The Rumors Were True: Thomson Reuters Acquires Casetext for $650M Cash
Author: Bob Ambrogi – Law Sites
…As I wrote of Casetext just two weeks ago, as it marked its 10th anniversary, “From the very start, Casetext was an innovator, always pushing the envelope for what a legal tech product and company should look like. By doing that, it has been always a trailblazer, never a follower.”
…While I am thrilled for Casetext’s founders, who have worked hard for 10 years to create one of the most innovative tech companies in legal, I fear for the implications of the loss of a feisty competitor. Not only has Casetext been innovative, but it has launched products so original that other companies have had to scurry to catch up with them.
I want to expand on Bob’s excellent commentary with a bit of market history context. Many innovative eDiscovery private companies have died on the vine after being acquired by public corporations. Even if their IP survives, they usually lose their brand and tight customer community. Remember Summation, LAW PreDiscovery, CaseLogistix, Concordance, Autonomy (not HP’s fault) and more? What really struck me was the HUGE 130x multiple that Jake Heller and team took home on an AI company with $4.9M in revenue. My friend and mentor Skip Walter reportedly named one of the first eDiscovery analytics platforms Attenex for the 10x review efficiency and the target exit multiple. We are definitely in an A.I. driven hype cycle, but this proves that eDiscovery is still a key technology innovation hub.