Study Unit

Computer-Assisted Legal Research
By Melynda Hill-Teter Reviewed By Brian Bastyr, Esq.

About the Author
Melynda Hill-Teter is a 1991 graduate of the Legal Assistantship Program at the University of California at Santa Barbara, an American Bar Association approved school. She has more than 20 years of experience in the legal field, and specializes in legal computer applications. Ms. Hill-Teter has received a Paralegal Certificate of Mastery in LexisNexis online research. She has published articles in Legal Assistant Today and Law Office Computing. Ms. Hill-Teter is employed as a litigation paralegal in Scottsdale, Arizona.

About the Reviewer
Brian Bastyr is a senior attorney editor for West Group, a legal publishing company. He earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Illinois, and a juris doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law. He is currently a member of the Illinois bar, and has published a number of articles in legal journals.

Screen shots in this study unit are reprinted with the permission of LEXISNEXIS, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.

Paralegals spend a good deal of their work lives conducting legal and factual research. Good research skills are very important for a successful paralegal career. Legal databases constantly change their legal content, as well as the way to search for that content. Paralegals therefore must keep their research skills up-to-date and stay on top of changes in the law as well as the newest ways to search the major databases. This study unit teaches you how to quickly and efficiently retrieve legal information using Lexis.com. Lexis.com is intuitive, easy to use and navigate, and offers an easy way to find legal materials. The skills you’ll learn in this study unit will complement the traditional methods of using print and book sources. However, computer-assisted legal research (CALR) does not totally replace traditional print sources. Some research is better suited to print sources and/or CD-ROM libraries. On the other hand, print sources and CD-ROM libraries don’t replace CALR. There’s no such thing as one perfect search method. To increase your chances of legal research success, use a combination of different search strategies and tools that best fits your research problem. Also, a researcher must be cost conscious. There are times that computerized research will be too expensive to be used on a particular case. When researching, the paralegal must always try to keep costs low. Your supervising attorney will be your guide as to how much time and money should be spent researching a particular issue. Note: Because there are privacy concerns regarding some public-records databases—such as social security numbers and motor vehicle records—some of the functions discussed in this study unit may be unavailable to users of a studentaccess password.

Preview Preview iii When you complete this study unit, you’ll be able to
• • • • • • • Start a Lexis.com research session Formulate a search request and search for documents Search and retrieve primary and secondary legal sources Verify the accuracy of citations using Shepard’s Citation Service and Auto-Cite Locate, profile, and investigate people and companies Conduct financial and business research Sleuth for factual resources

Note: Throughout this study unit you’ll be directed to the supplement, Computer-Assisted Legal Research (SP0704), available online. Since the information available and the format of the LexisNexis site change frequently, we’ve provided much of the instruction only in the online supplement so it can be updated to accommodate the changes on Lexis.com. While working through this study unit, please be sure to read and study the information in both the study unit and the supplement and practice your online research skills using the online Lexis.com material. Go to http://www.pennfoster.edu and log in to your homepage. Click to show your Online Lessons. The supplement will be listed there. Follow the instructions on the screen to download and open the file.

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Preview

Contents Contents

INTRODUCTION LEXIS.COM BASICS
Research Steps Search Methods

1 2
2 4

RESEARCH PRIMARY SOURCES RESEARCH SECONDARY SOURCES USING SHEPARD’S CITATION SERVICE CONDUCT FACTUAL RESEARCH ON LEXIS.COM
Public-Records Search Tips

14 16 18 20
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ONLINE SEARCH STRATEGIES
Keep Your Research Skills Up-to-Date Obtain a Paralegal Certificate of Mastery

22
23 24

SELF-CHECK ANSWERS GLOSSARY EXAMINATION

25 33 37

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INTRODUCTION
This study unit will go in-depth into how to do online research using LexisNexis, one of the two leading legal research sites. Many of the search techniques you’ll learn will be similar to those used in Westlaw, though not exactly the same. You’ll probably use both services in your paralegal career, but for the sake of simplicity we’ll deal with only LexisNexis in this unit. Note: In the instructions throughout this unit, a click always means a single left-click. To work on Lexis.com, follow these steps: 1. Go to http://www.pennfoster.edu. 2. Log in to your account. 3. Click either the View Shipment History or View Grade History link. 4. If you’re ready to begin your Lexis research, there will be a Lexis.com button above your grade history. Click this button and you will automatically be routed to Lexis.com. You’ll have access to Lexis only to complete your CALR lessons and project and for your research for the Legal Writing 2 project.

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LEXIS.COM BASICS
Research Steps
Paralegals are often called upon to assist with retrieving documents and conducting legal research to help with case analysis, discovery, and fact-finding. This is one of the most significant tasks paralegals perform for attorneys. This section will introduce you to retrieving documents using the basic tools of Lexis.com.

Conduct Background Research
Make the best use of your online research time by first performing background research to help define your issue. Suggested resources include legal treatises, periodicals, digests, newspapers, and encyclopedias. These secondary sources will help you see the big picture, and can point you to other sources that may be useful in your continuing research. As you conduct your background research, you’ll become more familiar with the concepts and terms relevant to your legal issue. Narrowing your issue in this way allows your online research session to be more productive.

State Your Issue
Before you sign on to Lexis.com, clearly define your legal issue by isolating the specific facts and concepts that distinguish your case at hand. State your issue in one or two sentences. For example, • Must a manufacturer disclose the side effects of a drug? • Does the Fourth Amendment allow a police officer to search a car that’s been stopped for speeding, without other suspicion?

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Select a Source
Decide what kinds of documents you want to retrieve and where to search for them on Lexis.com. You can start with primary sources (such as case law and statutes) and select a jurisdiction, or look in secondary sources, such as legal treatises and law journal articles. Lexis.com databases are listed online at http://support. lexisnexis.com/default.asp. Click on the Source Locator for the LexisNexis Directory of Online Services.

Select a Search Method
Lexis.com offers two different search methods. Your knowledge of the research issue, your expertise in performing research, and the type of research will determine which method is best suited to your needs. Natural language is a good place to start if you have a broad or conceptual research issue and you need to learn more about the facts, concepts, phrases, and other information regarding your issue. Natural language can be especially effective if you have a complex legal issue, and you’re unsure of what words to use. Use terms and connectors if you’ve clearly defined your research issue and have isolated the specific facts and concepts that distinguish your case at hand. You can also run the search first using terms and connectors, then run it again using natural language to narrow the results. When in private practice, be sure to be aware of how you’re billed, however. If you’re billed per search, you may not want to run the same search twice. Check with your supervising attorney. Use a terms and connectors search when you want to establish specific relationships between your search words, or when you want comprehensive information about a topic, issue, company, or person. You can also use a terms and connectors search when you want to see where every search word or its alternative appears in each document. As you gain experience in developing search requests, you’ll develop some intuition about the best search method to use.

