Equity Firm to Acquire Mitchell International

Hellman & Friedman LLC, a San Francisco-based private equity firm, has agreed to acquire Mitchell International, a leading software information services provider to the insurance and automotive collision repair industries. Mitchell, based in San Diego, is being bought from The Thomson Corporation.

The investment, which was announced today, will be made through partnerships affiliated with Hellman & Friedman, which has managed more than $4.8 billion since its inception in 1984.

``This investment in Mitchell is an excellent fit with our growing portfolio of investments in technology-based services companies,'' said Mick Hellman, a managing director at Hellman & Friedman. ``In the technology services arena, we focus on growing, profitable companies that use their superior domain expertise to help their customers adapt to the new economy. Mitchell certainly meets those criteria.''

Hellman & Friedman Managing Director Joe Niehaus added, ``Under the guidance of Chief Executive Officer Jim Lindner and his management team, Mitchell has substantially enhanced its product capabilities and customer service over the last three years. The company has built a strong platform and is now exceptionally well positioned to accelerate its growth. We look forward to working closely with Jim and the company to facilitate this growth as Mitchell continues to deliver superior products and service to its customers.''

Lindner said, "This change in ownership is a logical progression to Mitchell's next phase of growth. Our passion for customer service and providing dynamic solutions to our customers has earned us the success we enjoy today and will continue to be our singular focus in the future.''

The transaction is expected to close around the end of the first quarter of this year. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.