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The big question in 2018 for the U.S. litigation finance industry is: Just how big can it get? Both domestic and United Kingdom-based outfits have positioned themselves for a busy year ahead, plucking away new hires from Big Law and signing on high-profile ex-judges as advisers. Funders have also raised huge dollar figures, creating greater pressure to deploy that capital. As funding deals become more commonplace, the courts will increasingly have to wrestle with questions of transparency and who is in control.

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