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Browse Documents
After you’ve retrieved a set of documents, you can browse through your documents in the Cite, KWIC, Full, or Custom formats. Click on Show Hits or Hide Hits to show or hide your search terms (the words you searched for) as they appear in the text. You can narrow your research results using the FOCUS feature. Look at the signals to the left of each entry to determine the precedential status of the cases. A green diamond indicates the case has been upheld; a yellow triangle indicates it may have been overturned, and a blue circle indicates it’s been cited neutrally. You can also edit your original search to narrow the results.

In computer jargon, a hit is a match with search criteria.

Shepardize Your Research Results
As a legal researcher, you’ll need to determine whether the case you want to rely upon is still good law. Shepardizing a case will answer this question. You can also use Shepard’s to find relevant authorities and secondary sources that may support your legal arguments.

Search Methods
Terms and connectors. Terms and connectors (also known as Boolean search logic) specify and define the relationships between your search words. Here’s an example of a search using terms and connectors: auto! or car or vehicle w/10 accident and California or CA Read the boxed item explaining terms and connectors, and then see if you can figure out what this string is searching for.

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Terms and Connectors Use connectors to establish logical relationships between words and concepts in a Boolean search request. (Boolean logic and root expanders were discussed in the Law Office Computing study unit.) The Lexis.com system doesn’t look for the connectors themselves in documents—just for the actual search words. Multiple connectors can be used in one search request. OR Links synonyms, alternative forms of expression, acronyms, antonyms, and so on. For example: • doctor OR physician—finds either doctor or physician • mouse OR rat OR rodent—finds either mouse or rat or rodent • environmental protection agency OR epa—finds either Environmental Protection Agency or EPA • regulat! OR deregulat!—finds variations on either regulate or deregulate, such as regulation, deregulation, regulated, etc. w/n Links search words and phrases to create concepts. The letter n stands for a number from 1 to 255. w/n doesn’t specify a word order. However, no matter how large the value of n, w/n won’t connect words that are in different segments of a document. For example: • john w/3 doe—finds john within up to three words of doe; use to link first and last names, allowing for middle names and initials, as well as the last name preceding the first name (Doe, John; John E. Doe; John Paul Jones Doe). • market w/5 share—finds market within up to five words of share; links two words that may appear side by side or separated by up to five words. This search finds market share, share of the market, or share of the European market, for example. • spray w/25 injur! OR explod!—finds spray within up to 25 words of injure or explode. • But, Jones w/25 accident won’t give any results if Jones appears only in the heading and accident appears only in the body. /p Looks for documents with search words in the same paragraph. Use the /p connector when you want your search words to have a general relationship to each other. For example: • rule 11 /p sanction—finds rule 11 within the same paragraph as sanction. • take over OR takeover /p poison pill—finds take over or takeover in the same paragraph as poison pill. /s Looks for documents with search words in the same sentence. Use the /s connector when you want a close relationship between words without specifying an exact proximity. For example: • sanction /s frivolous—finds sanction within the same sentence as frivolous • circumstances /s mitigat!—finds circumstances within the same sentence as mitigate, mitigation, mitigated, etc. (Continued)

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Terms and Connectors—Continued AND Links words or phrases that must both appear anywhere in the same document, no matter how close or far apart. For example: • bank AND deregulate—finds bank and deregulate anywhere in the same document. • stock OR share w/10 redeem! OR redemption AND takeover OR take over OR merg!— finds either the word stock or share within up to 10 words of redeem, redeeming, or redemption, and the words takeover, take over, or a variant of merge must appear somewhere in the document. PRE/n Requires both words to appear in the document in the same segment, and the first word must precede the second word by n words. Use when a different word order would change the meaning. Note that there shouldn’t be any space between the PRE and the /n. • cable PRE/2 television OR tv OR t.v.—finds cable television or cable tv but not television cables NOT/n The first search word is required to appear in the document. The second word may also appear; however, it can not be within n words of the first word. There must be at least one example of the first word, with the second word not within n words. Note that there shouldn’t be any space between the NOT and the /n. • rico NOT w/5 puerto—finds rico; however, rico can’t appear closer than five words to puerto; thus, it excludes Puerto Rico. AND NOT Excludes any words that follow the connector. • trust AND NOT charitable trust—finds the word trust, but the phrase charitable trust can’t appear anywhere in the document. CAUTION: Use the AND NOT connector carefully. It eliminates any words that follow it and, consequently, changes the impact of other connectors. Priority. Connectors operate in the following order of priority: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. OR w/n, PRE/n, NOT/n /s /p AND AND NOT (Continued)

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Terms and Connectors—Continued Connector order. If you use two or more of the same connector, they operate left to right. If the “number” connectors have different numbers, the smallest number is operated on first. /p and /s can’t be combined with a proximity connector, e.g., w/n. For example: bankrupt! w/25 discharg! AND student OR college OR education w/5 loan 1. Because OR has the highest priority, it operates first and creates a unit of student OR college OR education 2. w/5, the smaller of the w/n connectors, ties together the word loan and the previously formed unit of student OR college OR education 3. 4. w/25 operates next and creates a unit of bankrupt! w/25 discharg! AND, with the lowest priority, operates last and links the units formed in 2 and 3 above.

Segments. The terms-and-connectors method is also recommended when you want to restrict your search to a specific segment, or part, of a document. Segments are sections or divisions within documents. For example, you might want to search for all opinions written by a particular judge; all cases involving a particular party or attorney; or all cases decided on, before, or after a certain date. This is called segment searching. Different types of documents have different segments. For example, case law won’t have the same segments as public records. You can restrict your search for case law to headnotes, history, or judges, for example. Public records have different segments, such as names, docket numbers, and street addresses. Useful segments for cases include “Summary,” “Judges,” “Opinionby,” “Name,” and “Court.” (The “Name” segment for cases contains the party names.) Useful ones for statutes include “Unanno,” “Text,” “Heading,” and “Section.” Unanno and Text both exclude all the casenotes and so forth, and just search the statutory text itself. Segment searching is a useful tool. It will retrieve a narrower, more tailored set of documents. Lexis.com offers a voluminous amount of data, and a vague or broad search may retrieve a lengthy set of documents that you’ll have to wade through to find the specific information or document you need. Segment searching will save time for you, and money for the client.

