Leading eDiscovery provider Inventus Solutions has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by RPX Corporation from Santa Monica-based private equity house Clearlake Capital Group in a deal that is expected to close in January 2016.
Inventus provides eDiscovery services to Fortune 1000 corporations, global law firms and government agencies and the deal will see it become a subsidiary of RPX, which provides patent risk management solutions.
Inventus, which has 175 employees and is headquartered in Chicago, was acquired by Clearlake in June 2013. It swiftly went on to expand its presence in the US with the acquisition in October 2013 of the California and West Coast offices of electronic eDiscovery provider Teris. More recently, Inventus expanded internationally with the acquisition in March 2015 of London-based eDiscovery provider Unified, followed by the acquisition in June this year of software developer Kooby, to expand Inventus’ own software development capability.
“Our thesis was to partner with management and execute on a buy and build platform strategy to lead consolidation in the eDiscovery market. This transaction reflects Clearlake’s success with this investment strategy and represents an exceptional investment for both the company and Clearlake,” said Behdad Eghbali, a founding partner at Clearlake.
“We are pleased to have sponsored Inventus during a period of significant transformation for both the company and the broader industry. Inventus’ foundation as a leader in the eDiscovery market, unique international reach and stellar reputation position the company well for its new partnership with RPX,” added Prashant Mehrotra, a partner at Clearlake.
Inventus will remain headquartered in Chicago and CEO Trevor Campion will continue in that role. Inventus will operate independently as a subsidiary of RPX.
“We are proud of our successful partnership with Clearlake, and appreciative of the strong support and resources the Clearlake team has dedicated to our business as we have pursued strategic growth, invested in leading technologies and positioned the company, our clients and our new partners at RPX for future success,” Campion said.
Harris Williams & Co. and Lincoln International served as financial advisors to Inventus and Clearlake.