SB 484 - This act establishes the "Litigation Financing Consumer Protection Act". A litigation financier shall not engage in litigation financing in the state unless the financier is registered, as set forth in the act, and has filed a bond of $50,000. The list of requirements a litigation financier shall fulfill when engaged in litigation financing are set forth in the act. A litigation financier shall not pay or offer to pay commissions, referral fees, or other forms of consideration to certain professionals or entities for referring a consumer to the litigation financier. A list of other acts a litigation financier shall not engage in are listed in the act.
Litigation financing contracts shall contain disclosures set forth in the act, which shall constitute material terms of the litigation financing contract.
Any violation of the provisions of the act shall make the litigation financing contract unenforceable by the litigation financier, the consumer, or any successor-in-interest to the litigation financing contract. Further, any violation of the provisions of the act shall constitute a violation of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act and shall be enforced by the Attorney General.
The contingent right to receive an amount of the potential proceeds of a legal claim may be assigned by a consumer and such assignment is valid for the purposes of obtaining litigation financing from a litigation financier.
Litigation financing transactions shall not exceed a term of 3 years and are limited to a maximum yearly fee, as calculated in the act.
This act is similar to HCS/HB 519 (2019) and HB 2226 (2018).
JAMIE ANDREWS