Headnotes come at the beginning of a case, and are written by legal editors to highlight the holdings in the case. They aren’t written by the court, and thus aren’t officially part of the case. They’re useful for research in quickly finding relevant law, but they can’t be cited to or relied on for argument.

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To restrict your search using a segment: 1. Go to your desired source. 2. Below the search terms text box are two drop-down menus that allow you to restrict your search by segment or by date. 3. Select a segment from the drop-down list in the Restrict by Segment section. 4. Enter your segment-related search terms in the text box next to the segment drop-down list. 5. Click Add, and your segment search will appear in the search dialog box. You can also do a segment search by typing the segment in the Enter Search Terms text box, with the terms in parentheses. For example, to search for a biography, go to Reference, and click the Biographies link. In the Enter Search Terms dialog box, enter the name of the individual like this: “name (f lee bailey).” If you simply enter “f lee bailey,” you’ll retrieve an alphabetical list of all the people whose biographies mention F. Lee Bailey. Using the name ( ) limiter will eliminate all these references. You can also limit your search by using the Restrict by Date limiter. You can either choose a time period using the drop-down list, or you can search between specified dates using the From and To text boxes. Natural language. Natural language is a search method that allows you to enter a description of your research issue in plain English. It’s not necessary to use connectors such AND, OR, and w/n. Some researchers use the natural language method when they’re unsure of where to start their research or when they’re researching broader conceptual issues rather than specific legal issues, such as • What rights do prisoners have during a strip search process? • Are borrowers required to pay a fee to the lender to obtain a mortgage loan payoff figure?

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You can also use the phrases and words in any order. For example: • prisoners strip search • mortgage loan borrowers payoff figure Easy Search. Lexis also offers an Easy Search feature that allows you to run a quick search. Easy Search is a pure text search, without any limiters or other tools for refining the search. This search also doesn’t understand Boolean operators. Easy Search is optimized for short search queries (two or three terms). With any of these search techniques, if you click Show Hits at the top of the page, your search results are displayed for you in the expanded cite view with your search terms highlighted in context for quick viewing. Clicking Hide Hits will show only the case headings and citations. In both views, you can click the case name to retrieve the full case.

Searching Words and Concepts
Words are the basic units of a search. A word is a single character or group of characters, alphabetical or numeric, with a space on either side.

• McPherson—one searchable word • §1988—one searchable word • § 1988—two searchable words
Hyphenated words. A hyphen is treated as a space, so a hyphenated word is seen as two words.

• pretrial—one word • pre-trial—two words • pre trial—two words
Plurals and possessives. Use any form of a noun—singular, plural, or possessive. The Lexis.com system automatically picks up the other forms for you as long as the noun is a regular plural.

• writ—finds writ, writs, writ’s, or writs’ • city—finds city, cities, city’s, or cities’
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However, if you use a noun with an irregular plural ending, such as child or ox, you won’t automatically get the plurals and plural possessives. Use universal characters to get all forms of the words. Universal characters. The asterisk (*) and the exclamation mark (!) are referred to as universal characters. Use them to substitute for letters in words. These characters can be used only with the terms-and-connectors search method. Use the asterisk (*) to replace a letter or letters in a word. You can use more than one asterisk in a word. You can use it anywhere in a word except as the first letter.

• bernst**n—finds the ei or the ie spelling of the name • wom*n—finds both the singular and plural forms of the word

• bank***—finds any word beginning with bank and which has no more than three letters after the k; will pick up banker and banking, but won’t pick up bankrupt or bankruptcy Use the exclamation point (!) to replace an infinite number of letters following a word root. You can use only one in a word, and it must be at the end of the word root.

• litigat!—finds variations on the word litigate (litigator, litigated, litigation, litigating)

• acquir!—finds variations of the word acquire (acquired, acquiring, acquisition)

• child!—finds variations of the word child (child, children, childish) Special symbols. Many keyboards don’t have the § (section) symbol commonly used in citations to statutes. If your keyboard doesn’t have this symbol, you can substitute the @ in its place. For example, to search for citations to Section 305, enter @ 305 or @305.

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Equivalents. The Lexis.com service automatically searches for some words and abbreviations that are equivalent to each other. If you use one in a search request, Lexis.com will search for all equivalents. For example, cal will automatically find Cal, Calif, and California. Noise words. Certain common words can’t be searched in most of Lexis.com. They’re called noise words. The list of noise words is too extensive to give here, but think of words that are used repeatedly in most writing—the, and, of, his, my, when, is, are, and so on. When in doubt, omit the questionable word and use the w/n connector instead. Date restrictions. You may include date restrictions in a terms-and-connectors or a natural-language search request along with your search terms. This is optional. Date restrictions add specificity to your search request, and will retrieve a more narrow set of documents. The default setting is No Date Restrictions. Note: If you’re searching for a case within the last 100 years, you can abbreviate the year to two digits (change 6/1999 to 6/99 or 12/2010 to 12/10). But if you’re searching for a case more than 100 years ago, you must use four digits (1900, 1897, etc.). There are several different types of date restrictions: 1. Select a range and then type in your dates in the From and To fields. For example: • From 12/01/99 To 10/12/09 2. Select a date from the drop-down list in the search dialog box. For example, Previous Week, Previous Month, Previous 6 Months, Previous Year. 3. Type one of the following date parameters in the text box along with your search terms. Note: This only works using the terms-and-connectors search method.

• date = 2010 specifies documents dated within 2010
(including cases either filed in 2009 and decided in 2010, or filed in 2010 and decided in 2011). You must use the four digits in the year.

• date aft 12/15/05 specifies documents dated after
December 15, 2005 up to the present day

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• date bef 8/20/06 specifies documents dated before
August 20, 2006

• date aft 11/05 and date bef 2/06 specifies documents dated between December 1, 2005 and January 31, 2006 Punctuation and search requests. Words that are normally capitalized don’t have to be capitalized, and it’s not necessary to enter punctuation such as periods when typing in your search request. However, you must enter spaces (as you normally would) between words and sections. For example, instead of typing “12 U.S.C. 1455,” enter “12 usc 1455.” Now, go to your online supplement and review the rest of the material on the basics of LexisNexis.

