Litera has bought FileTrail, an information governance and records management company, for an undisclosed sum.
US-based FileTrail is around 24 years old and works across legal, energy, biopharmaceutical, and financial services sectors. Its law firm clients include: Clifford Chance, Akin Gump, Holland & Knight, Millbank, Sullivan & Cromwell, and Simpson Thacher, to name a few.
Litera said that the deal will help with complementing its ‘CAM, PowerDesktop, and PS/Ship products to create overarching Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) capabilities for law firms and corporations’.
More broadly, Litera – which is owned by the Hg private equity group – said the purchase is all part of the strategy to bring together multiple tools under one platform ‘that unify data management, simplify compliance, streamline transfers, and optimise record disposition’.
Litera CEO Sheryl Hoskins said: ‘Firms have always prioritised information governance and safeguarding client and matter data, but in today’s regulatory environment, it’s become even more critical
‘It is essential for firms to maintain a complete view of client and matter data to comply with their regulatory obligations. FileTrail’s strength lies in its ability to offer a unified view of all data within an organisation, and this integration into Litera’s existing GRC portfolio will provide firms and corporate departments with industry-leading Governance, Risk, and Compliance capabilities.’
FileTrail CEO Harold Westervelt added: ‘The combination of FileTrail’s capabilities, alongside Litera’s CAM, PowerDesktop, and PS/Ship products creates a governance solution that allows our customers to have complete control over sensitive client data.’
Litera noted that with the new addition to what they already have, they can now offer the following when it comes to data governance:
- ‘Comprehensive Data Management: Gain an understanding of how and where client and matter data is stored and used by the firm, across both physical and digital records.
- Integrated Digital Collaboration Management: Ensure the ability to provision, manage, and analyse digital collaboration systems such as document management systems, network file shares, Microsoft Teams, or SharePoint.
- Unified Retention and Compliance Management: View and apply retention policies and outside counsel guidelines on physical and electronic records.
- Streamlined Review and Approval Workflows: Utilise review and approval workflows for the disposition of physical and digital records.
- Seamless Partner and Attorney Transfers: Manage partner and attorney client matter transfers between firms seamlessly.
- Effective Management of Outside Storage Vendors: Implement comprehensive solutions to manage the transfer and storage of sensitive information with outside physical storage vendors.’
So, there you go. It shows that Hg is still looking to fund Litera’s continued expansion, even if the pace of acquisitions is less intense than it was at the start of the decade.