Second Regular Session of the 123rd General Assembly (2024)
PRINTING CODE. Amendments: Whenever an existing statute (or a section of the Indiana
Constitution) is being amended, the text of the existing provision will appear in this style type,
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provision adopted), the text of the new provision will appear in this style type. Also, the
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a new provision to the Indiana Code or the Indiana Constitution.
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between statutes enacted by the 2023 Regular Session of the General Assembly.
HOUSE ENROLLED ACT No. 1160
AN ACT to amend the Indiana Code concerning trade regulation.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana:
SECTION 1. IC 24-12-3-1, AS AMENDED BY P.L.85-2017,
SECTION 97, IS AMENDED TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
JULY 1, 2024]: Sec. 1. A CPAP provider may not do any of the
following:
(1) Pay or offer to pay a commission, referral fee, or other form of
consideration to any attorney, law firm, medical provider,
chiropractor, or physical therapist, or any of their employees for
referring a consumer claimant to the provider.
(2) Accept a commission, referral fee, rebate, or other form of
consideration from an attorney, law firm, medical provider,
chiropractor, or physical therapist, or any of their employees.
(3) Intentionally advertise materially false or misleading
information regarding the CPAP provider's products or services.
(4) Refer, in furtherance of an initial CPAP transaction, a
consumer claimant or potential consumer claimant to a specific
attorney, law firm, medical provider, chiropractor, or physical
therapist, or any of their employees. However, if a consumer
claimant needs legal representation, the CPAP provider may refer
the person to a local or state bar association referral service.
(5) Knowingly provide funding to a consumer claimant who has
previously assigned or sold a part of the consumer claimant's right
to proceeds from the consumer claimant's civil proceeding
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without first making payment to or purchasing a prior unsatisfied
CPAP provider's entire funded amount and contracted charges,
unless a lesser amount is otherwise agreed to in writing by the
prior CPAP provider. However, multiple CPAP providers may
agree to provide a CPAP transaction to a consumer claimant
simultaneously if the consumer claimant and the consumer
claimant's attorney consent to the arrangement in writing.
(6) Receive any right to Make any decision, have any influence,
or direct the consumer claimant or the consumer claimant's
attorney with respect to the conduct of the underlying civil
proceeding or any settlement or resolution of the civil proceeding,
or make any decision with respect to the conduct of the
underlying civil proceeding or any settlement or resolution of the
civil proceeding. The right to make these decisions remains solely
with the consumer claimant and the attorney in the civil
proceeding.
(7) Knowingly pay or offer to pay for court costs, filing fees, or
attorney's fees either during or after the resolution of the civil
proceeding, using funds from the CPAP transaction.
SECTION 2. IC 24-12-11 IS ADDED TO THE INDIANA CODE
AS A NEW CHAPTER TO READ AS FOLLOWS [EFFECTIVE
JULY 1, 2024]:
Chapter 11. Commercial Litigation Financing
Sec. 1. The following definitions apply throughout this chapter:
(1) "Commercial litigation financier" means a person that
enters into, or offers to enter into, a commercial litigation
financing agreement with a plaintiff in a civil proceeding. The
term does not include a nonprofit organization.
(2) "Commercial litigation financing agreement" means a
nonrecourse agreement that a commercial litigation financier
enters into, or offers to enter into, to provide funding to
support a plaintiff or the plaintiff's attorney in prosecuting
the civil proceeding, if the repayment of the funded amount is:
(A) required only if the plaintiff prevails in the civil
proceeding; and
(B) sourced entirely from the proceeds of the civil
proceeding, whether the proceeds result from a judgment,
a settlement, or some other resolution.
The term does not include a civil proceeding advance payment
transaction, an agreement between an attorney and a client
for the attorney to provide legal services on a contingency fee
basis or to advance the client's legal costs, a health insurance
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plan or agreement, a repayment agreement of a financial
institution if repayment is not contingent upon the outcome of
the civil proceeding, a funding agreement to a nonprofit
organization that represents a client on a pro bono basis, or
an agreement of an assigned claim to prosecute an
environmental contamination matter.
(3) "Foreign country of concern" includes the following:
(A) A foreign government listed in 15 CFR 7.4.
(B) A country designated as a threat to critical
infrastructure by the governor under IC 1-1-16-8.
(4) "Foreign entity of concern" means a partnership,
association, corporation, organization, or other combination
of persons:
(A) organized or incorporated in a foreign country of
concern;
(B) owned or controlled by the government, a political
subdivision, or a political party of a foreign country of
concern;
(C) that has a principal place of business in a foreign
country of concern; or
(D) that is owned, organized, or controlled by or affiliated
with a foreign organization that has been:
(i) placed on the federal Office of Foreign Assets Control
specially designated nationals and blocked persons list
("SDN List"); or
(ii) designated by the United States Secretary of State as
a foreign terrorist organization.
(5) "Foreign person" means:
(A) an individual who is not a citizen of the United States
or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence in
the United States;
(B) an unincorporated association, of which a majority of
members are not citizens of the United States or aliens
lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United
States;
(C) a corporation that is not incorporated in the United
States;
(D) the government, a political subdivision, or a political
party of a country other than the United States;
(E) an entity that is organized under the laws of a country
other than the United States;
(F) an entity that has a principal place of business in a
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country other than the United States and that has shares or
other ownership interest held by the government or a
government official of a country other than that of the
United States; and
(G) an employee, official, or member of any entity
described in clauses (B) through (F).
Sec. 2. A commercial litigation financier may not provide
funding to a commercial litigation financing agreement that is
directly or indirectly financed by a foreign entity of concern.
Sec. 3. A party may not disclose or share any documents or
information subject to a court order to seal or protect that is
received in the course of the civil proceeding with a commercial
litigation financier.
Sec. 4. A commercial litigation financier may not make any
decision, have any influence, or direct the plaintiff or the plaintiff's
attorney with respect to the conduct of the underlying civil
proceeding or any settlement or resolution of the civil proceeding,
or make any decision with respect to the conduct of the underlying
civil proceeding or any settlement or resolution of the civil
proceeding. The right to make these decisions remains solely with
the plaintiff and the plaintiff's attorney in the civil proceeding.
Sec. 5. (a) In a civil proceeding in which a plaintiff enters into a
commercial litigation financing agreement, the contents of the
commercial litigation financing agreement are subject to discovery
under the Indiana Rules of Trial Procedure by:
(1) a party other than the plaintiff; or
(2) an insurer that has a duty to defend another party in the
civil proceeding.
(b) In a civil proceeding in which a plaintiff enters into a
commercial litigation financing agreement that is directly or
indirectly financed by a foreign person, the plaintiff or the
plaintiff's attorney shall provide to:
(1) each of the other parties in the civil proceeding; and
(2) each insurer that has a duty to defend another party in the
civil proceeding;
written notice that the plaintiff has entered into a commercial
litigation financing agreement.
(c) A plaintiff or the plaintiff's attorney shall provide the
written notice required by subsection (b) within a reasonable time
after the date on which the commercial litigation financing
agreement was executed.
HEA 1160 — Concur Speaker of the House of Representatives
President of the Senate
President Pro Tempore
Governor of the State of Indiana
Date: Time:
HEA 1160 — Concur