Legal Tech Funding, Q1 2021
Every disclosed legal tech round from January 1 to March 31, 2021, from the Legal Tech Circle Funding Tracker. Free to read and cite.
By The Circle DeskData updated Nov 13, 2026
What Happened in Q1 2021
The quarter at a glance, written from the tracker's data.
- The headline. Legal tech companies raised $590M across 14 tracked rounds in Q1 2021, up 457% from Q4 2020 and up 526% from Q1 2020.
- The biggest round. PatSnap's $300M Series E, led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Tencent Investment, was the largest of the quarter. The five biggest rounds took 92% of all disclosed dollars.
- Where the money went. Intellectual Property took the largest share, 51% of dollars across 2 rounds. That is up from 0% over the previous four quarters.
- Round sizes. The median disclosed round was $9M, compared with $4.5M the quarter before. Seed and Series A made up 43% of rounds, and 2 rounds of $100M or more accounted for 68% of dollars.
- Most active investor. Vertex Ventures took part in 2 rounds.
- Geography. US companies took 37% of disclosed dollars, the UK and Europe 3%, and the rest of the world 60%.
- New names. 9 companies announced their first tracked round this quarter.
The Last Eight Quarters
Disclosed dollars raised. Q1 2021 highlighted.
Month by Month
Dollars and rounds in each month of the quarter.
By Region
Dollars raised this quarter, by headquarters.
US vs Europe, by Quarter
The last eight quarters. Europe includes the UK.
The Ten Biggest Rounds
Disclosed amounts. Click a company for its full history.
| Company | Stage | Amount | Category | Lead | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PatSnap | Series E | $300M | IP | SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Tencent Investment | Mar 16 | Source |
| Ironclad | Series D | $100M | CLM | BOND | Jan 14 | Source |
| Icertis | Series F | $80M | CLM | B Capital Group | Mar 11 | Source |
| Evisort | Series B | $35M | CLM | General Atlantic | Feb 23 | Source |
| LegalForce | Series C | $25.5M¥2.7B | GenAI & Drafting | Feb 17 | Source | |
| Lupl | Undisclosed | $14M | Practice Mgmt | Jan 19 | Source | |
| Arteria AI | Series A | $11M | Doc Automation | Illuminate Financial | Mar 23 | Source |
| Legl | Series A | $7M | Practice Mgmt | Octopus Ventures | Mar 12 | Source |
| Athennian | Series A extension | $5.5MC$7M | Compliance & Privacy | Arthur Ventures | Mar 4 | Source |
| Leeway | Seed | $4.2M | CLM | HenQ, Kima Ventures | Mar 31 | Source |
By Category
Share of the quarter's dollars, against the previous four quarters.
By Stage
Rounds, dollars and the median round at each stage.
| Stage | Rounds | Raised | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-seed and Seed | 3 | $8.8M | $2.4M |
| Series A | 3 | $23.5M | $7M |
| Series B | 1 | $35M | $35M |
| Series C | 1 | $25.5M | $25.5M |
| Late stage | 3 | $480M | $100M |
| Other and undisclosed | 3 | $16.9M | $1.8M |
Most Active Investors
Rounds they led or joined this quarter.
- 1Vertex Ventures2 rounds
- 2HenQ1 round · led 1
- 3Kima Ventures1 round · led 1
- 4Illuminate Financial1 round · led 1
- 5SoftBank Vision Fund 21 round · led 1
- 6Tencent Investment1 round · led 1
- 7Octopus Ventures1 round · led 1
- 8B Capital1 round · led 1
- 9Arthur Ventures1 round · led 1
- 10General Atlantic1 round · led 1
Quick Answers
- How much did legal tech raise in Q1 2021?
- Legal tech companies raised $590M in disclosed funding across 14 rounds in Q1 2021, according to the Legal Tech Circle Funding Tracker.
- What was the largest legal tech funding round in Q1 2021?
- PatSnap raised $300M in a Series E, led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Tencent Investment, announced March 16, 2021.
- Which legal tech category raised the most in Q1 2021?
- Intellectual Property, with $302M across 2 rounds, 51% of the quarter's disclosed dollars.
- Who were the most active legal tech investors in Q1 2021?
- Vertex Ventures (2), HenQ (1), Kima Ventures (1), Illuminate Financial (1), SoftBank Vision Fund 2 (1).
- What was the median legal tech round size in Q1 2021?
- $9M across 14 rounds with disclosed amounts.
Cite this report
Legal Tech Circle. "Legal Tech Funding Report: Q1 2021." April 2021. https://legaltechcircle.com/market-signals/reports/funding-2021-q1/
How we count
Rounds come from public announcements, each linked to its source on the Funding Tracker. Equity rounds only: debt, acquisitions and IPOs are left out. A round with no disclosed amount counts toward rounds but not dollars. Figures can change if a round is corrected or announced late. Spot something missing? Tell us. Full methodology.