Download COMPUTER ASSISTED LEGAL RESEARCH (CALR) ON THE

COMPUTER ASSISTED LEGAL RESEARCH
(CALR) ON THE INTERNET
Introduction
The main thing to stress during the introduction of the course is that it is about
RESEARCH. During the class time the instructor and the students will spend lots of time
on the Internet. The main purpose for that activity is to make good researchers out of the
students, on the Internet or not.
The course will teach them how to find factual and legal information and documents on
the Internet, and how to evaluate the information and found documents. In addition, the
two quizzes and the final examination will provide them experience in doing Internet
research in high-stress time periods (“I need it, and I need it NOW!”), which in real life is
often just what is required.
The Internet research paper project will provide each student with experience in doing
detailed Internet research on a specific topic, and in writing up a narrative summary of
the findings. Encourage students to use a “memo” format to get them used to what is
typical in the real life scenario.
CHAPTER 1—THE INTERNET
A.
Chapter Summary
Chapter 1 introduces and delineates what exactly the Internet is, and where it came from.
It puts the Internet in historical context, and explains how the Internet is used by lawyers
and the legal community. Finally, it discusses legal and hot topics relating to the Internet.
B.
Chapter Objectives
After completion of this chapter, students should be able to:
 Know the historical and technological background necessary to have an
understanding of where the Internet came from.
 Have the information of what the Internet is and does today.
 Know how the Internet is used by lawyers and the legal community.
 Know of the legal issues and hot topics that surround the Internet.
C.
Instructional Ideas
1.
Ask the students what they like most and least about the Internet as it
presently exists.
D.
Chapter Outline
I.
What is the Internet?
A.
It is a network, a loose organization, a public forum, a mailbox, a business
tool, a library, a software shop, and a newspaper.
II.
Origins of the Internet
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
III.
The Internet Facilitates Data Communication
A.
IV.
A.
Hardware provides the means by which computer data, in the form of
electronic signals, can travel between computer devices.
1.
a host (or server) computer
2.
a data transmission device (like a modem)
3.
communication lines (such as telephone lines or cable)
4.
a data reception device (like a cable modem)
5.
a client (or user’s) computer
B.
Local area network (LAN) consists of hardware within a single office or
area that is all connected (sharing information or data).
TELEcommunication: a method of data communication where the
hardware consists of a host computer, the host computer’s modem, a
client’s receiving modem, a client computer, with telephone lines in
between.
Software for Data Communication
A.
B.
C.
D.
VI.
Data communication is the process of transmitting data from one computer
to another.
Hardware for Data Communication
C.
V.
A U.S. Department of Defense project.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) created the idea of a vast network
with other scientific research centers and educational facilities so that
ideas and research could be more easily accessed and exchanged.
Advanced Research Projects Agency or ARPA was created to manage the
government project/network. This network was later called the
ARPANET.
TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) was the first
language to come out of ARPA.
NFSnet was the network established by the National Science Foundation
to allow researchers across the country to share access to a few expensive
supercomputers.
Internetwork was the combined networks, that was later linked to the
various Internetworks abroad, and grew into today’s global Internet.
Both the host computer and the client computer require data
communication software.
LEXIS® and WESTLAW® communication software are good examples
of CALR data communication software.
File transfer: the process of downloading or uploading files.
Offline computing: the ability to process data, such as composing queries,
while not communicating with a host computer.
Internet Browsers
A.
B.
C.
D.
VII.
How Do Lawyers Use Data Communication?
A.
VIII.
E-mail: electronic, computer mail that provides the ability to write
messages on a computer, then to transmit the messages to another
computer so that the addressee can read the message on another computer.
Lawyers Use: Websites for Marketing
A.
XIII.
Internet newsgroups, through “usenet” networks, allow “electronic
discussions” to take place concerning a particular subject or interest.
Lawyers Use: Email
A.
XII.
Thousands of non-legal databases contain information on every
imaginable subject, including full-text copies of periodicals, newspapers,
and newsletters.
Lawyers Use: Newsgroups
A.
XI.
Online legal research databases provide researchers with extensive
libraries of case law, statutes, and other legal source material.
Lawyers Use: Non-Legal Databases
A.
X.
