Bloomberg agrees to buy BNA

Bloomberg LP, owner of Westlaw and LexisNexis competitor Bloomberg Law, has announced an agreement to purchase the Bureau of National Affairs (BNA) for $990 million. Bloomberg is controlled by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg; Bloomberg Law was first unveiled to law schools in late 2006. BNA was founded in 1929 and has been a trusted source for up-to-date news and developments for many areas of the law, including tax, health care, environmental, intellectual property and corporate law.

Since 1947, BNA has been owned by current and former employees who will be cashed out at $39.50 per share if the deal goes through. Dan Doctoroff, CEO and President of Bloomberg, states that "BNA research and analysis will make Bloomberg's products even more valuable, and BNA would benefit from our data and technology expertise." BNA would become a stand-alone subsidiary of Bloomberg.

BC Law currently subscribes to many BNA products (available through the law library's A-Z list), and Bloomberg Law is available to interested students and faculty. Keep an eye out for further developments--the deal is expected to close by the end of 2011.