On Monday, Clio, a 17-year-old Canadian legislation agency administration software program firm, introduced that it has agreed to amass vLex, a 26-year-old authorized information intelligence platform, in a $1 billion cash-and-stock deal.
The announcement comes a few yr after Clio’s large $900 million funding spherical, which practically doubled the Vancouver, British Columbia-based firm’s valuation from $1.6 billion in 2021 to $3 billion.
vLex, which was largely bootstrapped till it was bought by personal fairness agency Oakley Capital in 2022, has been a extremely sought-after asset, in response to Jack Newton, CEO and founding father of Clio.
Harvey, the AI-native authorized tech startup, tried to buy vLex a yr in the past, however the acquisition didn’t come collectively, as reported by The Data final July.
vLex is a worthwhile property as a result of its database of authorized paperwork can tremendously enhance AI fashions for attorneys.
“Information is likely one of the solely long-term defensible aggressive moats an organization can have within the area,” Newton instructed TechCrunch.
vLex competes with the Thomson Reuters-owned authorized database and LexisNexis. The acquisition comes shortly after Harvey introduced a partnership with LexisNexis, aiming to counterpoint Harvey’s AI with LexisNexis information.
With the acquisition of vLex, Clio, which supplies legislation companies with time-tracking, invoicing, and digital fee instruments, is now successfully getting into the observe of legislation itself.
Over the previous couple of years, vLex has constructed Vincent, an AI mannequin constructed on prime of the corporate’s authorized content material database.
“AI goes to drive a convergence of what have traditionally been distinct classes of software program: the enterprise of legislation and the observe of legislation,” Newton mentioned. He added that Clio’s purchasers within the small and medium legislation agency section will now have entry to Vincent’s AI capabilities.
Along with saying plans to amass vLex, Clio mentioned it has reached $300 million in annual recurring income (ARR).
