Bill > H315

This bill, titled the "Prohibit Litigation Investments Act," aims to prevent third parties from investing in civil lawsuits in North Carolina, defining a "litigation investment" as providing money for legal proceedings in exchange for a return contingent on the lawsuit's outcome, with specific exceptions for things like contingency fee arrangements by lawyers, insurer obligations, and certain non-profit or family financial support. It makes such investments unlawful and establishes penalties, including voiding contracts, allowing the Attorney General to seek injunctions and civil penalties up to $50,000 per violation, and enabling individuals harmed by these investments to sue for damages, including treble the investment amount, plus court costs and attorney fees. Additionally, the bill amends the Workers' Compensation Act to increase certain benefits, raising the minimum weekly compensation for total incapacity from $30 to $50, and doubling the maximum compensation for serious facial or head disfigurement to $40,000, for other serious bodily disfigurement to $20,000, and for the loss or injury of important organs or body parts to $40,000, with these workers' compensation changes applying to claims arising on or after July 1, 2027, while the litigation investment provisions apply to civil proceedings and contracts initiated or modified after the bill becomes law.