{"id":13602,"date":"2023-06-21T07:20:36","date_gmt":"2023-06-21T13:20:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nqzw.com\/?p=13602"},"modified":"2023-06-21T12:15:22","modified_gmt":"2023-06-21T18:15:22","slug":"why-tpg-is-good-for-elite-and-prolaw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/why-tpg-is-good-for-elite-and-prolaw\/","title":{"rendered":"Why TPG is Good for Elite and ProLaw"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"13602\" class=\"elementor elementor-13602\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-628833e elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"628833e\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-c8044ee\" data-id=\"c8044ee\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-acac624 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"acac624\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">What\u2019s next? That\u2019s the question being asked by the significant number of law firms affected by Thomson Reuters\u2019 sale of Elite, ProLaw, and eBillingHub to private equity firm TPG, creating Elite Technologies.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><ul><li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"2\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Elite and ProLaw never achieved the synergies with TR that were the basis for the acquisitions in the first place.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li><li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"2\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"1\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Without that strategic framework, the Elite division ended up operating at something of a 2<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">nd<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> tier within TR.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li><li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"2\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"2\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">With the acquisition by TPG, it\u2019s now a standalone business with a singular focus on delivering a \u201clegal-tech platform built for the modern law firm.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li><li data-leveltext=\"\uf0b7\" data-font=\"Symbol\" data-listid=\"2\" data-list-defn-props=\"{&quot;335552541&quot;:1,&quot;335559684&quot;:-2,&quot;335559685&quot;:720,&quot;335559991&quot;:360,&quot;469769226&quot;:&quot;Symbol&quot;,&quot;469769242&quot;:[8226],&quot;469777803&quot;:&quot;left&quot;,&quot;469777804&quot;:&quot;\uf0b7&quot;,&quot;469777815&quot;:&quot;hybridMultilevel&quot;}\" aria-setsize=\"-1\" data-aria-posinset=\"3\" data-aria-level=\"1\"><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Following the standard PE playbook, we will likely see better support and development for ProLaw, additional investment in 3E, follow-on acquisitions, and an intense focus on driving revenue.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li><\/ul><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Dive deeper:<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">On the announcement of the acquisition, the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/legaltechnology.com\/2023\/04\/04\/breaking-news-tpg-to-acquire-majority-stake-in-thomson-reuters-elite\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Orange Rag<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> included a very telling quote:<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cOne TR employee told Legal IT Insider that there has been frustration internally with the lack of progress in moving firms to the cloud on 3E and a desire to focus on subscription-based content rather than software. The news is likely to be welcomed within Elite, which has for a long time appeared to be in a state of flux and subject to continual restructuring within the wider TR organization.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span class=\"TextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">I\u2019ve<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\"> talked about the challenges <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">of<\/span> <\/span><a class=\"Hyperlink SCXW113313448 BCX0\" href=\"https:\/\/legaltechnology.com\/2023\/04\/11\/guest-post-why-elite-and-prolaw-didnt-work-at-tr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><span class=\"TextRun Underlined SCXW113313448 BCX0\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"none\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\" data-ccp-charstyle=\"Hyperlink\">why Elite and ProLaw didn\u2019t work at TR<\/span><\/span><\/a><span class=\"TextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\"> (also in the Orange Rag), which <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">left th<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">e <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">division feeling adrift<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">.<\/span> <span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">3E<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\"> and ProLaw firms <\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">\u2013 who are quite<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\"> committed to the software<\/span><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\"> \u2013<\/span> <span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">would like to see the products on a solid foundation.<\/span> <span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW113313448 BCX0\">Many firms have commented to me that they also have felt adrift.<\/span><\/span><span class=\"EOP SCXW113313448 BCX0\" data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-6e883c7 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"6e883c7\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-e530d26\" data-id=\"e530d26\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8b5c3fd elementor-blockquote--skin-quotation elementor-blockquote--align-left elementor-widget elementor-widget-blockquote\" data-id=\"8b5c3fd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"blockquote.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<blockquote class=\"elementor-blockquote\">\n\t\t\t<p class=\"elementor-blockquote__content\">\n\t\t\t\t3E and ProLaw firms \u2013 who are quite committed to the software \u2013 would like to see the products on a solid foundation. Many firms have commented to me that they also have felt adrift.\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c0b3c24 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c0b3c24\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Well, now the landscape has changed. TPG\u2019s acquisition of a majority stake in Elite at a $500M valuation closed on June 1st. Although further details on the transaction aren\u2019t public, it\u2019s a standard playbook for a PE firm to purchase 70-80% of a company, keeping the original owner participating in a future exit and cooperating along the way. That makes particular sense in this case, given some of the entanglements between the Elite division and the rest of TR.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Ranked as the 6th largest private equity firm globally, TPG&#8217;s investment creating Elite Technologies, while not colossal in the grand scheme of their operations, still signifies a considerable venture. Typically, a PE firm purchases a business like this as a \u201cplatform\u201d \u2013\u202fa centerpiece around which to add additional acquisitions. The goal is to bulk up revenue as quickly as possible.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The revenue from ProLaw is more relevant to Elite Technologies than it was as part of TR. This increases the likelihood of better support and development for ProLaw. Given 3E\u2019s majority revenue contribution, expect additional investment to expand the 3E footprint.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The market can expect a more aggressive, focused competitor. While the standard private equity approach would be to elevate revenues and profits before selling to the next PE firm, TPG&#8217;s scale suggests a more ambitious strategy might be on the horizon, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">I&#8217;m not a detached observer here, not just because of my background as the founder of ProLaw and my tenure at West, but because of what we do at nQ Zebraworks, where our <a href=\"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/prolaw\/\">workflow products<\/a> interconnect with 3E and ProLaw among other financial management systems. I have a vested interest in their success.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">At the same time, I\u2019m straightforward in my disappointment at the Elite division not becoming a strategic asset at TR and will be quite interested to see TPG\u2019s strategic decision-making. Overall, firms are better off with a standalone business focused on this mission-critical software, with TR maintaining a vested interest in its long-term success. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c0e19e5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"c0e19e5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Author<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-68ab1e7 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"68ab1e7\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-98238cd\" data-id=\"98238cd\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-81d636e uael-member-image-pos-left uael-shape-square elementor-widget elementor-widget-uael-team-member\" data-id=\"81d636e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"uael-team-member.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-member-stacked-mobile uael-member-image-valign-top uael-team-member\">\n\t\t\t<div class = \"uael-team-member-wrap\" >\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-member-wrap\" >\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-member-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=elementor-animation-><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/our-team-bill-bice-01-300x300.png\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium wp-image-8259\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/our-team-bill-bice-01-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/our-team-bill-bice-01-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/our-team-bill-bice-01.png 406w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-member-content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-member-name\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"uael-team-name\">Bill Bice <\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-member-designation\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-desig\">CEO | nQ Zebraworks\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-separator-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"uael-separator\"><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-member-desc\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"uael-team-desc\">Recognized as a legal tech industry visionary, receiving Thomson\u2019s innovator of the year award. Founder of ProLaw Software (acquired by Thomson Reuters), West km (used by 70% of the top 1000 law firms worldwide) and Exemplify (acquired by Bloomberg Law).<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What\u2019s next? That\u2019s the question being asked by the significant number of law firms affected by Thomson Reuters\u2019 sale of Elite, ProLaw, and eBillingHub to private equity firm TPG, creating [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":13603,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13602","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13602","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13602"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13602\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13603"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13602"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13602"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zebraworks.com\/en_gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13602"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}