Bentham Europe appoints Irwin Mitchell lawyer as chief investment officer

Bentham Europe, the third party litigation funder, has appointed a commercial lawyer to become its new chief investment officer (CIO).

Irwin Mitchell partner Jeremy Marshall will join Bentham Europe in October. Marshall was formerly the head of litigation and dispute resolution at the firm's London office. His experience as a commercial litigator, with particular expertise in UK securities litigation arising out of market misconduct, is seen as key for the funder's expansion into Europe.

Bentham Europe's aim is to become Europe's leading litigation funder by investing in a broad range of high value commercial litigation and international arbitration claims. The funder will focus on cartel cases, multi-party actions, and securities litigation with a claim value of over £5m in single-party cases and more than £30m in multi-party cases.

Commenting on his appointment, Marshall said: "I am delighted to be joining a funder with such a strong pedigree and the ability really to transform the market. Bentham IMF is the leading global litigation funder and with the expansion into Europe we will build on Bentham's internationally recognised reputation. The opportunities are significant and I look forward to developing the European market as we fund major commercial litigation and arbitration claims."

Marshall will work closely with Bentham Europe's managing director, John Walker. "We are thrilled that Jeremy has joined Bentham Europe at this exciting time," said Walker. "Bentham Europe's ambition is to become Europe's leading third party litigation funder and we have a solid base on which to grow our already strong team."

Walker continued: "We are looking to reinvent the market for third party litigation funding with a streamlined approach to choosing cases and the financial ability to fund the largest multi-party claims. Having an experienced litigator, like Jeremy, with significant experience of the UK market will be a direct benefit to the law firms and the in-house community we will be working closely with."