Lawsuit Loans

Interesting article from the New York Times on services that offer loans to litigants and the high interest rates typically charged: Lawsuit Loans Add New Risk for the Injured, by Binyamin Appelbaum.  The article discusses the movement to subject such loans, and their high interest rates, to regulation.  Of course, if the interest rates able to be charged are limited by state law, the effect may be to destroy the lawsuit loan market, because the default risk for such loans may be high enough that only a high-interest rate lending model may be profitable over the long term.  Losing such loans would be unfortunate, because litigants with meritorious cases may need access to funds while the the justice system processes the case.  Instead of regulatory capping of interest rates, why not instead rely on clear disclosure of rates in contracts, and market forces of vying lenders competing over interest rates?

BGS