Legal support and funding to hold those that cause harm to account and drive positive change.
Purpose Litigation is an innovative approach to identifying, building, and funding claims that drive constructive societal change and deliver measurable positive impact with a focus on three core themes: Climate, Environment and Human Rights and Governance.
Driving change and delivering impact through legal action and participation in legal and political institutions is not new to Mishcon de Reya. It is in the DNA of our firm, from the role Lord Mishcon played on the 1957 Wolfenden report which led to the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the UK, to defending a claim brought by Holocaust denier David Irving in 2000, to acting for Gina Miller in two landmark constitutional cases in 2017 and 2019.
The unusual depth of our experience in this area is not accidental – it reflects what we see as the proper role of a lawyer in public life and is central to the ethos and culture of our firm. We are also unusual by nature of our in-house capability in data science and global group actions management through Somos, which, along with our litigation finance venture MDR Solutions I, provides a strong platform for us to build, identify and fund claims.
We have strong relationships with ESG funders, philanthropic and crowdfunding organisations and NGOs that invest in legal claims which drive change and deliver impact and with national and international law firms that can support claims in this jurisdiction and other jurisdictions.
How we can help
Claims come through to our team in a variety of ways. Some are identified in-house or are brought to us through partners and can include:
- Group and representative claims
- Judicial reviews and other claims for declaratory relief
- Regulatory complaints
- Test cases
- Competition litigation
- Complaints to international judicial/quasi-judicial bodies
- Shareholder activism
We can represent clients in England and Wales as well as in other international jurisdictions.
Funding
Purpose-led Litigation is a commercial proposition. Funding is secured via litigation funders (including MDR Solutions I), ESG funders, philanthropists, crowdfunding organisations, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Book building and case management
Our in-house claims management team will assist the legal team in managing cases with book building primarily undertaken by our group company, Somos.
Impact assessment
Mishcon Purpose is developing innovative approaches to measuring impact beyond the quantum of damages in a particular claim. These are being progressed in conjunction with partners in academia and leading economists. Find out more about the Climate Science and Law Forum.