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Self-Check 1
At the end of each section of Computer-Assisted Legal Research, you’ll be asked to check your understanding of what you’ve just read by completing a “Self-Check” consisting of online exercises. Completing these practical exercises will help you review what you’ve learned so far. Please sign on to Lexis.com and complete the Self-Check 1 online exercises now. 1. Find the source “U.S. Supreme Court Briefs.” 2. Use the natural language search method and run the following search in the U.S. Supreme Court Briefs source: “What rights do prisoners have during a strip search process?” 3. View your research results in three document-viewing formats. 4. What universal character would you use to find variations of the word minimum? 5. Use the terms and connectors search method and run a search for minimum due process for prisoners or convicts in the U.S. Supreme Court Briefs source. Restrict the search to retrieve documents for the previous year. 6. Use the Transactional Advisor and run the search “strip search of prisoner.” 7. Retrieve the following case: 807 F. Supp. 1090. 8. Retrieve the following case: Filmtec Corp. v. Hydranautics. 9. Retrieve the following case: Docket Number C-91-0088, United States District Court of California. 10. Download the case in Exercise 9 in the full, dual-column print format. 11. Next, print the case in Exercise 9 using your browser. 12. Review the list of the last sources you recently searched. 13. Sign off Lexis.com. Compare your research techniques with those on page 25.

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RESEARCH PRIMARY SOURCES
Primary authority means the actual laws, court decisions, and regulations that are put into effect by the government and the courts. Primary sources, then, are the sources where this authority is published. Now, go to your online supplement and review the rest of the material discussing primary source research.

Self-Check 2
Sign on to Lexis.com and retrieve the primary sources using the most efficient retrieval methods. 1. Find 12 Code of Federal Regulations § 205.13. 2. Find the United States Supreme Court case Stringer v. Black. 3. Find Minnesota Statutes § 645.08. 4. Find Opinion No. 6742 from the Michigan Attorney General. 5. Find the case with the docket number 92-1349, United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. 6. Find Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc., United States Supreme Court. 7. Find 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Continued

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Self-Check 2
8. Determine the procedures for taking oral depositions in California. Find the California Code of Civil Procedure section regarding procedures for taking oral depositions. 9. Find 111 F.3d 585. 10. Find New Mexico Constitution art. IV, § 7. 11. Find Roe v. Wade, United States Supreme Court. 12. Find United States Constitution article I. 13. Find federal cases before 1945 involving Al Capone. Compare your research techniques with those on page 26.

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RESEARCH SECONDARY SOURCES
Secondary authority means interpretive writings or indirect information about the law, such as law review articles, treatises, and encyclopedias. Now, go to your online supplement and review the rest of the material discussing secondary source research.

Self-Check 3
Sign on to Lexis.com and retrieve the following secondary sources using the most efficient retrieval methods. 1. Your supervising attorney has asked you to retrieve an article in American Law Reports. Find this report: William B. Johnson, Annotation, Use of Plea Bargain or Grant of Immunity as Improper Vouching for Credibility of Witness in Federal Cases, 76 A.L.R. Fed. 409 (1986). 2. Find Ballentine’s Law Dictionary, 3d Edition, and look up the term accrual of cause of action. 3. Look up the term interrogatory and find its abbreviation in Bieber’s Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations. 4. Your supervising attorney has asked you to locate a California treatise regarding the procedures for the issuance of a subpoena or subpoena duces tecum. Look for documents regarding this issue in Witkin California Procedure, 5th Edition. 5. You’ve been asked to locate a table of contents for a restatement. Find and print the table of contents for Restatement (Second) of Agency. 6. Retrieve the following law review article: 141 U. Pa. L. Rev. 221. 7. Find the article in the American Bar Association Journal by William C. Smith, “Offshore Trust Busting: A Contempt Ruling May Mean Trouble in Debtors’ Paradise.” (Continued)

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Self-Check 3
8. Your supervising attorney has asked you to conduct background research regarding a real estate case. The clients are owners of a historic building, and they want to demolish the building and build high-rise apartments. The attorney wants to read legal publications regarding the demolition of historical buildings and redevelopment. Find articles in legal publications regarding these topics. 9. Your supervising attorney is working on a personal-injury case where the client suffered a fractured hip injury in an automobile accident. The attorney wants you to locate information in Medline regarding fractured hips. (Medline is a bibliographic database of medical journals dating back to 1966 from the National Library of Medicine.) 10. You’ve been asked to locate jury verdict information where the client suffered a closed head injury in an automobile accident. Find the source Arizona Litigation Reports and run a search regarding this issue. 11. Your supervising attorney is preparing for trial in a litigation case, and needs to locate a jury instruction regarding the definition of legal cause in Florida Forms of Jury Instruction, published by Matthew Bender & Company, Inc. 12. You work in California and have been asked to draft a notice of taking of an oral deposition and production of documents. Find a deposition form entitled “Notice of Taking Deposition by Oral Examination” in a Matthew-Bender treatise on California deposition and discovery. 13. Locate the attorney profile of Gerry L. Spence in the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory. Print the profile in the Full format. 14. Locate a Model Act in the Martindale-Hubbell Uniform Probate Code entitled Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act. 15. Find ALR annotations regarding child pornography over the Internet. Compare your research techniques with those on page 28.

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USING SHEPARD’S CITATION SERVICE
Shepardizing, or cite-checking, is a method of evaluating a case and determining if it’s still valid law. That is, that the case still carries precedential value—its authority hasn’t been altered by a more recent court decision or by legislative action. Overall, Shepard’s ensures the validity of the citations and yields new research possibilities as well. Attorneys have a professional responsibility and duty to know the precedential value of legal authorities before they rely on them in the course of representing clients. Attorneys have been using Shepard’s since the 1800s as a reliable method of cite-checking documents. Now, go to your online supplement and review the rest of the material on using Shepard’s citation service.

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Self-Check 4
Exercises 1–6: Sign on to Lexis.com and Shepardize the sources. 1. Shepardize the following cases using the feature that quickly validates case law: 112 S. Ct. 2608; 581 F.2d 1092; 480 U.S. 387. 2. You’ve been asked to help conduct legal research and find additional relevant authority. Your supervising attorney has given you the following citation: 121 Cal. App. 118. Use Shepard’s as a finding tool and print out a report in the Full format. 3. Use Shepard’s as a finding tool, and Shepardize 5 Haw. App. 174. After you’ve retrieved an answer set, use FOCUS to search for abuse of process. 4. Use Shepard’s to validate your legal research, and Shepardize 579 F.2d 126. Restrict your results to all negative treatment. 5. View the citing references for 579 F.2d 126 in an unrestricted view. 6. Restrict your results for 579 F.2d 126 to show citing references after the year 1979. Compare your research techniques with those on page 31.

