Harbor acquires Stout's legal management consulting practice

Harbor, a Chicago-headquartered legal sector consulting firm, has acquired the legal management consulting practice of Stout, a Chicago-based investment banking and advisory firm.

The transaction will give Harbor capabilities in e-discovery and legal hold advisory and implementation. Harbor would previously refer clients to Stout for the above services.

As part of the deal, Jim Mitchell and Stacie Neeter, leaders of the Stout’s legal management consulting practice, will join Harbor. Mitchell and Neeter each have over two decades of experience advising law firms and legal departments across energy, healthcare and life sciences, and financial services.

"Many corporate law departments we work with know Jim Mitchell, Stacie Neeter, and their team as trusted advisors. Having collaborated with the Legal Management Consulting practice at Stout over many years, we are confident in their expertise and commitment to client success," said Matt Sunderman, CEO, Harbor. "By growing our capabilities in risk and compliance management, we are helping Harbor clients meet their current challenges head-on, working with them as an end-to-end partner for professional services."The transaction represents the first corporate milestone since the Harbor brand launched in August. The Renovus-owned company was created through the merger of HBR Consulting, LAC Group, Wilson Allen, and several smaller legal sector consultancies.

"Harbor is a natural fit for our team. Its focus on the legal ecosystem and its scale are compelling to our clients in the Fortune 500, and we look forward to even closer collaboration with our new colleagues as we help corporate law departments and their outside counsel achieve their goals," said Neeter.

Harbor has 650+ people in the US, Canada, and UK providing solutions in strategy, legal technology, operations, and intelligence to law firms, corporations, and their law departments.

The firm earlier this month hired Nick Kadochnikov as head of artificial intelligence and advanced technology engineering.