Inventurus strikes LPO deal with US legal firm

Inventurus Knowledge Solutions, a KPO start-up firm, has bagged a legal process outsourcing (LPO) contract from US-based Haynes and Boone.

The details of one-year contract could not be ascertained.

Confirming this, Inventurus president and CEO, Sachin Gupta said the company has bagged a contract worth a 'significant' value from Haynes and Boone, an international corporate law firm based in the US. He did not disclose the financial details, citing the non-disclosure agreement.

Earlier, investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala had picked up a stake in Inventurus for $5.5 million. Though the percentage of stake Jhunjhunwala holds in the company is not known, it is believed that the stake is not in the controlling range.

The Indian company will provide discovery and analysis services for Haynes and Boone's litigation, business transaction and intellectual property practices. It will combine an onsite-offshore product mix and conduct the outsourcing from its Mumbai centre.

This onsite/offshore model will serve as an extension of Haynes and Boone legal team and will be available to provide backoffice services such as organising of documents and reviews.

The company is also ramping up its headcount in Mumbai to around 250 seats . At present, it operates with a base minimum staff. Inventurus also has offices in New York and Los Angeles. According to analysts, the number of seats represents an important factor and this could be termed as a mid-to large-size deal in the LPO segment.

Legal outsourcing is at a nascent stage in India and a domestic company bagging the contract signifies that the country is ready to bid for bigger deals.

Speaking to Business Standard, Earl E Harcrow of Haynes & Boone said this is an opportunity for the company as apart from the outsourcing gains, it would also be able to leverage on Indian legal system and help deliver quality products to its clients.

"We are looking at a longer association, both with Inventurus and India," he said.