Hughes Hubbard & Reed provided legal counsel to Australian conglomerate Brambles Ltd. for the $115 million sale of its Transport Management System (TMS), LeanLogistics, to UK-based Kewill Inc., a global provider of supply-chain software.
 
The deal, announced on May 3, is expected to close within 45 days. Brambles acquired Lean in March 2008 for $45 million.
 
"Our tenure with Brambles has provided us the opportunity to invest in our solution, expand into different countries and has been a tremendous learning experience," said Dan Dershem, president and CEO of LeanLogistics. "But as we strive to deliver value for our customers every day, there is power in combining with a global supply chain execution company. The global transportation market is ready for a clear leader."
 
The acquisition creates a combined TMS platform with more than 14,000 carrier partners that make up the largest network of any North American provider. The combined firms manage more than $10 billion in annual freight spend.
 
Under the terms of the deal, Lean will remain in Holland, Michigan and become Kewill's largest office.
 
Founded in 1999, LeanLogistics builds cloud-based transportation management and supply-chain services software, which supports shippers and carriers across the US and Europe.
 
The transaction drew coverage in The Wall Street Journal, Law360, The Deal Pipeline and other news outlets.
 
Ken Lefkowitz led the Hughes Hubbard team, which included Bill Kolasky, Sarah Downie, Freddie Goudie, Jamie Steinfink, Michael Traube, Justin Cohen, John Dunn, Brandon Gershowitz, David Gold, Jonathan Pail and Ariel Woldar.