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CONDUCT FACTUAL RESEARCH ON LEXIS.COM
Effective legal research involves more than searching case law and statutory materials. You’ll be asked to search public records databases to obtain factual and background information regarding cases, parties, clients, and witnesses.

Public-Records Search Tips
Use the FOCUS feature to narrow your research results. Many times, you may retrieve hundreds of results. After you’ve retrieved your first set of results, think about any additional search terms that you can enter in the FOCUS dialog box to narrow down your answer set of documents. The Lexis.com databases don’t include public records information for all federal, state, city, or county entities. Click on the blue information dot next to the link, or click on the link itself, to determine the contents. You can also call customer service for source content information. Check the segments that are available to use within each source. Different types of documents have different segments. Segments vary from source to source. Click on the plus sign next to Restrict Search Using Document Segments. These segments offer alternative ways to find documents, and can help retrieve a more focused set of documents. If you’re searching for motor vehicle records, you must use the LexisNexis proprietary software. Motor vehicle records aren’t available using the Internet and Lexis.com. Some public records sources don’t provide complete information regarding the person, company, or lawsuit you’re investigating. For instance, the court or docket sources provide information regarding the case name, party names, civil case number, filing date, district, and case type; however, if you wanted to see the complaint or other pleadings, you’d have to call Lexis or the court clerk’s office to order copies of pleadings and relating filings.

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Now, go to your online supplement and review the rest of the material on conducting factual research using Lexis.com.

Self-Check 5
Sign on to Lexis.com and retrieve the following documents using the most efficient retrieval methods. 1. Pick a recent hot topic from your local newspaper and run a search for that topic in Today’s News. 2. Look over the content of the databases in the Company & Financial and Market & Industry databases. 3. Retrieve a legal biography on attorney Marc E. Kasowitz. 4. Retrieve federal and state cases involving attorney Philip H. Corboy. Restrict search to previous year. (If no results, expand the date restriction.) 5. Find the street address and phone number for the headquarters of Microsoft. 6. Find reports regarding the acquisition of DoubleClick by Google. 7. Find reports regarding the acquisition of Merrill Lynch by Bank of America. Compare your research techniques with those on page 31.

Computer-Assisted Legal Research

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ONLINE SEARCH STRATEGIES
Online legal research is usually expensive. A cost-efficient computer researcher is someone who’s adept with the mechanics of writing a computer search, as well as using the Lexis.com commands. Your goal is to jump on and jump off Lexis.com with accurate, needed information, while minimizing search costs that are passed on to the firm’s clients. To make the most efficient use of Lexis.com, keep the following in mind:

• Conduct background research. Use dictionaries, encyclopedias, treatises, and legal periodicals so you can understand the legal issues and vocabulary involved in the case.

• Plan your research. Draft out your search request on paper before signing on to Lexis.com.

• Decide which research tools to use, and which sources to search.

• Shepardize your primary materials to see whether they’re still valid. Some secondary sources can be Shepardized as well.

• Expand your research by using other finding tools—e.g.,
Shepard’s full format, or secondary sources.
There are lots of different billing packages. Some options have a flat rate but limit what databases you can search. Others charge a fee per search, and the fee depends on what databases you search. Other options charge by document, still others by the hour or log in time. Some options use a combination of methods.

• Complete your research with factual information by searching news and public records sources.

• Find out if your firm’s contract with LexisNexis is billed at a flat, hourly, or transactional rate. Plan your online research needs, and sketch out their costs. The costs shouldn’t exceed the benefits or the value of the case. The end result should improve the quality and delivery of legal services to clients, while not making those services prohibitively expensive.

• Know when to stop your online research. In particular, stop your online research when the costs will exceed the benefits. You can’t afford to spend $1,000 on online

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Computer-Assisted Legal Research

research for a case that’s worth only $500, no matter the difficulty of the research problem. Seek further direction from your supervising attorney. Print resources or the Internet may offer the information you need.

• Lexis.com customer service is an indispensable part of the online legal research system. They’re available 24 hours a day by telephone to help you make the most of the research tools in the LexisNexis system. They can assist you with online search techniques, formulating search requests, as well as suggestions for sources to search. A call to customer service may help focus your research request, and minimize costs to the client.

• Use Lexis.com online help. Click on the Help link at the top of the screen. Click on the topic or subject for online help, or search by keyword. You won’t be billed for using the Help feature.

Keep Your Research Skills Up-to-Date
It’s important for paralegals to keep their research skills up-to-date because LexisNexis continuously comes up with new search methods, products, and databases. Continuing education in CALR is a must in today’s competitive environment. To keep your online research skills up-to-date, follow these guidelines:

• Read and study the online newsletter Paralegal
Update, designed specifically for paralegals. You can find the Paralegal Update newsletter at http://www.lexisnexis.com/paralegal, a Web site designed specifically for paralegals. This site offers useful information about LexisNexis products and features, as well as search tips and advice to help paralegals excel in CALR.

• Go to the LexisNexis Knowledge Base by clicking the
Customer Service Center link on the home page and then clicking the Searchable Knowledge Base link. The Knowledge Base provides a glossary of terms related to LexisNexis and CALR searches, a Help link, and information on many LexisNexis products and services.

Computer-Assisted Legal Research

23

• Click on the Source Locator in the Knowledge Base to learn more about the 22,000 sources available on LexisNexis. There’s a Source Locator Help link to give you tips on finding a particular source.

• Become familiar with the contents of the databases and sources that will help you conduct efficient and cost-effective legal research.

• Participate in LexisNexis training sessions or seminars.
Contact your firm’s LexisNexis representative, who can set up training sessions and provide you with instructional literature.

Obtain a Paralegal Certificate of Mastery
LexisNexis offers a training program designed specifically for paralegals. The goal of the program is to increase efficiency with LexisNexis search methods. The program consists of five one-hour telephone training modules that cover the topics of initial case analysis, cite-checking, drafting legal documents, using public records, and company and financial research. After you’ve completed the five training modules, you’ll receive a Paralegal Certificate of Mastery. This training program is approved by the National Association of Legal Assistants and the National Federation of Paralegal Associations for continuing legal education credits. You must be a Lexis customer or employed by a Lexis customer to take the training. In addition to the certificate program, LexisNexis offers online tutorials and webinars designed to increase your proficiency using Shepard’s, CheckCite, and other LexisNexis search tools and software. For more information on the Paralegal Certificate of Mastery and other programs, go to the Paralegal page and click the Training & Resources link.

