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Consilio to acquire Adecco's legal consulting, eDiscovery businesses but staffing units to remain with Special Counsel brand

September 15, 2021

Legal services firm Consilio announced on Tuesday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the legal consulting and eDiscovery business from The Adecco Group’s Special Counsel brand, which SIA ranks as the largest legal staffing firm in the US.

Consilio will acquire EQ, a legal consultancy providing services related to cybersecurity, data analysis, information governance and managed review. It will also acquire D4, which provides managed data and eDiscovery services to law firms and corporations; Adecco acquired D4 in 2016. The acquisition of the business units expands Consilio’s expertise, particularly in the areas of document review, legal process outsourcing and Cyber Incident Response.

The Adecco Group will retain the legal staffing and legal permanent placement units of the Special Counsel business, which will be transitioned to LHH Professional Recruitment as part of global brand transitions announced in August.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter.

“The combination of Consilio and Special Counsel’s legal solutions business was truly complementary, with both organizations being highly regarded for the long-standing client relationships, excellent service experience, and deep market expertise,” said Laurie Chamberlin, head of professional recruitment and solutions North America at The Adecco Group. “This divestment is in line with our global talent solutions transformation and enables us to amplify our US legal recruitment practice, while the legal solutions business unlocks new growth potential and access to Consilio’s complete suite of solutions, expanded ability to serve cross-border matters, and the ability to scale secure technology solutions that address rapidly evolving client challenges.”

Consilio provides eDiscovery, document review, risk management and legal consulting services for law firms. Its services include legal recruiting as well. Consilio and XDD, also a provider of services to law firms, were acquired earlier this year by funds managed by private equity firm Stone Point Capital LLC.