Gavelytics to Close: ‘We got extremely close to success’

Litigation analytics pioneer Gavelytics, created by LA-based Rick Merrill, is to close.

Merrill told Artificial Lawyer this afternoon: ‘I remain vastly enthusiastic about the potential of the legal tech industry. It’s nowhere close to where it can get, and I really hope I can continue working in this great space.’

This site first covered the company back in November 2017. From there it expanded steadily, but now, clearly, has reached a point where it can no longer continue as it is. However, it is understood that the closure is due to several reasons, rather than a single cause, e.g. funding.

In addition, Merrill shared a statement on LinkedIn this evening, which states:

‘This week I made the difficult decision to close Gavelytics. Despite our fast start and many accomplishments, I have been unable to grow the business fast enough to secure sufficient financing to continue.

I am very proud of our team and the value we have delivered to our clients. We invented the category of state court analytics. We earned the loyalty of many of the world’s largest law firms and insurance companies. We patented multiple elements of our technology. We built things never before built and answered litigation-related questions never before answerable. We did many great things, just not fast enough.

I am very sorry for our team members, investors and clients. We got extremely close to success but ultimately fell short. I will always be proud of our ambition’s reach, even though it exceeded our grasp.’

My commiserations to Rick and the team. Over the years I have got to know Rick well and even met up in LA with him and the team back in 2019. I am sure that he and those around him will quickly bounce back and move onto new projects. Good luck to everyone at Gavelytics. You did great and pioneering work.

Richard Tromans, Founder, Artificial Lawyer.