Westlaw training is the best way to prepare for your legal career. Use the information presented here to organize your approach to the legal research assignments that you will receive during your summer legal job.
Download free how-to guides before you start your research.
You can access free reference guides from several places:
Call the West Reference Attorneys first.
The West Reference Attorneys are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can use their services free of charge as much as you need them. Call 1-800-REF-ATTY (1-800-733-2889).
Use the Westlaw Directory.
Access the Westlaw Directory by clicking Directory at the top of the page. Click the links in the right frame to browse the directory. (If you have a WestlawPRO plan, the databases in your plan are displayed in the right frame.) Under transactional pricing, there is no charge to browse the Westlaw Directory. You can also access the directory free of charge at the Westlaw sign-on page. Click Database Directory under Resources.
Search in the smallest database.
Use the smallest database that contains the information you need. Using a database that contains material from only one jurisdiction or one practice area is generally less expensive than searching databases containing material from all jurisdictions or practice areas.
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Use Scope for database information.
Scope tells you what materials or information a database covers and gives you helpful search tips. Under transactional pricing, there is no charge to view Scope information. To access Scope, click the Scope icon (
) next to a database name in the Westlaw Directory or at a database Search page.
Choose pricing options for printing and searching.
To help you make the most cost-effective use of your research time, Westlaw offers pricing options for searching and printing. (If you have a WestlawPRO plan, you incur no additional charges as long as you stay within the databases in your plan.) To select your pricing options, click Preferences at the top of the page. Then make your selections in the right frame of the Preferances – Location and Pricing page. Printing by document rather than by line is more cost-effective unless you are printing a very short document (three to four pages).
Use Find to retrieve a document quickly.
Use Find to retrieve a document when you know its citation. Under transactional pricing you pay a flat fee, and you save time because you don't need to access a database or formulate a query. (Finding a case or brief by party name does access a database.) Simply access Find and type the citation. Most tabbed pages have a link to a Find template that displays a variety of citation formats so that you can simply fill in the blanks. If not, access Find and type a description of the publication you want, e.g., Florida statutes or Michigan rules, in the Find this document by citation text box to display an easy-to-use, fill-in-the-blank template.
Use WestFind&Print to retrieve several documents quickly.
WestFind&Print provides an efficient way to retrieve the full text of documents on Westlaw. To use WestFind&Print, all you need is a Westlaw password. Go to
findprint.westlaw.com and enter your citations, select result and delivery options, and sign on to Westlaw to have full-text documents or KeyCite results delivered to you. You can also request a PDF image of a case, exactly as it appears in a West reporter. If you request a document that is not included in your subscription plan, a message is displayed that gives you the option to retrieve the document for an additional charge.
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Find alternatives to word searches using the Site Map.
Click Site Map at the top of any Westlaw page to access the following services:
Table of Contents
Use the Table of Contents service to browse the tables of contents for statutes, regulations, rules, and treatises and practice guides. To view a specific section, click its hypertext link. (You can also search a table of contents.) Under transactional pricing, there is no charge to browse a table of contents until you click a hypertext link.
Statutes Indexes
You can use an alphabetical index in statutes databases to retrieve sections on a specific topic. You can also access the index from a database Search page by clicking Statutes Index at the top of the page. Browse the index using the hypertext links and plus (+) and minus (-) symbols, or search for specific terms in the index using the Search feature. To retrieve the full text of a section, click its citation.
West Key Numbers Digest
To identify relevant Key Numbers, read headnotes in cases from West reporters and consult the online West Key Number Digest, which contains an outline of all West Topics and Key Numbers. Under transactional pricing, there is no charge to view the West Key Number Digest. Quickly retrieve other cases with headnotes classified under the same topic and key number by running a topic and key number search on Westlaw.
Customize tabbed pages.
Customize your tabbed pages so you see just the materials you want.
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Use the appropriate search method.
Westlaw offers the following search methods:
Terms and Connectors Searching
When you use the Terms and Connectors search method, you enter a query that consists of key terms from your issue and connectors showing the relationship between those terms. This search method may be more cost effective to use when you want to retrieve all documents that contain specific terms.
Natural Language Searching
Natural Language searching allows you to enter a description of your research issue in plain English. Westlaw then retrieves the documents that most closely match the concepts in your description. This search method may be more cost-effective to use when you are researching a complex legal issue.
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Use Westlaw 50 State Surveys for statutes and regulations.
The 50 State Surveys database (SURVEYS) contains topical surveys of state laws along with references to the applicable state statutes so you can easily determine how legislation on a given topic varies among states. You can access these surveys by clicking 50 State Surveys at the top of a statutes database Search page.
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Use Locate to narrow your search result.
Once you retrieve a search result, click Locate in Result to browse for specific terms within your search result. Under transactional pricing, there is no charge to use Locate. Run one broad Terms and Connectors search, for example, and then use Locate as many times as you want, at no charge, to narrow your result.
Use the thesaurus or the Add Related Terms feature to add alternative search terms.
Thesaurus
Use the online thesaurus to select related terms. Click Thesaurus after you type your Natural Language description or Terms and Connectors query. Select a related term and click the Add icon, then click OK. At the Search page, notice that the related terms you selected have been automatically added to your search.
Adding Related Terms feature
After you run a search or Locate request, synonyms for key terms in your search may be displayed in the Add Related Terms section at the top of the result list. To rerun your search using one or more of these terms, click a term to add it to your search, or click Select all to add all related terms to your search. At the Search page, notice that the related terms you selected have been automatically added to your search. By default, a space (the OR connector) separates related terms in Terms and Connectors searches. Modify your search, if necessary, and click Search Westlaw to run it. If you are using transactional pricing, you will be charged for an additional search.
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Use Smart Tools to improve your query.
Smart Tools on Westlaw, a suite of automatic search enhancements, helps make sure you don't miss something important with your Westlaw search. With Smart Tools, you get great results without having to construct the perfect query.
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Use the Copy with Reference feature.
The Copy with Reference feature automatically inserts the correct citation and page number when you copy and paste text from a case, statute, regulation, treatise, or law review into a brief or other legal document. To use Copy with Reference, select the text you want to copy, click Tools at the bottom of the page, and then choose Copy with Reference from the menu that is displayed. When the Copy with Reference dialog box is displayed, containing the text you selected and the citation for the document containing the text, click Copy. Paste the copied text, which includes the citation, into your document.
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Use ResultsPlus to access additional resources.
When you run searches in caselaw, statutes, regulations, or secondary sources databases, ResultsPlus automatically displays links to documents from the American Law Reports (ALR), the American Jurisprudence 2d (AMJUR), and selected law review and treatise databases, along with relevant Key Numbers. Under transactional pricing, you can link to any document in the ResultsPlus list for a flat fee.
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Use the Research Trail to return to previous searches.
The Research Trail feature makes it easy to keep track of your research and return to previous work. To view the research trail for the current Westlaw session, click Research Trail at the top of any page. Information about the tasks you've completed is displayed, including the citations of documents you retrieved and the Westlaw databases and services you used. To view all research trails associated with your Westlaw password from the last 14 days, click List of All Research Trails at the Research Trail page.
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