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Solicitors should advise clients to enter funding agreements with third-party litigation funders that sign up to a new voluntary code of conduct, Lord Justice Jackson said last night. He welcomed publication of the code and creation of the Association of Litigation Funders to monitor compliance with it.

Investec has become the first UK bank to offer litigation funding to clients, with more than £5m already invested in cases following pilot transactions. It said it had acted in response to “increasing demand” from law firms and their clients.

A code of conduct that aims to add stability and credibility to the market for third-party litigation funding could be agreed in less than three months after four years of stalled progress, Legal Futures can reveal. The Civil Justice Council has drafted in Irwin Mitchell senior partner Michael Napier to chair the working party that has been trying to draft a code since 2007.

A new third-party litigation funder launches today with five UK cases already funded and significant backing from a leading private equity firm. Vannin Capital has committed £8m in facilities to fund seven cases in total, including one international arbitration and one US claim.