
on behalf of a client or engage in litigation on behalf of 116
itself, its members, or a client and does not seek punitive 117
damages, regardless of whether the nonprofit organization seeks 118
an award of costs or attorney fees. 119
(g) Funding provided by a nonprofit organization exempt 120
from federal income tax under s. 501(c)(3) of the United States 121
Internal Revenue Code, by grant or otherwise, to cover the costs 122
and expenses of pro bono legal representation or litigation that 123
does not seek punitive damages, regardless of whether the 124
recipient of the funding seeks an award of costs or attorney 125

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fees. The nonprofit organization may, contingent upon the 126
outcome of the litigation, receive repayment not to exceed the 127
amount of funding provided. 128
(7) "Proprietary information" means information developed, 129
created, or discovered by a person, or which became known by or 130
was conveyed to a person, which has commercial value in the 131
person's business. The term includes, but is not limited to, 132
domain names, trade secrets, copyrights, ideas, techniques, 133
inventions, regardless of whether patentable, and other 134
information of any type relating to designs, configurations, 135
documentation, recorded data, schematics, circuits, mask works, 136
layouts, source code, object code, master works, master 137
databases, algorithms, flow charts, formulae, works of 138
authorship, mechanisms, research, manufacture, improvements, 139
assembly, installation, intellectual property, including patents 140
and patent applications, and information concerning the person's 141
actual or anticipated business, research, or development or 142
received in confidence by or for the person from any other 143
source. 144
(8) "Sovereign wealth fund" means an investment fund owned 145
or controlled by a foreign principal or an agent thereof. 146
Section 5. Section 69.103, Florida Statutes, is created to 147
read: 148
69.103 Litigation financing agreement; representation of 149
client interests; potential conflicts of interest.—A court may 150

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take the existence of a litigation financing agreement into 151
account: 152
(1) In a class action lawsuit brought in the courts of 153
this state when determining whether a class representative or 154
class counsel would adequately and fairly represent the 155
interests of the class. 156
(2) In actions involving a common question of law or fact 157
pending before the court which may be or has been consolidated 158
when determining whether the lead counsel or any co-lead counsel 159
would adequately and fairly represent the interests of the 160
parties to such actions. 161
Section 6. Section 69.105, Florida Statutes, is created to 162
read: 163
69.105 Prohibited conduct.—A litigation financier may not: 164
(1) Direct, or make any decisions with respect to, the 165
course of any civil action, administrative proceeding, claim, or 166
other legal proceeding for which the litigation financier has 167
provided financing, or any settlement or other disposition 168
thereof. This prohibition includes, but is not limited to, 169
decisions in appointing or changing counsel, choice or use of 170
expert witnesses, and litigation strategy. All rights to make 171
decisions with respect to the course and settlement or other 172
disposition of the subject civil action, administrative 173
proceeding, claim, or other legal proceeding remain solely with 174
the parties to such action, claim, or proceeding and their 175

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counsel of record. 176
(2) Contract for or receive, whether directly or 177
indirectly, a larger share of the proceeds of a civil action, an 178
administrative proceeding, a claim, or other legal proceeding 179
financed by a litigation financing agreement than the share of 180
the proceeds collectively recovered by the plaintiffs to any 181
such action, claim, or proceeding after the payment of any 182
attorney fees and costs owed in connection to such action, 183
claim, or proceeding. 184
(3) Pay or offer to pay a commission, referral fee, or 185
other consideration to any person, including an attorney, a law 186
firm, or a health care practitioner, for referring a person to 187
the litigation financier. 188
(4) Assign or securitize a litigation financing agreement, 189
in whole or in part. 190
(5) Be assigned rights to or in a civil action, an 191
administrative proceeding, a claim, or other legal proceeding 192
for which the litigation financier provided financing, other 193
than the right to receive a share of the proceeds of such 194
action, claim, or proceeding pursuant to the litigation 195
financing agreement. 196
Section 7. Section 69.107, Florida Statutes, is created to 197
read: 198
69.107 Transparency for foreign litigation funders.— 199
(1) If a party to a civil action, administrative 200

