Stewart Ackerly

Stewart is a Director at Statera Capital.  He leads Statera’s origination efforts and focuses on business development, client engagement, and Statera’s public policy initiatives. He is based in Washington, D.C.

Stewart is responsible for bringing commercial litigation finance to new markets and expanding the universe of lawyers and clients that can utilize litigation finance to level the playing field and ensure access to justice.  He also works closely with companies on how litigation finance can de-risk the pursuit of meritorious disputes and be an important financial tool for in-house legal departments and companies generally.  Stewart frequently speaks at bar association meetings, conferences, law firm retreats, and CLEs about commercial legal finance, best practices for its use, and its growing availability to lawyers and clients with meritorious legal disputes. 

Stewart is a former trial lawyer with unique experience in the public and private sectors. Stewart joined Statera having practiced law at Williams & Connolly LLP, one of the world’s preeminent litigation law firms. As a commercial litigator at Williams & Connolly, Stewart represented Fortune 50 companies, sovereign nations, and other clients in complex commercial litigation and arbitration. Before joining Williams & Connolly, Stewart clerked for Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

Stewart previously served as Chief of Staff at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, the U.S. Government’s $60 billion development bank that facilitates financial solutions to critical challenges in emerging markets. Prior to that role, Stewart served as Deputy Chief of Staff at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, where he helped negotiate the USMCA.

Stewart received his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Virginia, where he received numerous honors. In law school, Stewart graduated Order of the Coif and served on the Law Review and as the Student Member of the Board of Visitors. He also received the Gray-Carrington Memorial Scholarship, Ernest H. Ern Distinguished Student Award, and Raven Award.