Steven Friel

Woodsford is a collective redress business. We focus on situations where multiple parties, often shareholders or consumers, suffer financial loss following breakdowns in ESG, in particular corporate governance, at major companies. We help the wronged parties collectively seek redress from the wrongdoers. There are two key ways in which we do this, working in close liaison with specialist law firms and other external experts. Engagement Solutions Woodsford identifies significant corporate wrongdoing and related financial loss, brings it to the attention of the affected parties, and helps them collect together to engage with the wrongdoers. We have a particular focus on identifying catastrophic breakdowns in ESG at, and related misrepresentations to the capital markets by, major public equity companies. We bring these issues to the attention of investors, help them quantify their financial losses, and collect them together to engage with the investee company (and sometimes its auditors and other related parties) in the pursuit of accountability and compensation. Our engagements include most of the top 100 global asset managers by AUM, and many state retirement, sovereign wealth and pension funds. To date, we have focused on institutional shareholders. Financial Solutions – Litigation Funding Woodsford operates in jurisdictions where the pursuit of collective redress from major corporate wrongdoers comes with significant financial cost and risk. The legal fees and other costs incurred on claimant side in collective actions can be significant. Further, some of the jurisdictions in which we operate have costs shifting rules that mean that parties who pursue litigation are at risk of being ordered to pay a significant amount of their opponent’s costs if some or all of their case is unsuccessful. Our litigation funding business is in a position to bear some or all of this financial risk.