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Computer-Assisted Legal Research

The self-checks are designed to retrieve results, not “answers,” so this section provides not answers, but step-by-step instructions for retrieving the information in the self-check exercise. You can check your search methods against those given here if you have trouble retrieving results. Where there’s more than one way to achieve the same results, not all methods will be given here.

An s we r s A n s we r s

Self-Check 1
1. Click on the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Click the Legal tab. In the Court Records, Briefs and Filings section you’ll find the source: U.S. Supreme Court Briefs. 2. Click on the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, click on the link U.S. Supreme Court Briefs. Click on Natural Language, type “what rights do prisoners have during a strip search process?” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 3. The default viewing method is KWIC. Click on the Cite link to view documents in the Cite list format. Click on the Full link to view documents in the Full format. 4. minim! 5. Click on the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, click on the link U.S. Supreme Court Briefs. Click on Terms and Connectors, type “mini! due process and prisoner or convict” in the search dialog box. Select Previous Year from the drop-down list in Restrict by Date. Click Search. 6. Click on the Transactional Advisor tab. Next to “Don’t see your practice center?” click View more. Under Area of Law, click Criminal Law. Type “strip search of prisoner” in the text box. Click Search. 7. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on the by Citation subtab. Type “807 f supp 1090” in the text box. Click Get.

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8. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Party Name. Type “filmtec corp” and “hydranautics” in the text boxes. Select Federal & State Courts: All Federal & State Courts Combined as the jurisdiction. Click Search. 9. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Docket Number. Type “c-91-0088” in the text box. Select United States District Courts: California as the jurisdiction. Click Search. 10. Click on the Download link. Check Full and Dual Column Print in the Document View section of the Download Documents dialog box. Click on Download. 11. Click on File on the Menu bar, select Print from the drop-down menu. Click OK. 12. Click on the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Click on the Recently Used Sources drop-down list, and scan the last few sources you searched. 13. Click on the Sign Off link.

Self-Check 2
1. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Citation. Type “12 cfr 205.13” in the text box. Click Get. 2. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Party Name. Type “stringer” and “black” in the text boxes. Select US Supreme Court as the jurisdiction. Click Search. 3. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Citation. Type “minnesota statutes 645.08” in the text box. Click Get. 4. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to States Legal–U.S. > Michigan > Find Statutes, Regulations, Administrative Materials & Court Rules > MI Attorney General Opinions. Use terms and connectors and type “6742” in the search dialog box. Click Search. Click the Cite view and find the Attorney General opinion that has the correct opinion number.

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Self-Check Answers

5. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Docket Number. Type “92-1349” in the text box. Select US Courts of Appeals: 7th Circuit as the jurisdiction. Click Search. 6. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Party Name. Type “cipollone” and “liggett group” in the text boxes. Select US Supreme Court as the jurisdiction. Click Search. 7. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Citation. Type “42 usc 1983” in the text box. Click Get. 8. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to States Legal–U.S. > California > Find Statutes, Regulations, Administrative Materials & Court Rules > CA–Deering’s California Codes Annotated, Constitution, Court Rules, & ALS, Comb. Use terms and connectors and type “tak! oral deposition” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 9. Click on Get a Document. Click on by Citation. Type “111 f 3d 585” in the text box. Click Get. 10. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Go to States Legal–U.S. > New Mexico > Find Statutes, Regulations, Administrative Materials & Court Rules > NM - New Mexico Code, Constitution, Court Rules & ALS Combined. Use terms and connectors, and type “iv section 7” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 11. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Party Name. Type “roe” and “wade” in the text boxes. Select U.S. Supreme Court as the jurisdiction. Click Search. 12. Click on the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Click the Legal tab. Under Federal Legal - U.S., click View more sources. Under the heading Find Statutes, Regulations, Administrative Materials & Court Rules, click USCS - United States Code Service: Code, Const, Rules, Conventions & Public Laws. Click Browse TOC in the search dialog box. Click the plus sign next to CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. This will show the headings, including article I.
Self-Check Answers 27

13. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Federal Legal – U.S. > Find Cases > Federal Courts Cases Before 1945, Combined. Use terms and connectors and type “name(capone)” in the search dialog box. Click Search.

Self-Check 3
1. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Secondary Legal > American Law Reports (ALR). Use terms and connectors and type “author (william or bill w/3 johnson) and use of plea bargain” or “cite (76 alr fed 409)” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 2. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to the Find a Source tab and type “law dictionary.” Click on Ballentine’s Law Dictionary, 3rd Edition. Use terms and connectors and type “accrual of cause of action” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 3. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Reference > Law > Bieber’s Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations. Use terms and connectors and type “interrogatory” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 4. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Find a Source tab, type “Witkin.” Click on Witkin California Procedure. In the dialog box, using terms and connectors, type “issue! subpoena or subpoena duces tecum” in the search dialog box. Be sure Full-text of source documents is checked. Click Search. 5. Click the Search tab. Under the Legal tab, go to Secondary Legal > Jurisprudences, Restatements and Principles of the Law > Agency > Restatement of the Law 2d, Agency – Rule Sections. Click Browse TOC. Click File from the Menu bar on your browser. Click Print, then OK.

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Self-Check Answers

6. Click on the Get a Document tab. Click on by Citation. Type “141 u pa l rev 221” in the text box. Click Get. 7. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, click on Secondary Legal > American Bar Association (ABA) > ABA Journals > ABA Journals Combined. Use terms and connectors and type “title (offshore trust busting: a contempt ruling may mean trouble in debtors’ paradise)” in the search dialog box. Click Search. Note: you don’t always have to enter the entire title. If there’s a word or phrase that seems uncommon, you could try that first—it’s quicker than typing a long title unnecessarily. For example, in this case, “title (offshore trust busting)” or “title (debtors’ paradise)” would also work. 8. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Secondary Legal > Law Reviews, CLE, Legal Journals & Periodicals, Combined. Use terms and connectors and type “demol! hist! buildings and redevelopment” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 9. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Reference > Medical > Medline > Medline References. Use terms and connectors and type “fract! hip” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 10. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Area of Law – By Topic > Litigation Practice & Procedure > Find Expert Witness Analysis, Jury Verdicts & Settlements > State Jury Verdicts & Settlements > Arizona Litigation Reports. Use terms and connectors and type “closed head injury and auto! or car or vehicle accident” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 11. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Area of Law–By Topic > Litigation Practice & Procedure > Find Jury Instructions > By State > Florida > Florida Forms of Jury Instruction. Use terms and connectors and type “definition of legal cause” in the search dialog box. Click Search.

