The recent explosion of class action lawsuits and third-party litigation funding in Britain is argued to be damaging the UK economy and its reputation for legal stability, often primarily enriching funders rather than compensating victims, says James Price

American cinema has long loved the class action lawsuit. Hundreds, maybe thousands of little guys ganging up to take on shady corporates. E pluribus unum, indeed. Erin Brockovich, Dark Waters, and my favourite, the dark and brooding Michael Clayton are all variations on a common theme.

Britain has got in on the action recently, as well. Mr Bates vs The Post Office was a smash hit and led to changes in the law. It even cameoed my old boss, Nadhim Zahawi, playing a more svelte and mostly believable version of himself in a pivotal select committee scene.

Whilst we can all enjoy these feel-good moments, the reality in Britain is that the explosion of these class action cases is doing more to damage our economy than it is to provide compensation to ordinary people.

An Adam Smith Institute paper, entitled ‘Judge Dread: How lawfare undermines business confidence in the UK’ warned........

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