The legal information industry saw the beginning of what may be a very significant shift in the amount of legal information available and the ways that it can be purchased. An announcement was made yesterday by Bloomberg, the major news and financial information company, that it will acquire BNA, a legal information provider that has been in operation for more than eighty years. The move is doubly interesting to San Diego mergers and acquisitions attorneys, because the acquisition itself is so significant, but also because there could be new channels for getting current legal information and analysis.

The deal is reported to be worth around $990 million. BNA is owned by its current and former employees, who will receive $39.50 per share in a cash tender offer. The nearly billion-dollar deal is expected to close before the end of the year.

BNA's bread and butter, which is the provision of legal, tax and regulatory research and analysis, would be combined with Bloomberg's proprietary data and high-tech capabilities, according to the two companies. The plan is for BNA to be a stand-alone subsidiary of Bloomberg.

Bloomberg Law would be the biggest beneficiary of the deal, adding new depth of analysis and credibility provided by BNA. However, the companies stressed that there would be mutual benefits in other areas, such as accounting, tax, healthcare, telecom, labor and intellectual property information markets.

BNA has significant operations in the Washington, DC, area, and the acquisition gives Bloomberg a very desirable entree into Washington, where the combined company can be close to the source of many legal and regulatory authorities.

Source: iStockAnalyst "Bloomberg Enters Agreement to Acquire BNA" Aug. 25, 2011