University of Mississippi Law Library
Internet Resources: Legal Research Strategy: Top Ten Tips
- First analyze the facts of your case and frame the issues. At this stage, you want to:
learn the jargon, identify legal elements (relief sought, required procedure, legal theories)
and factual elements (who, where, what, how). Make a list of the legal issues and terms that
describe your case. Secondary sources such as legal encyclopedia, nutshells, treatises,
and hornbooks will help you. Note the citations of key cases, statutes, and regulations
cited in the secondary sources.
- Research the separable issues separately.
- Maintain a record of your research, listing what search terms you used, what sources you
consulted, and what you found with applicable citations.
- Stop to evaluate your research. Have you already found the answers to some of the
questions? Do any of the legal theories need to be modified? Have you identified new
legal issues? What facts appear to be crucial? Which descriptive words seem to trigger
the applicable law? What is the most important legal theory emerging?
- Using the jargon and crucial search terms you learned, do a quick search on Westlaw or
Lexis to find some more "seed" cases. Plan your search ahead; use the print directory
before going on-line and consult the scope notes so you know the breadth of your search.
Print the cite list and read the cases off-line.
- Read the cases, statutes, and regulations you found. If the secondary source did not
cite a statute or regulation, double-check to see if there is a relevant statute or
regulation. Never assume there is no relevant legislation.
- When reading statutes, use an annotated code and scan the annotations for relevant
cases. Remember to check the supplement.
- For cases, pay attention to what West topics and key numbers were assigned to the cases
you like. Then consult the appropriate print digest to find more cases with those topics
and key numbers and read any pertinent statutes and the annotations. (Using digests is
made much easier if you already have a few cases because it is easier to use digests after
you understand the outline of the law.) Check the outline of your topic for other relevant
key numbers.
- Update your sources throughout your research. Using Shepard’s or Keycite early in your
research can help you identify more relevant cases and pending legislation. Then update
your sources again at the end-- you don’t want to be surprised! Check the latest digest,
code, and Shepard’s supplements, including the supplement to the index volumes. Consider
setting Westlaw’s Keycite and Shepard’s on Lexis to notify you as soon as a new opinion is
released that cites the sources you rely upon.
- Do another search on Lexis and/or Westlaw to find any cases you may have missed. Plan
your search ahead. This time, conduct a more refined search. Take advantage of the advanced
search techniques Lexis and Westlaw offer. Use field searching, date restrictions, features
such as ALLCAPS, etc. Call the reference attorneys for assistance if you have any problems.
- Know when to stop! Research can go on forever, so you have to know when to stop. If your
research continues to identify the same materials, or if it identifies new materials that
contribute nothing further to the theories of the case, those are good signs you should stop.
- Remember that librarians are great resources for research assistance, so don’t hesitate
to ask questions.
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