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

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

What we did and did not find

We found no Louisiana statute regulating the price, disclosures or cancellation rights of an advance made to an injured person for living costs. We also found no Louisiana appellate decision on whether such an advance is a loan, and no published position from the Attorney General or the Office of Financial Institutions on these products.

Two later bills by Representative Emily Chenevert carry the same title, “Provides relative to disclosure of financing agreements.” The legislature’s site shows HB 432 (2025) last referred to the Senate Judiciary A committee and HB 240 (2026) referred to the House Committee on Civil Law and Procedure on March 9, 2026. Neither page lists an Act number. We did not review their text, so we do not describe what they would have done. The laws by state table will change if Louisiana passes something.

Act 765 of 2024, section by section

Senate Bill 355, by Senator Jeremy Stine, became Act 765. It was signed June 19, 2024 and took effect August 1, 2024. The act text adds two chapters to Title 9 of the Revised Statutes.

The first is the “Transparency and Limitations on Foreign Third-Party Litigation Funding Act” (R.S. 9:3580.1). It is aimed at funders tied to governments on a federal list of foreign countries of concern. Under R.S. 9:3580.3, such a funder must disclose those foreign entities to the Attorney General and hand over the agreement, generally within 30 days. The act says agreements that break that chapter are “null and void.”

The second is the “Litigation Financing Disclosure Act” (R.S. 9:3580.10 to 3580.12). Two rules in R.S. 9:3580.12 matter most to a client:

• A litigation financer “shall not decide, influence, or direct the party or the party’s attorney” on how the case is run or settled. “The right to make these decisions remains solely with the party and the party’s attorney.”
• The existence of a financing agreement “is subject to discovery in accordance with the Code of Civil Procedure and Code of Evidence” in civil actions. The other side can ask whether one exists.

For how control and secrecy questions play out in general, see can a funding company control my case and lawsuit funding and attorney-client privilege.

Does Act 765 reach an advance for rent and bills?

Probably not, though no court has said so. The disclosure chapter defines a “litigation financer” by pointing to the definition of “third-party litigation funder” in R.S. 9:3580.2(7). That definition excludes a person or company that funds only a party’s living or personal and family expenses, when the money is not used for litigation expenses. Section 9:3580.2(4) in turn says “litigation expenses” do not include money for food, rent, a mortgage, car payments or medical bills.

The Disclosure Act’s own definition of “litigation financing” covers money for fees, costs and expenses “directly related to pursuing” the claim. Read together, an advance that pays only household costs appears to sit outside both chapters. If your advance is of that kind, do not assume the control ban protects you. Read the contract’s own terms on settlement and ask your lawyer.

Louisiana interest and lending law

Under R.S. 9:3500(C)(1), conventional interest “cannot exceed twelve percent per annum” and must be fixed in writing. Parts of the same section do not apply to consumer credit transactions as defined by the Louisiana Consumer Credit Law, which has its own rules.

That law defines a “consumer loan” as a loan of money made by a supervised financial organization, a licensed lender or another lender, entered into primarily for personal, family or household purposes (R.S. 9:3516(14)). Whether a non-recourse advance, owed only if the case pays, counts as a loan under either statute is the open question. We found no Louisiana decision answering it. Courts in other states have split; is a lawsuit cash advance a loan walks through their reasoning. We also found no Louisiana case voiding a consumer advance as champerty, the old common-law rule against outsiders buying into lawsuits.

Louisiana lets lawyers help in hardship cases

Louisiana’s version of Rule 1.8(e) is unusual. Like most states, it bars a lawyer from giving a client financial help in connection with litigation, apart from court costs and litigation expenses. But Rule 1.8(e)(4) adds that “a lawyer may provide financial assistance to a client who is in necessitous circumstances,” subject to limits:

• After reasonable inquiry, the lawyer must find that without minimal help the client’s ability to start or keep the case going would suffer.
• The offer may not be used to win the client, may not be made before the lawyer is hired, and may not be advertised.
• The amount may not exceed the minimum needed for documented living costs such as food, shelter, utilities and transportation.
• Under paragraph (e)(5), money lent straight from the lawyer may carry no interest or fees. If the lawyer arranges a loan through an outside lender instead, the charges passed on are capped at the lender’s actual charge or prime plus 10 points, whichever is less, and the client must agree in writing.

Whether to offer this help is up to the lawyer. See can my lawyer give me money before settlement for how other states compare.

Your deadline changed in 2024

Act 423 of 2024 repealed Civil Code articles 3492 and 3493 and created article 3493.1: “Delictual actions are subject to a liberative prescription of two years,” running from the day the injury or damage is sustained. The act says it applies “prospectively only” to delictual actions arising after July 1, 2024 (Act 423, section 3). An injury before that date may fall under the former one-year rule of article 3492. An advance does not pause either clock.

Where to complain in Louisiana

The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection section says: “To report unfair or deceptive practices, file a dispute or call our hotline at 1-800-351-4889.” The online dispute form is on the same site. The office notes that it handles civil matters, not criminal conduct.

What to ask before you sign

• Is this money for my living costs or for my case expenses? The answer may decide whether Act 765 applies.
• Does the contract give the company any say over settlement, and what happens if I settle for less than it hoped?
• If the other side asks in discovery whether I have funding, what will my lawyer need to disclose?
• Is my lawyer able and willing to help under Rule 1.8(e)(4) instead?

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.