With the creation of public databases, any user can now access vast
quantities of information. These public databases are convenient, fast, and
relatively easy to use.
Lawyers Use: Online Legal Research Databases
A.
IX.
Software required in order to access and manipulate files on the Internet.
1.
Netscape Navigator®, published by Netscape Corporation.
2.
Internet Explorer®, published by Microsoft Corporation.
Browsers facilitate searching, finding within documents, viewing, and
downloading or uploading information on the Internet.
Uniform Resource Locator (URL): used to locate and identify information.
A URL describes exactly where a particular piece of information is.
Hyper-Text Markup Language (HTML): a fairly simple Internet
programming language that makes up a web page and assembles it for
viewing on the client’s computer screen. The Internet browser interprets
the HTML.
Attorneys and law firms, like corporate and government entities, use
websites to market their practices and interests.
The Internet as a Network
A.
The Internet allows people from nearly every country and from many
different walks of life a way to correspond with one another, to do
research, and find information.
XIV. The Internet as an Organization
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
XV.
No single entity or organization controls the Internet.
Acceptable use policies: many discrete organizations on the Internet have
their own rules concerning which types of activities are allowed on their
computers and which are not.
Just as each computer on the Internet is under its owner’s control,
networks that make up a large part of the Internet are controlled by their
owners.
Because the Internet has been open and free, it has evolved on its own into
a giant resource that probably never could have come about if any one
government or large corporation held the reins.
Because no single entity is in charge, the Internet is inconsistent and
sometimes difficult to use.
Although no single group controls the Internet, there are two volunteer
groups that influence it.
1.
Internet Architecture Board: an advisory council.
2.
Internet Engineering Task Force: a technical advisory team.
The advisory organizations work together to enforce minor rules to keep
the Internet working—such as deciding which kinds of communication
languages should be supported by the entire network.
The Internet as a Public Forum
A.
The Internet forums or “coffee-house” resources come in different types.
1.
Newsgroups (sometimes called usenet newsgroups or network
news): enable their users to work with messages. There are
newsgroups available for a huge range of topics, including
professional, personal, and the unusual.
2.
Mailing lists (also known as discussion lists): are usually based on
professional topics. Mailing lists send all messages related to a
particular topic directly to the user by e-mail. Subscribers to a
mailing list can also send in their own messages, which are then
sent out to everyone else on the list.
XVI. The Internet as a Mailbox
A.
B.
C.
D.
E-mail is without question the most-used Internet facility. Many people
obtain Internet access just to have e-mail capabilities.
1.
E-mail address: everyone who uses the Internet has a unique
Internet name, called an address.
Virtually every federal agency, Congress, the White House, and the
judiciary all have e-mail addresses.
The e-mail address provides all the information required to get a message
delivered anywhere (to any domain) in the world.
The most useful feature of e-mail is the way in which it enables users to
work with the messages.
1.
Users can instantly send a reply to a message that is received.
2.
Users can forward a message to someone else (perhaps a person
who can answer a question the message asks).
3.
Users can print the message.
4.
Users can send the same message to one or many recipients at
once.
E.
The use and preparation of e-mail involves:
1.
Preparing the text.
2.
Connecting to the e-mail service.
3.
Typing in the user authorization code, such as user name and
password, to access Internet e-mail.
4.
Sending messages.
5.
Checking for any waiting/incoming e-mail stored in the mailbox.
6.
Viewing any waiting/incoming messages, saving them to the local
computer, or printing them out.
XVII. E-mail in the Legal Profession
A.
B.
XIII.
E-mail can expedite negotiations, litigation, and delivery of work product
to the client.
Any kind of document (attachment) can be delivered by e-mail.
Employee E-mail
A.
B.
E-mail on an employer-owned computer system, sent or received via
employer connections, is not private e-mail.
Courts have ruled overwhelmingly that an employer has the right to read
employee e-mail and that employees have no reasonable expectation of
privacy.
XIX. The Internet as Business Tool
A.
B.
C.
XX.
The Internet is a great vehicle for national and international business
communication.
NREN (NASA Research and Education Network): NASA’s research Wide
Area Network (WAN) used to create a next generation network testbed to
revolutionize end-to-end applications for NASA missions and the nation.
Examples of Internet on-screen advertising and e-mail used by business:
1.
