LexisNexis to acquire Law360 news site

John Roberts of PaidContent.org writes that LexisNexis has agreed to acquire the legal news site Law360.com for an undisclosed amount.

Roberts writes, “Law360 started in New York in 2004, and now has reporters in six different cities, including Washington and Chicago. The site is a highly paywalled operation that sells access to packages of newsletters, some of which reportedly cost tens of thousands a year. Clients include law firms and companies.

“In a release, LexisNexis portrayed the acquisition as part of a strategic growth plan in which news is a key ingredient in the package of tools it sells to lawyers.

“The purchase comes at a time of disruption for the legal industry and for the industries that provide services to it. The financial crisis eliminated both law firms and businesses, and led survivors to scrutinize operation costs. The crunch has also forced firms to be more vigilant about legal research costs which are typically passed on to clients in the same way as fax and photocopy expenses.

“In this environment, companies like LexisNexis want to use news as a gateway to their research products and to encourage existing customers to keep their subscriptions. Thomson Reuters, for instance, launched a specialized legal news team partly as a means to protect its market-leading product Westlaw.”

Read more here. Talking Biz News profiled Law360 back in October 2011.