American Lawyer publisher sold back to Wasserstein & Co
June 4 (Reuters) - American Lawyer publisher ALM Media, which was once controlled by Bruce Wasserstein, has been sold to the late Wall Street dealmaker's investment firm Wasserstein & Co, the companies said in a statement.
Financial details of the deal were not publicly disclosed. The New York Times reported the acquisition price was around $417 million, citing a source briefed on the matter.
The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter, the joint statement said.
Reuters had reported in April that ALM Media, a publisher of magazines for U.S. lawyers and legal professionals, was up for sale and was being advised by investment bank Jefferies Group LLC.
ALM, which in January 2005 changed its name from American Lawyer Media, was formed by U.S. Equity Partners LP, a private equity fund sponsored by Wasserstein & Co.
The transaction follows the sale of other legal news and analysis companies. Bloomberg LP in 2011 bought BNA for about $1 billion. Reed Elsevier (Frankfurt: RDEB.F - news) 's LexisNexis in 2012 snapped up Law360 for an undisclosed sum.
The company had been sold to private equity firm Apax Partners LLP in 2007 for $630 million and its portfolio company, UK-based Incisive Media Ltd. Apax later split up Incisive Media, keeping control of the ALM business while turning over the rest of the company to lenders including the Royal Bank of Scotland (LSE: RBS.L - news) Group Plc.
Ontario Pension Board, Pantheon, the Honeywell pension, and HighVista Strategies LLC are co-investing in the transaction alongside Wasserstein, according to the statement.
Macquarie Capital provided financing for the deal, while Jones Day was the legal advisor to Wasserstein & Co. Jefferies was a financial advisor to ALM and its owners, Apax and Royal Bank of Scotland. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP was a legal advisor to ALM and Apax, while DLA Piper was a legal advisor to RBS. (Reporting by Liana B. Baker, editing by G Crosse)
