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Introduction to Online Legal Research  (Westlaw and Lexis)
Professor Callister



Session: Fall - Spring
Working with databases with tables of contents.Using clip and alert services to stay current.Keeping track of your searches.Practice problems for the Fall Session of Westlaw and Lexis instruction.
Segment and restricted field searching.Natural language search on both Lexis and Westlaw.How to find similar documents using Lexis "More Like This" searching.How to searcher for similar cases using West Key Numbers.How to check status with Shepards and KeyCite.
Spring Sessions Overview

Last semester you learned some of the basics of Lexis and Westlaw, as well as how to use terms and connectors and Westlaw's KeySearching to find relevant documents (either primary or secondary authority).

During the next two sessions you will learn:

  • To deal with getting too many or too few "hits" in your search results by using either (i) segment or field-restricted searching or (ii) natural language.
  • To use Lexis More Like searching and West Key Numbers to find similar cases and other primary and secondary authority after you have found a case, statute, regulation, secondary source on point.
  • To check the status of case (i.e., is it still good law?) and properly analyze citations through time by using Lexis' Shepard's and West's KeyCite.
You will also be introduced to working with secondary sources, clip and alert services, and search histories or trails.
Next Page  

Research Cycle: Finding the most relevant document, finding related documents, performing citation analysis.
 
 

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