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Bills › 91st General Assembly

SF 53Died when the session ended · January 23, 2025

Prohibiting litigation financing contracts, and including effective date and applicability provisions

Sponsored by Sen. Adrian Dickey (R)

Topics:Courts & civil law

Write your legislators about it
Official bill pageLobbyist declarationsOne-pager to print

Where it is now

  1. Done: IntroducedJanuary 15, 2025
  2. Done: SubcommitteeJanuary 16, 2025
  3. Stopped: Senate committeeDied when the General Assembly ended
  4. Next: Passes the Senate
  5. Next: House committeeFunnel: by March 20, 2026
  6. Next: Passes the House
  7. Next: To the Governor
  8. Next: Signed into law

Died when the session ended The 2026 session adjourned on May 3, 2026, the General Assembly’s last regular session. Bills that didn’t pass both chambers died. What’s a funnel?

What’s in it

AI summary Iowa would ban agreements where an outside company pays for a person's legal costs in exchange for a piece of their final settlement or court award. This rule does not stop lawyers from working for a percentage of the winnings or paying for a client's legal expenses themselves. The change specifically targets third-party funding rather than standard lawyer fees.1

Read the official explanation

This bill prohibits litigation financing contracts. Litigation financing contracts are agreements between a third party and a plaintiff, an attorney, or a law firm of a civil action in which the third party provides funding for legal expenses in exchange for a percentage of any settlement or judgment.F. Code chapter (workers’ compensation). The bill takes effect upon enactment and applies to litigation financing contracts entered into on or after the effective date of the bill.

Full bill text2

Senate subcommittee

Named January 16, 2025. On January 23, 2025 it recommended passage.

Three legislators hear a bill first and recommend what the committee should do; it’s the best time to weigh in. How to take part

Iowa Code it changes

Creates§537A.7

How the Code works3

Lobbying

1 for · 4 against · 13 undecided · Who →

Family tree

Tried before

SF 2085Cleared committee89th GASF 338Cleared committee90th GA

91st General Assembly

SF 53Cleared committee

Earlier and later bills are matched by wording or an identical title.

Tried before

This idea has been filed in 2 earlier General Assemblies. None got through a chamber.

  • SF 338 Prohibiting litigation financing contracts, and including effective date and applicability…
    90th General Assembly · Approved by committee · same title
    Cleared committee
  • SF 2085 Prohibiting litigation financing contracts
    89th General Assembly · In committee · nearly identical
    Cleared committee

Matched by wording or an identical title.