Selling of real estate, books, concert tickets, handmade dolls,
flowers, and everything else.
2.
Provide credit reports, legal services, consulting services, and
customer support.
3.
Publishing newspapers, newsletters, and magazines that can be
read on the computer screen and are paid for by reader
subscriptions, advertising, or both.
The Internet as a Library
A.
B.
C.
D.
The Internet includes thousands of libraries.
The earliest and most avid users of the Internet were colleges and
universities. These institutions placed their whole computer network on
the Internet, including their computerized card catalog for the university
library.
There are many public, government, and private library collections on the
Internet.
There are literally millions of files of information on the Internet that can
be copied, read, and printed.
E.
Project Gutenberg is a volunteer project to transfer important reference
works and works of literature to computer files and make them widely
available. Already Project Gutenberg includes anything from
Shakespeare, Roget’s Thesaurus, Moby Dick, the Book of Mormon, and
the CIA World Fact Book.
XXI. The Internet as Software Shop
A.
Software available through the Internet comes in three basic types:
1.
Freeware software.
2.
Shareware software, which is “try before you buy.”
3.
Commercial software.
XXII. The Internet as a Newspaper
XXIII. Internet Languages
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)/Internet Protocol (IP): the
foundational protocol of the Internet—an agreed set of rules for computers
(and their programmers) on how to exchange information. Other Internet
protocols, such as FTP, Gopher, and HTTP, run on top of TCP/IP.
HTML (Hyper-Text Markup Language): the language in which all Internet
pages are written.
JAVA®: a language created by Sun Microsystems that allows the user to
create interactivity over the Internet.
VRML (Virtual Reality Markup Language): a growing language used to
create virtual-reality worlds. In the future, web pages will most likely only
be used after flying to a place in a virtual world and accessing a document
from a virtual book.
XML: Extensible Markup Language, a superset of HTML: XML allows
the user to tag various parts of a document with user-defined tags and
extends the HTML language for greater flexibility and reusability.
CGI (Common Gateway Interface): a category of languages, including
Perl, a language used to manipulate text files with information in them. It
also provides a direct link to Unix commands. Unix is the operating
system used on most Internet servers. Perl is one of the most popular CGI
languages in the world.
XXIV. Gaining Access to the Internet
A.
B.
Internet service providers (ISPs): A company or organization that provides
an Internet connection.
Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) modem: a fast data
transmission system that allows for the simultaneous delivery of audio,
video, and data.
XXV. Legal Issues and the Internet
XXVI. Jurisdiction
A.
No one can pinpoint exactly which governmental entity has jurisdiction
over cyberspace.
B.
XXVII.
A.
B.
XXVIII.
A.
B.
C.
While some courts take the position that jurisdiction is present at the
physical location of an offending party, it becomes difficult to prosecute if
the offender is located in Texas, with one set of laws, and the victim is
located in California, with another set of laws.
Sales and Use Taxation
Because the Internet has no legal jurisdiction, it also has no taxing
jurisdiction.
The Clinton Administration had declared a three-year moratorium on
Internet taxation to allow e-commerce time to grow. However, it has
grown at such a furious rate that state and local entities are now
complaining about declining revenues from sales and use taxes.
Income Taxation
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has enthusiastically embraced the
Internet, and the IRS website, located at www.irs.treas.gov, is one of the
most useful governmental sites on the World Wide Web.
The proliferation of person-to-person sales on the Internet has created an
enormous underground economy.
Most sellers do not realize that their profits (the price paid by the buyer
minus the price initially paid by the seller to acquire the item) are taxable
income, and most do not track their transactions or pay income taxes on
their profits.
XXIX. Regulation versus Free Speech
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Internet publishing falls under First Amendment protections.
Government entities have tried to regulate the flow of speech on the
Internet.
Several laws have been passed and signed (including the Communications
Decency Act) only to be struck down by the Supreme Court as infringing
unnecessarily on free speech and the free press.
With information traveling electronically, a pornographer, for instance, in
a country with liberal laws, can send illegal materials to a minor in a
country with more stringent laws.
Defamation (a false statement made about someone or some organization
that is damaging to their reputation) by Internet postings is a concern.
Libel and slander (which protect an individual against the dissemination of
falsehoods) by Internet postings is a concern.
