Neil Woodford investors sue administrators of collapsed fund
Investors who lost millions in the collapse of a fund run by the former star stockpicker Neil Woodford have brought group litigation against the administrator in hopes of recouping at least £18m.
The law firm Harcus Parker lodged its first batch of claims on behalf of 1,500 savers at the high court in London on Friday morning. Woodford himself is not the target – the claim is against the administrator of his fund, Link Fund Solutions, which is accused of failing in its duty to protect investors. Lawyers expect to expand the suit to represent at least 7,000 claimants.
The case will pile pressure on Link, which is also facing a claim from another law firm, Leigh Day, which could represent up to 12,000 investors.
UK regulations put administrators such as Link in charge of monitoring and supervising the investments executed by the fund managers.
Harcus Parker claims Link breached UK rules that require the firm to monitor financial risks and the liquidity of the fund, referring to how quickly investments could be converted to cash in order to pay investors. Poor performance of a number of Woodford’s investments, combined with his decision to put money in a number of private unlisted companies that were harder to sell, led to the fund’s suspension and eventual collapse in October 2019.
The once-star fund manager was subsequently removed as investment manager, and its administrator, Link, wound it down, returning money to many investors at a steep loss.
Harcus Parker is now suing Link for at least £18m, which it says is based on calculations of what investors would have earned through their investment had the firm not collapsed. The figure is also understood to take into account money that has been returned to investors through the
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