At the beginning of December 2022, Karnov Group AB, a listed company, has acquired the legal information businesses of Thomson Reuters in Spain and Wolters Kluwer in Spain, France and Portugal, consolidating the Southern Region in the Group’s financial statements. With this acquisition, Karnov Group will have three reporting lines: Southern Region, Northern Region and Group functions. The share purchase agreement was signed on February 25, 2022 and Karnov Group received authorization from the Spanish National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) to complete the acquisition on November 3, 2022, after submitting a binding offer on December 9, 2021.
The acquisition is significant as it elevates Karnov Group from being one of the leaders in the Nordic markets for legal information services to a European player with a strong presence in the Spanish and French market. The acquired brands are well known in the segments of legal information and reference, workflow and analytics, and training spaces in Spain and France. Karnov Group will operate under the brands Aranzadi LA LEY in Spain, Lamy Liaisons in France and Jusnet in Portugal.
In summary, Karnov Group acquires Thomson Reuters and Wolters Kluwer to expand in Spain, France and Portugal. The acquisition has consolidated the Southern Region in the Group’s financial statements and enabled Karnov Group to expand in European markets. With the acquired brands, Karnov Group has become a major player in the legal information and reference, workflow and analytics, and training spaces segments in Spain and France, and will operate under different brands in each country.