Ayse Yazır ACII

Ayse Yazır joined Bench Walk Advisors in 2018 and is Global Head of Origination, based in London.

She has an outstanding reputation in the litigation funding industry, where she originates, underwrites, and monitors funding in various litigation sectors including international and commercial arbitration, insolvency, class actions and global litigation matters as well as law firm and corporate portfolio arrangements and defense funding. Prior to joining Bench Walk Advisors, Ayse worked as a Technical Manager in Arthur J Gallagher’s dispute resolution team where she worked with international law firms and litigation funders around the world to deliver funding and insurance solutions. She has seven years senior technical underwriting experience with a global funder based in London, where she reviewed over 400 cases a year.

Ayse has been instrumental in drafting rules on third-party funding for both UNCITRAL and ICSID and is currently working at CIArb’s TPF drafting committee. Ayse has been recognised as a ‘Thought Leader: Third-Party Funding’ by Who’s Who Legal for four consecutive years, ranked in Chambers & Partners both in the UK and Europe, Legal500 named as the industry leader, named as one of the top 10 Most Influential Litigation Funders by Business Today and ranked by Lawdragon as the leading funder. Ayse won ‘Leading Dispute Resolution Expert’ at the Lawyer Monthly Awards 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 and won the “Litigation Funder of the Year” award at Finance Monthly Awards 2021 and 2023. She regularly speaks at key industry conferences, including GAR, Legal 500 GC Summit, IBA and EFILA Annual Conference. She has been named a “Woman Leader in the Legal Industry” (2022) by Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar magazines and again in 2023 as a “Role Model in Law” by Vogue. Ayse was chosen as the “Person of the Week” by Green.Org and was the finalist for “Women Leader of 2022” by the Women in Law and Diversity Awards. Ayse was again nominated for this category in 2023.

Ayse was instrumental in founding Istanbul Arbitration Week, which attracted over 1,200 attendees in only its second year. She has published various articles on litigation funding and teaches funding at leading global universities such as Georgetown, Queen Mary, Paris Bar Association and Stockholm University. Ayse is the General Editor of Chambers & Partners Litigation Funding publication and sits on the Advisory Board for the Thought Leader’s Funding Circle Group.

Ayse was awarded the Turkish National State Scholarship to study Turkish Law at Başkent University, where she won various academic prizes and graduated third in her year group. She studied English Law at Nottingham Law School where she graduated with distinction and she holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and is a Chartered Insurer.

Co-author, ‘Access to International Arbitration and Third-Party Funding in Kosovo’, (This article is jointly presented with Michelman & Robinson LLP), 12 August 2021

Co-author, ‘Investor Protection in Europe: What does the future hold?’, Kluwer Arbitration Blog, 7 July 2021.

Author, ‘When is litigation funding the right choice for in- house counsel?’, Lexis®PSL, 18 December 2020

Co-author ‘Summaries Of Arbitration-Related Decisions From The English Courts In 2019’, 18 December 2020

Conferences

IBA Asset Recovery Conference, ‘The rights and role of victims in asset recovery and third-party interference’, Vienna, 7 December 2023

ThoughtLeaders4, Funding in Disputes Circle, ‘The Funders Perspective: Overview of the Litigation Funding Market’, London, 30 November 2023

Istanbul Arbitration Week, Women Leaders Panel, 7 October 2023

Istanbul Arbitration Week, Keynote Speech, 6 October 2023

Balkan Arbitration Conference, Third Party Funding of Arbitration Cases, Zagreb, 28 September 2023

CIArb, Debate on ‘At Least One Member of a Three-Member Tribunal Should be a Non-Lawyer’, London, 12 July 2023

NeoForensics, ‘ AI: Impact on Legal, Litigation Funding and Forensics’, London, 19 July 2023

TOBB University, ‘A Career in Law, London’, Ankara, 5 May 2023

London International Disputes Week, Round Table on International Disputes Boutiques, London, 18 May 2023

The UNCITRAL Working Group III, Side Event ‘Third Party Funding in ISDS’, New York, 4 April 2023

Brown Rudnick European Litigation Funding Conference, Group Actions, London, 16 May 2023

Future Gen Female Event Series, Establishing Yourself in the Workplace, London, 20 February 2023

ThoughtLeaders4, Sovereign & State Disputes & Enforcement & Funding, London, 25 January 2023

Turkish Presidency, ‘How to Use Funding as a Sovereign State’, Ankara, 5 January 2023

GAR Live, Women in Arbitration “Arbitration and Politics”, London, 1 December 2022

Networking Nuance Premiere, ‘Investing in Women’, London, 23 November 2022

New York Arbitration Week & Practical Law Institute, ‘Investment Law and Investor-State Disputes’, New York, 9 November 2022

IMN Conference, “Workshop for Women in Funding”, London, 18 October 2022

IMN Conference, “How to Make Your Case Fundable”, London, 18 October 2022

Legal 500 GC Summit, Istanbul, 13 October 2022

Istanbul Arbitration Week, “Diversity in International Arbitration and Business”, Istanbul, 13 October 2022

Istanbul Arbitration Week, “To be funded or not to be funded…That is the question”, Istanbul, 12 October 2022

The Koc University Law School, Investment Arbitration Day, Istanbul, 24 June 2022