Self-Check Answers

29

12. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Secondary Legal > Matthew Bender(R) > By Jurisdiction > California > California Deposition and Discovery Practice. Use terms and connectors and type “notice of taking deposition by oral examination” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 13. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Reference > MartindaleHubbell(R) > Combined Law Directory Listings > Martindale-Hubbell(R) Listings, All. Use terms and connectors and type “name (gerry w/3 spence)” in the search dialog box. Click Search. Click on Full. Click File on the Menu bar. Click Print. Click OK. 14. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Secondary Legal > Model Acts & Uniform Laws > Martindale-Hubbell–Uniform Probate Code. Use terms and connectors and type “durable power of attorney act” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 15. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Secondary Legal > American Law Reports (ALR). Type “child porn! and internet or net” in the search dialog box. Click Search.

Self-Check 4
1. Click the Shepard’s tab and then the Shepard’s subtab. Enter “112 sct 2608” in the text box. Click the Shepard’s for Validation radio button. Click Check. Follow these steps for each citation. 2. Click the Shepard’s tab and then the Shepard’s subtab. Enter “121 calapp 118” in the text box. Click on Shepard’s for Research. Click Check. Click on the Print link. 3. Click the Shepard’s tab and then the Shepard’s subtab. Enter “5 hawapp 174” in the text box. Click on Shepard’s for Research. Click Check. Click on the link FOCUS-Restrict By and type “abuse of process” in the FOCUS dialog box. Click Apply.

30

Self-Check Answers

4. Click the Shepard’s tab and then the Shepard’s subtab. Enter “579 f2d 126” in the text box. Click on Shepard’s for Validation. Click Check. Click on the link All Neg. 5. Click on the Unrestricted link. 6. Click on the FOCUS-Restrict By link. Type “date aft 1979” in the FOCUS dialog box. (You can also scroll down to the bottom of the page where you can select date restrictions.) Then click Apply.

Self-Check 5
1. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the News & Business tab, go to Combined Sources > Today’s News. Use terms and connectors or natural language, and enter your search terms in the search dialog box. Click Search. 2. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the News & Business tab, click on the Company & Financial link. Click on the i (information) button next to some of the sources. Go back and click on the Market & Industry link. Click on the i button next to some of the sources. 3. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Reference > Biographies > Legal Biographical Information Sources. Use terms and connectors, and type “name (marc w/3 kasowitz)” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 4. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the Legal tab, go to Cases–U.S. > Federal and State Cases Combined. Use terms and connectors, and type “counsel (phil! w/3 corboy)” in the search dialog box. Restrict the search by clicking on Previous Year in the drop-down list. Click Search. 5. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the News & Business tab, go to Company & Financial > Company Profiles & Directories > U.S. Company Reports. Use terms and connectors, and type “company (microsoft)” the search dialog box. Click Search.

Self-Check Answers

31

6. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the News & Business tab, go to Company & Financial > Mergers & Acquisitions > Mergers & Acquisitions Reports–Company Reports. Use terms and connectors and type “google and doubleclick” in the search dialog box. Click Search. 7. Click the Search tab and then on the by Source subtab. Under the News & Business tab, go to Company & Financial > Mergers & Acquisitions > Mergers & Acquisitions Reports–Company Reports. Use terms and connectors and type “target (Merrill Lynch)” in the search dialog box (otherwise, you’ll get a lot of hits where Merrill Lynch or Bank of America were advisors to the transaction). Click Search.

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Self-Check Answers

The glossary of this study unit contains many key words that you’ve just learned as you completed your study unit. Before taking the examination at the end of Computer-Assisted Legal Research, be sure to turn to the glossary and review the key words. Boolean search logic A search method using the logical relationship among search terms. Combining search terms produces narrower and more accurate searches. The Boolean operators most frequently used are “AND,” “OR,” and “NOT.” The term Boolean comes from George Boole, a nineteenth-century mathematician. He developed a system that described language in mathematical/logical terms. citation A reference to a legal authority. A complete citation serves as an “address” for a legal authority by telling you where the full text of a statute, case, or other source of legal information has been published so you can look it up. citator A published list of cases, statutes, and other sources of law showing their subsequent history (being cited in other cases) and status (having been overruled or upheld by another case). cited reference A legal authority that’s being cited by another legal authority. The citation you’re Shepardizing is called the cited reference. citing references A legal authority that cites another legal authority. When you Shepardize a citation, you’re looking for the citing references to your authority. In Shepard’s citators, citing references are always found listed in a column below the cited reference. computer-assisted legal research (CALR) A method of conducting legal research using online commercial databases such LexisNexis, Westlaw, Dialog, or KnowX. An hourly or transactional fee is charged for access to these databases. docket number The alphanumeric or numerical designation assigned by the clerk of the court. The docket number is used to identify all papers submitted to the court regarding the case.

G lo s s ar y G lo s s a r y
33

good law A case, statute, regulation, or other legal authority that retains its value as precedent. For example, a case that has never been reversed or overruled is likely to be “good law,” although many cases lose their precedential value over time by being distinguished or criticized in subsequent decisions. Note that if a subsequent decision negatively impacts only one point of law in a case, then only that particular point will become bad law, while other points of law in the case may remain “good law.” hit A match with search criteria. LEXSEE This feature allows you to retrieve full-text documents of legal materials—such as federal and state case law, law reviews, IRS materials, Federal Register, public laws, bill tracking, and administrative decisions—when you have the citation. LEXSTAT This feature allows you to retrieve full-text documents of legal materials—such as federal and state statutes and codes—when you have the citation. natural language A search method that allows you to enter a description of your research issue in plain English. precedent A previously decided case that’s recognized as authority for the disposition of future cases. precedential value The value of a case from a precedent standpoint—whether it’s strong enough to build a case around. That is, whether the case is one which a court will rely on in deciding similar issues. primary authority The actual laws, court decisions, and regulations that are put into effect by the government and the courts. primary sources The sources where primary authority is published. search term A word you include in your search request to retrieve legal documents containing that specific word. secondary authority Interpretive writings or indirect information about the law, such as law review articles, treatises, and encyclopedias.

34

Glossary

segments Sections or divisions within documents, used for restricting searches. Shepardize To use Shepard’s citators (a proprietary service of LexisNexis) to identify and analyze the primary and secondary authorities that have discussed that citation. This information would help you analyze that citation’s current precedential value. signals A graphic illustration showing red, yellow, green, or blue, which alerts you to the kinds of treatments that a case has received (whether it’s been overruled or upheld, e.g.). terms and connectors A search technique consisting of key terms from your legal issues, and connectors (such as OR and w/n), which specify and define the relationships between your search words. treatment The list of citing cases, both within the cited case’s jurisdiction and outside it, as well as other secondary sources that have commented upon a case or statute, favorably or unfavorably.

