On September 27, 2024, Magna Legal Services (Magna LS) announced its merger with ERSA Court Reporters, effective September 16.

The combined company, headquartered in Philadelphia, is now one of the largest legal support services and consulting firms in the United States with 28 offices, 700 employees, and thousands of contract court reporters and other professionals.

The Magna LS national presence boosts the main customer base for both companies, which is US-based law firms, corporations, and government organizations. 

Magna LS was founded in 2007 by four partners. The firm offers court reporting, medical record retrieval, litigation consulting, and other services, including interpreting and translation. Odyssey Investment Partners acquired Magna LS from CIVC Partners in 2022.

ERSA Court Reporters was established in 2003. Besides court reporting, it offers multiple transcription-related services, record archiving and storage, word indexing, and other legal services. 

According to the press release, ERSA’s founders, Laura Grosso and David Damiani, will remain at the helm at ERSA.

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“This merger enhances our service offerings and strengthens our commitment to delivering the best support to our clients,” said Tony Vaglica, COO of Magna Legal Services. David Damiani of ERSA echoed this sentiment, highlighting the opportunities for increased efficiency and savings through bundled services.

Mark Williams, CEO of Magna Legal Services, qualified the partnership as “an important step forward, creating new opportunities for our clients, employees, and court reporters.”

By offering legal document translation and interpreting services, companies like Magna LS and ERSA directly compete with niche language service providers (LSPs) in the US. 

In fact, on the company’s website and in a few posts on X, Magna LS highlights legal document translation and interpreting services as one of its main areas of expertise, “in any language.”