Can I get a cash advance on my lawsuit in South Carolina, and what does South Carolina law say?

By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.

The 2014 Department of Consumer Affairs ruling

The South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs (SCDCA) issues administrative interpretations of the Consumer Protection Code, Title 37. Interpretation 3.104,106-1403, issued November 14, 2014, is summarized in the Department’s own index in one sentence: “Litigation funding transactions constitute a ‘loan’ under the Consumer Protection Code” (SCDCA Chapter 3 interpretations). The number appears to refer to code sections 37-3-104 and 37-3-106. When we opened the posted copy of the interpretation itself we could not read its text, so we rely here on the Department’s summary and on the code text.

Two cautions. An agency interpretation is the regulator’s reading of the law, and a court could read it differently; we found no South Carolina appellate decision on whether these advances are loans. The Department also says its interpretations are for information and recommends confirming with it that one has not been superseded. The national debate over the loan question is covered in is a lawsuit cash advance a loan.

What the Consumer Protection Code requires of a lender

These rules come from the official text of Title 37, Chapter 3 and Chapter 5.

• What a loan is. Section 37-3-106 defines a loan to include “the creation of debt by the lender’s payment of or agreement to pay money to the debtor.”
• What a consumer loan is. Under section 37-3-104, it is a loan by someone regularly engaged in lending, to a person who is not an organization, mainly for personal, family or household purposes, that is payable in installments or carries a finance charge, within the code’s dollar limit. The code text sets that limit at $25,000 (or a loan secured by land), and certain code dollar amounts are adjusted every two years under section 37-1-109, so check the current figure with the Department (SCDCA dollar amount adjustment).
• When a license is needed. A consumer loan with a finance charge above 12 percent a year is generally a “supervised loan” (section 37-3-501). Section 37-3-502 bars anyone from making supervised loans unless it is a supervised financial organization or has a license from the State Board of Financial Institutions.
• What can be charged. A lender without that license is held to 12 percent a year (section 37-3-201(1)). A licensed lender may charge more under the options in section 37-3-201(2), which include rates in the schedule it files with SCDCA and posts where it makes loans (section 37-3-305).
• Your remedies. Section 37-5-202(1) lets a consumer sue a lender that made supervised loans without the license for actual damages and a penalty of $100 to $1,000, with short filing deadlines. Under section 37-5-202(2), “A consumer is not obligated to pay a charge in excess of that allowed by this title” and can get a refund of an excess charge.

How charges grow on these contracts is explained in how much pre-settlement funding costs.

South Carolina abolished champerty as a defense

In Osprey, Inc. v. Cabana Limited Partnership (May 15, 2000), the South Carolina Supreme Court said: “We abolish champerty as a defense.” It reasoned that other rules do the job better, including lawyer discipline, court sanctions for frivolous suits, the barratry statute, and contract doctrines such as unconscionability and good faith.

The court added that abolishing champerty “does not mean that all such agreements are enforceable as written.” A court is to ask whether the arrangement is “fair and reasonable under the circumstances,” looking at factors such as the parties’ bargaining positions, whether both understood the terms, whether the person could have pursued the suit without the money, and whether the financier takes a disproportionate share. A court may then enforce, modify or set aside the agreement.

A consumer legal funding bill that did not move

H. 4521, the proposed South Carolina Transparency in Consumer Legal Funding Act, was introduced May 6, 2025. It would have required companies to register with the Secretary of State, given consumers ten business days to cancel, required the consumer’s attorney to sign an acknowledgment, and banned referral fees. It did not cap charges. The legislature’s bill page shows its last action as referral to the House Judiciary Committee on May 6, 2025, and we did not find it among the acts passed in the 2025-2026 session. Cancellation rights in other states are compared in right to cancel lawsuit funding.

Your filing deadline in South Carolina

Under S.C. Code 15-3-530(5), an action “for assault, battery, or any injury to the person or rights of another” must generally be brought within three years. Some claims have other deadlines, so confirm yours with a lawyer. A cash advance does not pause it.

What to ask before you sign

• Does the company hold a South Carolina supervised lender license from the State Board of Financial Institutions?
• Has it filed a maximum rate schedule with SCDCA, and does the contract’s charge fit within it?
• What will you owe at 6, 12, 24 and 36 months, in dollars?
• Is there a cancellation period, even though no statute requires one?
• Has your lawyer read the whole contract? Our contract red flags page lists clauses to look for.

Common questions

Related pages

Cash advance on a lawsuit · Laws by state · Injury law FAQs

Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 7, 2026.