Download Chapter 18

Chapter 18
Computer-Assisted Legal Research
Chapter Outline
1. Introduction
2. Going Online-An Internet Primer
3. Conducting Online Research
4. Locating People and Investigating Companies
5. Some of the Best Legal – Resource Sites on the Internet
6. CD-ROMs and Legal Research
7. Westlaw and Lexis
Chapter Objectives
After completing this chapter, you will know:
 What the Internet is and how it can be navigated
 Some strategies for planning and conducting research on the Internet
 How you can find people and investigate companies using Internet search tools
and databases
 How to find some of the best legal resources available on the Internet
 How CD-ROMs and legal research services provided by Westlaw and Lexis help
legal professionals in computer aided research (CALR)
Chapter Outline
I. INTRODUCTION
A. Computers and online databases have greatly simplified the tasks of paralegals in
all areas of their work.
B. New cases and changes in statutory law are entered almost immediately into
certain online databases.
II. GOING ONLINE – AN INTERNET PRIMER
A. Internet Tools – two of the most widely used parts of the internet are e-mail and
the World Wide Web.
i. E-Mail
1. One of the most common uses of the Internet.
ii. World Wide Web
1. The Web is a system of web pages or “sites”.
2. Home page – main page of a Web site.
iii. Uniform Resource Locators – URLs
1. A URL is an Internet address.
2. To a paralegal this is an electronic citation.
iv. http – hypertext transfer protocol – what allows computers to communicate
with each other.
B. Navigating the Internet
i. Browsers
1. How the Internet is accessed.
2. Browsers allow the computer to roam the Web.
3. Browsers make it possible to copy text from a web site and put it into a
word processing document.
ii. Guides and Directories
1. Guides and directories provide a list of Web sites arranged into categories.
iii. Search Engines
Copyright © 2007 Thomson Delmar Learning. All rights reserved.
1. One of the most important tools for conducting research.
2. The search engine scans the Web and makes an index of the contents of
the different Web pages found.
3. Some only search for specific categories of resources.
4. Search engines conduct searches by keyword or by concept.
a. Keyword – the search engine looks for the exact term entered.
b. Concept Search looks for related words.
c. Boonlean logic is a system that uses connecting words to link the key
words and makes the search more precise.
III. CONDUCTING ONLINE RESEARCH
A. Threshold Question: Is the Internet the Right Research Tool for Your Project?
i. What sources are needed?
ii. Are they on the Internet?
iii. Are they available elsewhere?
iv. What is the cost?
v. How much time is there to produce the answer?
vi. Is the source available online?
B. Conducting Legal Research on the Internet.
i. Many primary sources of law are available on the Internet. Some of the ones
available are:
1. The U.S. Constitution
2. U.S. Supreme Court decisions.
3. Decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals from two to three years ago
4. U.S. Code
5. Code of Federal Regulations
6. Some state laws.
7. Foreign laws.
ii. The Limited Scope of Online Legal Sources
1. Scope of legal resources is limited.
2. Material prior to 1990 is usually not available.
3. Conducting Fact Based Research on the Internet
a. The internet is a great resource for information other than the law.
iii. Plan Ahead- Analyze the Facts and Identify the Issues
1. Know what you are looking for.
2. Determine which sources are most likely to lead you to the desired results.
iv. Online Research Strategies
1. Starting Points
a. Can start with an online directory.
b. Search engine can be used to compile a list of Websites containing
certain key words.
c. Visit the sites to determine which ones are useful.
2. Discovering What Resources are Available
a. Listserv list – list of e-mail addresses of persons interested in a
particular topic.
b. Newsgroups – A forum that resembles a community bulletin board.
Researcher posts a question and waits for responses.
c. Blogs – Online journal.
d. Browsing the Web
1) Mark sites as favorites or use bookmarks.
3. Evaluating What you find.
a. Consider the reliability of the information found.
Copyright © 2007 Thomson Delmar Learning. All rights reserved.
b. Identifying the Type of Source
1) Is the source of information a primary, secondary or tertiary
source?
c. Is the Source Reputable?
1) There are several online sources to assist with the evaluation of
web sites.
4. Updating Your Results
a. One way to stay current is to check the most recent data by going
online.
IV. LOCATING PEOPLE AND INVESTIGATING COMPANIES
A. Finding People
i. Public records are helpful in locating people, but some of these records are not
on the Internet.
ii. Web searches can be useful and can be cheaper.
1. Broad Searches
a. Can run a broad search with a general search engine.
1) Example – search all U.S. telephone books.
2) Narrow Searches
a. The knowledge about a person can be used to narrow a search for that
person.
1) The person’s place of employment or their profession .
2) Professors at a college or employees of certain companies are two
such examples.
3) Business licenses can also be used.
4) Adoptees and birth parents.
5) State’s driving and vehicle registration.
2. Some commercial services give access to information for a fee.
B. Investigating Companies
i. Finding Company Names and Addresses
1. Running a search with a telephone number can be used to find a
company’s name and address.
2. Can also find a company’s name and address by using a director that
searches by industry and state.
ii. Uncovering Detailed Information about Public Companies
1. Use the company’s Web site to see annual reports, press releases, price
lists and staffing directories.
iii. Learning about Privately Held Companies
1. Data on privately held companies is harder to find
2. Much of the information available is what the company wants to reveal.
C. SOME OF THE BEST LEGAL RESOUCE SITES ON THE INTERNET
i. Basic Resources
1. Basic Web sites.
ii. University Sites
1. University Web sites are good points to start because of the updated
material and links to other sources.
2. Law Related Starting Points
a. www.law.cornell.edu
b. www.law.indiana.edu/law/v-lib/index.html
c. www.oyez.org.
iii. Government Sites
1. Federal Law Starting Point
Copyright © 2007 Thomson Delmar Learning. All rights reserved.
a. Firstgov.gov – Links to every branch of the Federal government.
b. www.gpo.access – posts information about all three branches of
government.
c. www.usdoj.gov – U.S. Department of Justice website.
2. Federal Legislative Home Pages
a. www.house.gov – House of Representatives.
b. www.senate.gov
3. Business and Economic Information
a. www.commerce.gove – Web site for the U.S. Department of
Commerce.
b. www.uspto.gov – Patent and Trademark Office website.
c. www.copyright.gov – U.S. Copyright office website.
d. www.eeoc.gov – EEOC website.
D. CD_ROMS AND LEGAL RESEARCH
i. CD-ROM – compact disk, read only memory
1. Advantages of Using CD-ROMs
a. Less costly to purchase
b. Require less storage space.
c. Amount of material that can be stored on a CD ROM
d. Can be easily transported.
e. Searching contents is easier and quicker.
2. Disadvantages of Using CD-ROMs
a. They become outdated.
E. WESLAW AND LEXIS
i. Both are commercial legal research systems.
ii. The law firm must be a subscriber to they system.
1. Accessing Westlaw or Lexis
a. Must be a subscriber and access is through the Internet.
b. Must have a password.
2. Conducting a Search
a. Can use any of the following
1) Citation.
2) Legal topic
3) Case name.
4) Party name
5) Publication
3. Checking a Citation
a. Both provide online citators.
b. Autocite – Lexis.
c. Keycite – Westlaw.
4. Selecting a Database
a. Select a database you want to search.
b. “Search these databases” can be used in Westlaw.
5. Searching a Database
a. The Terms and Connectors Method.
1) Use numerical and grammatical connectors to specify the
relationships of the terms.
b. The Natural Language Method
1) Type a description of an issue in plain English.
Copyright © 2007 Thomson Delmar Learning. All rights reserved.