Arizona has become the latest testing ground for Wall Street’s deeper push into the legal system. A recent filing with the Arizona Supreme Court revealed that a company linked to a major investment firm acquired a 20% stake in personal injury law firm Esquire Law. While this is one of the first documented cases of direct investment in an Arizona law firm, it is unlikely to be the last. Bloomberg obtained the filing through a public records request.
“Fortress has $53 billion in assets under management and has a dedicated arm specifically for legal assets. The company in 2024 committed $6.6 billion to litigation finance, it has previously disclosed.”
Billboard lawyers are eager to cash in on Arizona’s permissive rules allowing outside ownership. They see law firms not just as practices but as scalable businesses. The more capital they can attract, the more ads they can run, the more cases they can pull in, and the more they can market themselves for eventual sale – or IPO.
One billboard lawyer has even predicted that law firms will be publicly traded in the next 5 to 10 years. That goal explains why these firms are invested in a system that maximizes profits through unnecessary medical treatments, costly, high-interest rate loans, and a cycle of cases that can drag on indefinitely. Bloomberg noted:
“Esquire Law focuses on representing people injured in car accident cases, touting verdicts and settlements ranging from $400,000 to $750,000, according to its website. Esquire has recovered more than $10 million on behalf of injured Arizona plaintiffs, according to documents filed with the state.”
Plaintiff attorneys emphasize their big wins to draw in additional clients, viewing consumers not as unique individuals but rather as entries on their ever-growing docket of plaintiffs they can draw into expensive treatments, loans, and never ending litigation cycles that rarely return in favor of the consumer.
This is what billboard lawyers want: more financial security means more money they can loan to plaintiffs at exorbitant rates, to then take out of their settlement amounts.
It is crucial to reform the legal system immediately, by insisting on transparency..