Glossary

35

NOTES

36

Glossary

Computer-Assisted Legal Research

Examination Examination

EXAMINATION NUMBER

00803602
Whichever method you use in submitting your exam answers to the school, you must use the number above. For the quickest test results, go to http://www.takeexamsonline.com

When you feel confident that you have mastered the material in this study unit, go to http://www.takeexamsonline.com and submit your answers online. If you don’t have access to the Internet, you can phone in or mail in your exam. Submit your answers for this examination as soon as you complete it. Do not wait until another examination is ready. Questions 1–20: Select the one best answer to each question.

1. You have a citation, and need to quickly determine if the case is still good law. Which Lexis.com feature would you use to perform this task? A. B. C. D. Shepard’s for Validation Transactional Advisor FOCUS Unrestricted

2. The terms-and-connectors search method is best to use under which of the following circumstances? A. When you’re unsure of what search words to use in your search request B. When you’re researching complex legal issues C. When you want to establish specific relationships between your search terms D. When you want to ensure the thoroughness of your legal research 3. You’re formulating a search request and one of your search terms is host. Which of the following will find variations of the word host? A. host* B. host@ C. !host D. host!

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4. You want to retrieve a specific case, and have the case name and citation. Which is the most efficient document retrieval method? A. Use Alerts. B. Run a word search. C. Get a Document by Citation. D. Use the Transactional Advisor.

5. Which of the following shows the six basic steps to conducting online legal research, in the correct order? A. State your issue, select a source, select a search method, browse documents, Shepardize your research results B. Select a search method, browse documents, select a source, state your issue, Shepardize your research results C. Select a source, state your issue, browse documents, select a search method, Shepardize your research results D. Browse documents, select a search method, state your issue, select a source, Shepardize your research results 6. Which of the following are primary sources? A. Legal periodicals B. American Jurisprudence C. Federal and state case law D. Model Acts and Uniform Laws

7. Your supervising attorney asked you to search secondary sources regarding selfincrimination and Fifth Amendment issues. Which of the following sources would you use? A. Legislative history B. Administrative decisions C. Court rules D. American Law Reports

8. You have a citation, and need to find additional relevant authority, statutes, law reviews, and annotations. Which Lexis.com feature would you use to perform this task? A. Search/by Topic or Headnote B. Shepard’s for Research C. Get a Document D. Any Analysis

9. Your supervising attorney has taken on a case involving a woman who was stopped for speeding by a police officer who, after verifying her driver’s license, searched her purse and found a marijuana cigarette. She was then arrested, and is challenging the validity of the arrest, claiming her Fourth Amendment rights were violated because she was singled out due to her race, and there was no reasonable suspicion to justify the search. You’re assigned to do a search on Lexis.com for cases regarding warrantless drug searches, the legality of “profiling,” and under what circumstances police may search a vehicle or property in it without the owner’s consent. Which of the following searches would be most likely to get relevant results? A. B. C. D. drug or racial w/4 profil! and consent w/5 search and reason! suspicion racial profiling /s consent search and reasonable susp! racial profil! and marij! or consent search w/5 reason! suspicion drug or racial w/4 profil! /p consent /s search and reason! suspicion

38

Examination

10. You conducted some legal research in the morning. It’s now afternoon, and you want to revisit your previous research sessions. How would you do this? A. B. C. D. Click on the link All Sources. Pick a topic from the Recently Used Sources box. There’s no Lexis.com feature to revisit previous research sessions. Click on the History link.

11. You’re Shepardizing a case. The _______ is the citation you’re Shepardizing. A. cited reference B. citing reference C. research issue D. research topic

12. Your supervising attorney asked you to locate a witness, Jane Smith. You plan on running a search in the public records sources. Which of the following would you use? A. B. C. D. jane jane jane jane w/3 smith; terms and connectors method or smith; terms and connectors method and smith; terms and connectors method smith; natural language method

13. You’re conducting factual research, and looking for an individual’s address for service of process purposes. Which source would you use? A. Reference B. Locate a Person (Nationwide) NR C. Secondary Legal D. Country & Region

14. You’re assisting an attorney in a case involving a client who suffered a herniated disc in a construction accident. The attorney wants you to search in the jury verdicts source to learn more about the settlement value of this case. You ran a search and retrieved more than 100 documents on this issue. What should you do next to help narrow your answer set of documents? A. B. C. D. Browse through the 100 documents. Use the Alert feature. Use the FOCUS feature. Run the search in a different source.

15. How do you jump from search term to search term in a specific document? A. B. C. D. Click on the Book Browse link. Use the Find feature of your browser. Use Core Terms. View your document in the Full format.

Examination

39

16. You’re doing research into a drug possession case for your supervising attorney. On Lexis.com, you’re looking at 21 U.S.C. § 812, Schedules of controlled substances, and need to find § 814, Removal of exemption of certain drugs. What would be the easiest way to navigate to this section of the Code? A. B. C. D. Click Get a Document, Citation, and fill in the cite in the text box. Click the Book Browse link, then click Next twice. Select the title of § 812 and click More Like Selected Text, then click Search. Click Search | Federal Legal–U.S. | USCS–Federal Rules Annotated, and fill in the cite in the text box.

17. You’re looking for case law involving an attorney, Robert Tourtelot. You’re unsure of the correct spelling of his last name. Which of the following would you use in your search request? A. t..rtelot B. t!!rtelot C. t**rtelot D. *t**rtelot

18. Your supervising attorney asked you to conduct legal research and retrieve case law regarding contract law and breach of contract. Where should you start your research session? A. B. C. D. Use the Get a Document feature Go to Contracts under Area of Law - By Topic Shepard’s Citation Service Click on the Find a Source tab and browse the C page

19. You want to run a search in Federal and State Caselaw, and restrict your search to retrieve only cases heard by a specific judge. Which Lexis.com feature would you use to perform this task? A. Segment searching B. Short names C. More Like Selected Text D. Long names

20. You’re Shepardizing a case from the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 757 A.2d 903 (Pa. 2000). Using FOCUS, what jurisdiction options would you be able to use to narrow your results? A. B. C. D. State courts: Pennsylvania, New Jersey Federal courts: 9th Circuit, Supreme Court State courts: Pennsylvania; Federal courts: 3rd Circuit State courts: Pennsylvania; Federal courts: 3rd Circuit, 4th Circuit

40

Examination