Thomson Reuters launches itself in the LPO market with Pangea3 acquisition

Global leading financial news and  business information provider Thomson Reuters  is all set to launch itself into the Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO) sector and in that regard has announced that it is acquiring leading LPO, Pangea3. Co-founder of Pangea3, Sanjay Kamlani has said that there will be no changes in the management and this move will lead to exponential growth for Pangea3.

Global leading financial news and  business information provider Thomson Reuters  is all set to launch itself into the Legal Process Outsourcing (LPO) sector and in that regard has announced that it is acquiring leading LPO, Pangea3.

Pangea3 which was founded by David Perla and Sanjay Kamlani, has private equity investment from the Glenrock Group, which invested $4million (Rs. 18 crore) in 2006 and Sequoia Capital, which invested $7 million (Rs. 31 crore) in 2007. Business Standard which first reported the acquisition estimated the acquisition to be valued at around $35-40 million (Rs. 157-200 crore). 

The economic daily also goes on to report that Pangea3, has over 650 employees, offers services like patent analytics and patent prosecution services, legal research, business and competitive intelligence services, commercial contracting and licensing services among others and is expected to have an annual revenue of $25-30 million (Rs.113-135 crore).

In a press release, Peter Warwick, president and chief executive officer of Thomson Reuters, Legal, said,"Pangea3 is true to our mission to help the legal system perform better, every day, worldwide; we will now bring to the legal marketplace a responsive, high-quality, transformative resource for a broad range of legal support work. This is particularly important as law firms and general counsel adjusts to the realities of the 'new normal,' where efficiency, quality and responsiveness are paramount." 

The press release also went on to quote co-founders of Pangea3, Davil Perla and Sanjay Kamlani who said, “Joining forces with Thomson Reuters will further accelerate and expand our ability to provide impactful and transformative solutions to our corporate and law firm clients. Thomson Reuters is the perfect partner for Pangea3's clients and team-members to continue to grow and solve the increasingly complex and expensive challenges facing legal professionals around the globe." Perla and Kamlani will continue in their current roles, and all 650 Pangea3 employees will join Thomson Reuters.

Speaking to Bar & Bench, Co-founder of Pangea3, Sanjay Kamlani said, "Thomson Reuters Legal and Pangea3 synergies are very similar. Both Thomson Reuters Legal and Pangea3 have the same vision which is to change the way lawyers all over the world practice. The merger would add more value to both the companies and is a perfect fit." On being asked the difference between growing independently versus growing through the merger, Kamlani said, "Pangea3 was already witnessing a 100 percent year on year growth and has been on target ever since its launch. I think the merger with Thomson  will see an exponential growth for Pangea3." Kamlani also went on to add that there will no changes in the management, saying, "There will be no changes in the management or structure. Everyone will stay where they are and everybody is excited and looking forward to working with Thomson."

The acquisition comes close on the heels of LPO UnitedLex’s acquisition of fellow LPO LawScribe. In 2009, Thomson Reuters had taken small steps into the legal database market with its acquisition of legal information company, Indlaw Communications.