Beware the Trolldom: Speculative Interests and Policy Implications behind the Circulation of Damage Claims

Moving from the evaluations operated by Richard Posner in his judgment on the case Carhart v. Halaska, the paper seeks to analyse the so-called “litigation troll” phenomenon and the development of a damage claims market, i.e. a market in which the right to propose claims is voluntary exchangeable for money and can be asserted by private buyers. The aim of the study is to assess whether the implementation of such market might represent a resource for victims or if, on the contrary it might operate solely as a speculation tool for private investors. The analysis moves from the US experience, and then focuses on the EU framework, with specific attention to the Italian experience.