Parabellum Capital

Principals: Howard Shams and Aaron Katz

Founded: 2012

Headquarters: New York

AUM: Approx. $1.4 billion

Headcount: Approx. 20 full-time employees

Firm Overview:

Parabellum Capital is one of the longest-standing and most established commercial litigation funders in North America. Parabellum was founded in 2012 by industry veterans Howard Shams and Aaron Katz, who in 2007 created the first ever commercial litigation finance investment group in the United States. Parabellum’s name comes from the Latin adage si vis pacem, para bellum, meaning “if you want peace, prepare for war.”

Today, Parabellum manages three funds and has assembled a diverse team of talented professionals offering unrivaled origination, underwriting, and portfolio management capabilities within an institutional-grade operational infrastructure. Parabellum has over $1 billion in assets under management, has entered into over 200 investments (including over 50 law firm portfolios), and has exposure to over 1,000 disputes in federal, state, arbitral, and international forums.

Parabellum does not strive to be the biggest litigation funder; it strives to be the best. This means serving its investors by providing stable and strong investment returns; transacting fairly with counterparties on an aligned basis to optimize outcomes; and entering into mutually-beneficial arrangements with law firms to hedge risk and drive business development.

Parabellum is an SEC-registered investment adviser and member of the International Legal Finance Association.

Team:

Parabellum has an accomplished team of both legal and finance professionals that have worked at top-tier law firms and Wall Street institutions, including Davis Polk & Wardwell, Boies Schiller Flexner, Cravath Swaine & Moore, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, Proskauer Rose, DLA Piper, Linklaters, Latham & Watkins, WilmerHale, Paul Hastings, Dorsey & Whitney, The Joseph Saveri Law Firm, White & Case, United States Attorney’s Offices for the Southern District of New York and District of Nevada, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, CohnReznick, Mazars, and Liberty International Underwriters.

Legal Verticals:

Parabellum invests in all manners of commercial disputes. Areas of law mainly include:

• Contract
• Antitrust
• Intellectual Property
• Business Torts
• Bankruptcy and Insolvency
• International Disputes
• Whistleblower

Structures:

Parabellum invests in single-case as well as law firm and corporate portfolio transactions. Parabellum does not maintain an official investment minimum, and has provided amounts ranging from under $1 million to over $50 million. Funds can be used to finance legal spend or for working capital.

Parabellum’s corporate counterparties range from closely-held corporations to large, multinational companies. With respect to law firms, Parabellum has portfolio relationships with firms ranging from boutiques to members of the AmLaw 50.

Jurisdictions:

Parabellum is principally focused on investments within the United States. It has also funded disputes in Canada, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and multiple international arbitration forums.