Wicks bus. sells briefings information & acquires corporate legal times

Business Publisher, March 17, 2005

Wicks Business Information (WBI; Fairfield, CT) has sold its Briefings Publishing Group (Alexandria, VA), a publisher of media aimed at workplace and managerial performance, to Douglas Publications (Richmond, VA). No terms were given.

Briefings properties include nine business management newsletters, including Communications Briefings, American Speaker and Manager's Edge, as well as a library of related books, videos and training materials. Briefings was acquired from Pearson in 1999 and was built up through a series of later purchases led by the acquisition of three related newsletters from Aspen Publishers in January 2000.

Douglas produces seven magazines, including American Painting Contractor, Compliance Magazine and Robotics World, as well as training tools, directories, databases, conferences and web sites for a variety of industries.

Subsequently, following a recommitment of capital from the Wicks Group of Companies, WBI acquired Corporate Legal Times LLC (CLT; Chicago, IL), the producer of Corporate Legal Times, a monthly for general counsel and other in-house corporate counsel, and the annual SuperConference. No terms of the deal were given.

Corporate Legal Times has a mixed circulation of 40,000 and carries information on corporate legal department operations, corporate governance, compliance, litigation, labor and employment and intellectual property. CLT was established in 1991 and also produces annual surveys, reports and an accompanying web site.

With the infusion of new capital, WBI said its current strategy is to focus on the acquisition of businesses with specialized business information products serving overlapping and related segments of the financial and corporate markets, including those with compliance and regulatory requirements.

Wicks produces Investment Advisor and Treasury & Risk Management magazines and related conferences.