Champerty: A bargain between a stranger and a party to a lawsuit by which the stranger pursues the party’s claim in consideration of receiving part of any judgment proceeds. —Black’s Law Dictionary
The risk that the wealthy and powerful could have an unwanted effect on the judicial system by buying interests in lawsuits, and acquiring thereby some control over their direction, management and settlement, has always placed champerty in the shadows of the law. Over the years, however, that concern has faded, and now only two states—Illinois and Mississippi—make it a criminal offense. Connecticut regulates the practice only through Rule 1.8(i) of the Rules of Professional Conduct, which limits the lawyer’s ability to acquire a proprietary interest in a cause of action she is pursuing for a client to the lawyer’s lien or a contingent fee. And, of course, that restriction applies only to a lawyer and not the public at large. But a recent renewed interest in champerty by certain members of Congress may very well change the prevailing insouciance surrounding the practice.
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