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proceeding, claim, or other legal proceeding, or that party's 201
counsel of record, has entered into a litigation financing 202
agreement with a foreign person, foreign principal, or sovereign 203
wealth fund, the party shall, within 14 days after execution of 204
the agreement or within 7 days after filing such action, 205
whichever occurs first, file and serve a notice that: 206
(a) Identifies the existence of the funding relationship. 207
(b) Identifies the foreign person, foreign principal, or 208
sovereign wealth fund by legal name and the jurisdiction under 209
the law of which the litigation financing agreement is 210
organized. 211
(c) Identifies each foreign person, foreign principal, or 212
sovereign wealth fund that, directly or indirectly, owns or 213
controls 3 percent or more of the capital, equity, or other 214
beneficial ownership interests in the litigation financier, 215
including the legal name, address, and citizenship or country of 216
incorporation or registration of each such person or entity. 217
(2) The notice required in subsection (1) must be filed 218
with the court, administrative agency, or tribunal in which the 219
action is pending, served on all parties, and provided to the 220
Department of Financial Services and the Office of the Attorney 221
General. 222
(3) The dollar amounts, financing terms, and other 223
proprietary or trade-secret information contained in or related 224
to the litigation financing agreement are not required to be 225

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disclosed in the notice. The court may permit the notice or 226
supporting documentation to be filed under seal and may issue 227
protective orders as necessary to safeguard proprietary or 228
confidential information. 229
(4) A foreign funder or any person acting on behalf of the 230
foreign funder may not: 231
(a) Use a domestic entity or affiliate to conceal or evade 232
the disclosure requirements of this section; or 233
(b) Receive, transmit, or share proprietary, privileged, 234
or national security-related information obtained through 235
litigation financing with any foreign person, foreign principal, 236
or sovereign wealth fund that is not a party or an attorney to 237
the action. 238
(5) The requirements of this section apply to a litigation 239
financing agreement entered into with a litigation financier if 240
a foreign person, foreign principal, or sovereign wealth fund 241
has provided or will provide funds, whether directly or 242
indirectly, to the litigation financier that amount to 5 percent 243
or more of the funds the financier has provided or is committed 244
to provide under the litigation funding agreement. 245
(6) Failure to comply with this section may subject the 246
noncomplying party to appropriate sanctions under s. 69.111 or 247
the applicable rules of civil procedure. This section does not 248
create a private cause of action. 249
Section 8. Section 69.111, Florida Statutes, is created to 250

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read: 251
69.111 Penalties; enforcement.— 252
(1) A litigation financing agreement executed in violation 253
of this part is void and unenforceable. 254
(2) A violation of s. 69.105 is a deceptive and unfair 255
trade practice actionable under part II of chapter 501. 256
(3) A court, an agency, or a tribunal of competent 257
jurisdiction may impose fines or any other sanction it deems 258
appropriate upon any person who violates s. 69.107. 259
Section 9. If any provision of this act or its application 260
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity 261
does not affect other provisions or applications of the act 262
which can be given effect without the invalid provision or 263
application, and to this end the provisions of this act are 264
severable. 265
Section 10. The disclosure requirements in s. 69.107, 266
Florida Statutes, as created by this act, apply to any civil 267
action, administrative proceeding, claim, or other legal 268
proceeding pending or commenced on or after July 1, 2026. Any 269
party to or counsel of record for a civil action, an 270
administrative proceeding, a claim, or other legal proceeding 271
pending on July 1, 2026, who would have been required to make a 272
disclosure under s. 69.107, Florida Statutes, had it been in 273
effect at the time the relevant action occurred, must make such 274
disclosure within 30 days after July 1, 2026. Failure to do so 275

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is sanctionable as provided in s. 69.111, Florida Statutes. 276
Section 11. Except as otherwise provided herein, this act 277
applies to a litigation financing agreement entered into on or 278
after July 1, 2026. 279
Section 12. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 280