The coalition requests that the Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure recommend adoption of a proposed amendment to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(1)(A) that would require parties in federal civil cases to disclose third‑party litigation funding arrangements. The proposed amendment would require disclosure of any agreement under which a non‑attorney third party has a right to receive compensation contingent on the outcome of a civil action, and would require production of the funding agreement itself at the outset of litigation, similar to existing disclosure requirements for insurance agreements.
The letter provides information intended to support the proposal, including descriptions of recent litigation involving third‑party funders, examples of funding agreements cited in court decisions and academic literature, data on the growth and scope of the litigation funding market, references to reports by the Government Accountability Office and other sources, and a survey of existing judicial orders and local rules addressing funding disclosure. It also attaches the full text of the proposed Rule 26 amendment and urges the Committee to move forward with recommending its adoption to create a uniform federal disclosure requirement.