XXX. Rights of Publicity
A.
B.
XXXI. Fraud
Rights of publicity concern the right of the individual to control image and
reputation materials.
The use pre-existing material from television or film may concern the
rights of members of the entertainment unions to get “reuse” fees.
A.
B.
C.
D.
XXXII.
A.
B.
C.
D.
XXXIII.
A.
B.
C.
D.
XXXIV.
A.
XXXV.
E.
There are inevitably criminals who will take advantage of Internet
auctions as a means of making money illegally.
Several people have been arrested for offering nonexistent items for sale.
Another area of fraud is the misuse of credit card numbers.
Although the vast majority of Internet credit card transactions are
successful, a number of buyers have found that their numbers were
diverted and stolen.
Linkage
A growing area of concern in cyberlaw is the illegitimate use of linkage.
An illegal hyperlink occurs when one site is linked to another with no
apparent reason for the linkage. This usually occurs when a shady or
illegal business is attempting to link to a legitimate business to siphon
business, embarrass the legitimate business, or use graphics and other
materials on the legitimate business’s server without paying for it. This is
also known as “bandwidth robbery.”
Another variation of linkage theft occurs in the use of meta keywords, or
metatags.
Since many search engines categorize websites and return search results
based on the contents of meta keywords, all that is necessary to steal
traffic from a popular website is view the meta keywords in the source
code of the popular website and copy it into another page.
“Spam”
“Spam” e-mail is bulk e-mail. Like bulk postal mail, it generally is
commercial in nature. Unlike “snail mail,” however, millions of e-mails
can be sent at one time for virtually no cost.
Just as first-class mail sometimes seems to vanish in a sea of bulk mail,
legitimate person-to-person e-mail can be delayed if the system becomes
clogged with frivolous e-mail.
A great deal of “spam” is pornographic in nature.
“Spam” also may involve fraudulent moneymaking schemes, such as
Ponzi and pyramid schemes.
Malicious Behavior: Hacking and Computer Viruses
Among the victims of hacking and computer viruses have been the
Pentagon, the FBI, the State Department, and even some commercial sites.
The Future
Referenced Internet Websites
Hobbes’ Internet Timeline—the definitive Internet history
www.zakon.org/robert/internet/timeline
Internet Society’s “All About The Internet: History of the Internet”
www.isoc.org/internet/history
Adobe Reader software
www.adobe.com
Jumbo Shareware
www.jumbo.com
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
www.irs.treas.gov
F.
Discussion Questions
1.
In what year did you first use the Internet? For email? For research?
A.
2.
What elements of Internet history do you recall? For instance, when, if ever, did
you first place an order using a web site?
A.
3.
This is a personal question, so a personal answer should be expected. One
focus should be the law firm newsletter of e-mail update. Discuss when it
is or isn’t appropriate to send these types of marketing materials to other
partners’ clients.
Given that the Internet was established by the Defense Department for security
reasons, and given the post-9/11 terrorism environment, should the Internet be
accessible by everyone, or would it be better to keep it private and secure from
outside persons (and their viruses)?
A.
G.
This is a personal question, so a personal answer should be expected,
however, the specific question should be addressed (i.e., “I first ordered
something on the Internet in the year 2000, while Christmas shopping”).
Do you feel it would be appropriate to pass legislation limiting the amount of
spam e-mail that can be sent? If so, how would you define what is “spam” and
what is legitimate e-mail? What about a “newsletter” to all of the client contacts
for your law firm?
A.
4.
This is a personal question, so a personal answer should be expected.
This is a personal question, so a personal answer should be expected.
Projects
Comment: Have these submitted as assignments.
1.
Make a list of what hardware you would need to access the Internet from your
home.
Look for these key items:
 A personal computer with its display, keyboard, and mouse device, or
a laptop computer
 A modem, high speed modem, T-1 or T-3 network connector boards or
devices
 Telephone line access, or high speed cable, or direct satellite link, or
T-1 or T-3 connection cables, or wireless device
2.
Make a list of the software you would need to access and make full use of the
Internet from your home.
Look for these key items:






Windows XP or similar operating system
Internet Explorer or Netscape Communicator or similar browser
software
A subscription to an ISP, such as America Online
Adobe Reader
A word processor
An image viewer