Prior to his new appointment, Mr Arnott led the Sixth Floor Selborne Wentworth commercial chambers in Sydney. His practice focused particularly on competition law.

Mr Arnott is a graduate of the University of Queensland and former Rhodes Scholar, earning both his BCL and D.Phil degrees from the University of Oxford. He has previously worked as a partner with leading law firms in London and Sydney and has also practised in New York.

Speaking of Mr Arnott’s appointment, Burford CEO Christopher Bogart said the firm would benefit from his “innovative mindset needed to transform the industry in Australia”, in addition to his understanding of local and global commercial law.

“We are very pleased to welcome Craig and believe that his intimate knowledge of commercial litigation will be the driver of our growth in Australia, and Asia more broadly,” Mr Bogart said.

Burford describes itself as a “leading global finance firm focused on law” and provides litigation financing to law firms and corporations. The firm released a statement indicating that Mr Arnott’s appointment showed Burford’s commitment to the local market and “belief in the untapped growth opportunities” for the litigation funding industry in Australia.

“The potential of litigation financing to support growth and innovation in the Australian legal sector has not been fully realised,” Mr Bogart said.

“To date, legal firms and corporates have predominantly used financing to support class actions; however, it is a powerful tool that can allow firms and their clients to treat claims as assets rather than burdensome expenses,” he said.

Burford is traded on the London Stock Exchange and claims to be five times the size of Australia’s largest litigation funding provider.