Epiq Systems Inc., a technology and content provider to the legal industry, announced today it signed a definitive agreement to acquire neighboring Kansas City e-discovery managed service provider Iris Data Services for consideration of $134 million. The deal is in Epiq Systems' “ordinary course of business,” said Tom Olofson, CEO and chairman of Epiq Systems, on the conference call today discussing the details of the acquisition, and will be funded from Epiq Systems' existing cash and credit facility.

The acquisition is expected to close at the end of April, when Epiq Systems will review its Q1 earnings, the Iris Services acquisition, and its 2015 financial guidance, according to today's conference call. Major Baisden, president and co-founder of Iris Data Services, joins Epiq Systems as managing director and will continue to lead Iris Data Service's operations.

Iris Data Services is an e-discovery managed service provider, which outsources all aspects of e-discovery for corporations and law firms. Its product suite includes Horizon, a data processing service that integrates third-party e-discovery software, such as Nuix; and Arc, a private cloud featuring kCura Corp.'s Relativity. According to Iris Data Services, the company manages over 4,000 Relativity users.