Supreme Court Decision Puts After-The-Event Insurance Under Spotlight

A recent Supreme Court decision confirming that third-party litigation funding in return for a share of the proceeds is unlawful in Ireland has put after-the-event (ATE) insurance back in the spotlight as the only legitimate alternative method of funding litigation in Ireland.

In what was the first Irish case to directly consider third-party funding in Ireland, both the High Court and the Supreme Court in Persona Digital Telephony Ltd v The Minister for Public Enterprise⁽¹⁾ confirmed that the centuries-old common law principles of maintenance and champerty remain in force and that any changes to the law in this area must be driven by the legislature (for further details please see " Old limitations on third-party funding still apply").