GAR Live Istanbul, 23 June 2022

Paris Arbitration Week, Mayer Brown, ‘Disputes in the Caribbean Energy Sector: Past, Present, and Future’, 30 March 2022

New York Arbitration Week & Practical Law Institute, ‘Investment Law and Investor-State Disputes’, New York, 17 November 2021

Turkey Arbitration Week, Keynote Speaker, Istanbul, 1 November 2021

American Chamber of Commence, ‘Third Party Funding’, Kosovo, 16 March 2021

Raedas, ‘Leading Women in Disputes’, London, 9 March 2021

Hungarian Arbitration Association, ‘Third Party Funding in International Arbitration and Litigation’, Budapest, 4 March 2021

The European Federation Investment Law and Arbitration (EFILA), Annual Conference London, ‘The Renewed Role of States in Arbitration’, London, 14 January 2021

ThoughtLeaders4, Insolvency Conference London, ‘Insolvency Litigation and Funding’, London, 23 March 2020

The United Nations, Working Group III, Vienna, (delegate), 20-24 January 2020

Legal 500, Turkey Disputes Summit, Istanbul, 5 December 2019

Istanbul Arbitration Days (Peters & Peters and Cakmakli Law Firm), 20 September 2019

CIArb, ‘Evolution Not Revolution’, London, 3 September 2019

GAR Live Istanbul, 20 June 2019

INOVARB, Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot, Vienna, 14 April 2019

International Dispute Resolution Group, ‘Dispute Resolution Problems and Solutions’, Istanbul, 20 October 2017

ICC YAF, Litigation Funding for Arbitration Cases’, Istanbul, 22 May 2017

Webinars

Singularity Legal, Litigation Funding Unlocked, 17 August 2023

Brown Rudnick, ‘Women in Business Series: In Coversation with Ayse Lowe’, 17 March 2022

Disputes Europe Latin-America Society, ‘SPACS litigation – Risks for Insurers?’ , 9 March 2022

CMS Istanbul, ‘Yatirim Tahkiminde Farkli Disiplinlerden Bir Bakis’, 20 January 2022

20 Essex Street Chambers London, ‘Investor Protection in Europe and ECTs’, 30 June 2021

Energy Disputes Arbitration Centre Turkey, ‘Energy Arbitration and Litigation Funding’, 15 June 2021

Vienna Arbitration Centre, ‘It’s Not You It’s Me’, 26 May 2021

Legal Global Plus Hong Kong, ‘M&A Disputes Transactions and Litigation Funding’, 26 November 2020

Turkish Law Society and Marmara University, ‘Ucuncu Kisi Finansmani’, 30 September 2020

Yazici Law Firm and ICM Consultancy Ankara, ‘Insaat Sozlesmesinde Uyusmazliklar ve Ucuncu Kisi Finansmani’, 16 June 2020

Istanbul Law Society, ‘Third Party Funding’, 9 June 2020

Guest Lecturer

Westminster University, Guest Lecturer to Law students, 12 December 2023

Georgetown University, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 8 April 2023

Queen Mary University, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 15 March 2023

Koc University, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 9 February 2023

Paris Bar School, Advanced Programme in Investment Arbitration, Guest Lecturer, 5 May 2022

Stockholm University, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 9 February 2022

SOAS University London, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 11 November 2021

Derby University, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 11 November 2021

Astana International Finance Centre and Lipman Karas LLP, Training in Litigation funding for underprivileged students at Kazakhstan University, 20-24 June 2021

Stockholm University, Guest Lecturer to LLM students, 5 February 2021

Podcasts

Marsh McLennan London, ‘Focus on Litigation Funding’, 2 June 2020

Recordings & Interviews:

The Female Fraud Forum, Spotlight Member for International Women's Day, 5 March 2023

Vogue, Leading Litigation Funders in London, 2 June 2023

Commercial Dispute Resolution, ‘Boom time for London’s disputes boutiques’, 11 July 2023

Vogue, ‘Women Role Models in Law,’ 1 November 2023

Hukuk Cizgisi, Istanbul’un Merkez Oldugunu Gosterdik, 23 October 2023

Lawdragon, Istanbul Aribtartion Week Enters Its Second Year, 6 Sepetmber 2023

NeoForensics, ‘AI: Impact on Legal, Litigation Funding and Forensics’, 20 August 2023

Lawdragon, Legal Funding Focus: Ayse Yazir of Bench Walk Advisors, 19 July 2023

VOGUE Interview, chosen as “Vogue Leader”, 17 November 2022

Bloomberg Live at Istanbul Arbitration Week

BVI- Arbitration Life with Janette and Hana

Brown Rudnick, Women in History Month, Interview with Ayse Lowe

Turkish Arbitration Week 2021

Tahkim Yargilamasinda Ucuncu Dava Fonlamasi, 2020

Addleshaw Goddard, ‘Litigation finance- the different model prospective’, 2019

• Member, Women Of Litigation Funding

• Board Member, Istanbul Arbitration Week

• Disputes Europe & Latin-America, Member

• Ambassador to Racial Equality for Arbitration Lawyers (“REAL”)

• The UNCITRAL Working Group III Delegate

• ArbitralWomen Member

• Energy Disputes Arbitration Centre Arbitrator

• Energy Disputes Arbitration Centre Consultant

• The Corporate Counsel International Arbitration Group (CCIAG) Member

• The Society of Construction Law, Events Committee Member