Part of plan to broaden its legal titles
University of Toronto Press, Canada’s largest university press and leading academic publisher, has acquired Irwin Law, an independent publisher of legal materials for professionals, students, and general audiences.
“Irwin Law has built a strong reputation for care and dedication to authors and published works – we look forward to furthering the long-standing impact by increasing access to Irwin books and catalogues,” says Antonia Pop, VP of Publishing at UTP.
“It is an exciting step forward. Combining Irwin’s lists with the strength of UTP’s existing legal offerings sets the stage for future growth in a critical area of increasing relevance.”
She says Irwin Law’s catalogue encompasses “a deep backlist and current frontlist of award-winning offerings,” including the Essentials of Canadian Law series.
“Irwin Law has built a strong reputation for care and dedication to authors and published works – we look forward to furthering the long-standing impact by increasing access to Irwin books and catalogues.” Merging Irwin Law’s assets with UTP’s existing legal offerings “sets the stage for future growth in a critical area of increasing relevance.”
Jeff Miller, Founding Publisher of Irwin Law, says he is proud of the company’s close to 30 years in the legal publishing world, during which it produced “modern, lively, and interesting books.”
He says Irwin Law has prided itself on producing books that are accurate, comprehensive, and up to date. All manuscript submissions are subject to peer review. Irwin Law also draws from an author pool of leading law practitioners and professors from Canada and around the world.
Miller adds he is confident this legacy will be carried through under UTP.
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“UTP’s commitment to excellence and innovation makes it the perfect home for our authors and our lists.”
Pop has been with UTP for almost 15 years and leads a publishing unit consisting of about 50 individuals, including editorial team members, production team members, and sales and marketing staff.
She notes that Miller will be working with UTP for the next while, helping to provide stability during the transition of ownership and supporting customers, including legal practitioners, students, and researchers.
As well, law is a complex and constantly evolving area, Pop says, and she expects that Irwin Law’s assets will “serve to analyze some of the complex legal questions of the day. It’s one of the things that made it interesting to watch as an opportunity.”
In business since 1901, UTP now publishes 60 journals and more than 200 new scholarly, course, and general-interest books in print, e-book, and audio formats. Pop says the purchase of Irwin marks UTP’s latest move to broaden and deepen its content offerings.
In addition to its publishing activities, UTP manages the distribution for over 200 publishers and imprints in Canada, the US, and worldwide, with warehouses in Ontario and New York.
UTP also runs the University of Toronto Bookstores across the three main campuses, serving over 95,000 students and 15,000 faculty.