IL lawmaker intros bill to regulate third-party lawsuit investing

Amid a growing push nationwide for new laws to regulate the booming business of third-party lawsuit investing, a state lawmaker has introduced legislation in Springfield in a bid to bring greater transparency to the practice in Illinois, as well.

State Rep. Dan Ugaste, R-Geneva, filed HB5244 in the Illinois state House of Representatives.

“Other states are acting, and it’s time Illinois does as well,” On Feb. 9, State Rep. Dan Ugaste, R-Geneva, said in a statement announcing the legislation. “If you are going to profit from lawsuits filed in Illinois, you shouldn’t be allowed to hide in the shadows.”

Ugaste’s legislation, as well as new laws being introduced in other states and in the U.S. Congress, has been spurred by mounting concerns over the use of courts in Illinois and elsewhere in the U.S. legal system to generate profits for investors who are not parties to lawsuits or their attorneys.

Rather, ...