#LTNY: Darwin Watch: The Day After Christmas

I am out of the office today, so didn't see this until now when Craig Ball, LTN's trusty EDD columnist, brought it to my attention: Onsite3 has filed for Chapter 11 and plans to be absorbed by Integreon.

"You know how ailing retailers hang on until Christmas before deciding to throw in the towel?  Well, for the thinning ranks of e-discovery vendors, LegalTech New York is Christmas, and you can bet that anyone hitting the skids who didn't manage to save face through a fire sale acquisition negotiated in the halls of the Hilton is running out of options." 

 

"In 2009, some will be able to buy their EDD service provider for what they paid for services in 2008, and those who thought me a Cassandra in the February LTN column "What Lies Beneath" will soon wonder why I didn't ring the bell louder."

As for Onsite3's woes, the press release is available here.

Cliff's Notes version:

"Onsite3... today announced that it has filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 ... and that it plans to be acquired by Integreon (www.integreon.com).... The Company also announced today that Integreon has completed the acquisition of Onsite3's outstanding pre-bankruptcy secured debt and has agreed to provide debtor-in-possession financing to assure Onsite3's continued operation throughout the reorganization process."

Comments

[Jim Alexander]

I really wonder about the financial stability of any EDD provider in the current economic climate. Smart law firms will start asking for proof of financial viability starting today. They need to know which EDDs are going to have a strong foundation before doing business. The EDDs like Onsite3 that get targeted for acquisition likely have some real value. Integreon appears to be very serious about the EDD business.