How do I search better on Westlaw?
Asked by: Ari Parisian | Last update: February 23, 2025Score: 4.9/5 (66 votes)
How to search for something in Westlaw?
Type your query in the Search text box and click Search Westlaw. For assistance using Westlaw, call 1-800-WESTLAW (1-800-937-8529). For free reference materials, visit west.thomson.com /westlaw/guides. To search for a phrase, place the phrase in quotation marks.
How do I get research help on Westlaw?
If you have questions or need assistance while researching on Westlaw, see the guide Winning Research Skills or contact West directly. For general or technical questions or for search assistance with Westlaw, call 1-800-850-WEST (1-800-850-9378). Assistance is available 24 hours a day.
How can the advanced search template assist you on Westlaw?
Click on the "Advanced" link next to the search bar to access the advanced search form. The advanced search form contains sections for finding documents that have specific terms, excluding documents with specific terms, and document fields.
Why Westlaw is better than Lexis?
Speaking as a slight tech/computer geek, Westlaw is just a lot more fluid when it comes to searches. Lexis to me adds extra steps just to get to basic searches, which just makes it inefficient and which Westlaw doesn't do. Also, I just find Westlaw a lot more readable than Lexis.
Westlaw IE Searching Tutorial
Do lawyers use Westlaw?
Westlaw is an online legal research service and proprietary database for lawyers and legal professionals available in over 60 countries.
How much does Westlaw cost per search?
Westlaw suggests billing $99 per search, which price includes all the documents clicked on (unless the document is outside of the plan). This is known as "Westlaw Predictable Pricing".
How to search better on Westlaw?
- Running an Advanced Search.
- Type ADV: in front of your search 2. Run a search that includes a proximity connector (/5, /S, /P) or quotation marks 3. ...
- Connectors within parentheses operate first. ...
- *No automatic compound search word feature.
- Connectors of the same type operate from left to right.
How do I make an advanced search?
- On your computer, go to Advanced Search: google.com/advanced_search.
- Under “Find pages with,” choose the query field/s to: ...
- Enter the words that you want to include or remove from your results. ...
- Under "Then narrow your results by," choose the filters you want to use. ...
- Click Advanced Search.
Is Westlaw edge the same as Westlaw?
Westlaw Edge
This plan adds some Edge features to the Classic plan. It includes litigation analytics, predictive searching, and KeyCite Overruling Risk.
How to do a people search on Westlaw?
To conduct a Template Search, click the Public Records link located within the Browse options on your Westlaw®homepage. PeopleMap will process the search against the fields submitted by the user when conducting a Template Search on a Public Records Category Page.
Is the New York Times on Westlaw?
There is up-to-date, full-text coverage of 48 of the top 50 U.S. daily newspapers. Today's news stories are contained in the Today's News (TODAYSNEWS) database, which includes news from the Dow Jones News Service, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, the New York Times News Service, and The Washington Post.
What does KeyCite mean?
KeyCite is Westlaw's citation research service that determines whether a case is good law. It provides a report on the case that includes all citing documents (cases, administrative decisions, secondary sources, etc.).
How do I search cases in Westlaw?
If you know one or more of the parties' names, click Find a Case by Party Name in the left frame of the Law School page. Type one or both of the parties' names in the appropriate text boxes, select the jurisdiction in which the case was heard or the reporter in which it was published, and click Go.
How to do research in Westlaw?
Click WestlawNext at the top of the Law School page. At the home page (Figure 1), you can retrieve a document by citation or a case by party name or search for documents using the text box at the top of the page. You can also browse content using the links in the Browse section.
Which dictionaries can you search through on Westlaw?
Westlaw UK's Index of Legal Terms contains the three most comprehensive and authoritative legal dictionaries; Stroud's Judicial Dictionary of Words and Phrases, Jowitt's Dictionary of English Law and Osborn's Concise Law Dictionary as well as the Statutory definitions that form part of Westlaw UK Legislation documents.
Why is advanced search better?
Advanced search strategies are critical to the research process because: They provide ways to conduct more specific sources. They make searching for materials more efficient. They provide tools to locate sources based on little information (when searching for a specific source title, author, etc.).
What is an advanced search technique?
Advanced search technique is a technique through which a searcher searches the information using different tools and mechanisms to get precise and relevant results.
How to search for exact words?
To search for an exact phrase (where the words are in a specific order), type quotation marks around your search terms. If you do not include quotation marks, you will get results with items that contain the individual words in the phrase, but they may not necessarily be located together or in the order you want.
Is Lexis or Westlaw more popular?
Comparing the market share of Westlaw and Lexis Advance
Westlaw has a 26.72% market share in the Legal Research category, while Lexis Advance has a 5.77% market share in the same space.
How can I make my search more accurate?
- Search for an exact match: Enter a word or phrase inside quotes. For example, [ tallest building ].
- Search for a specific site: Enter site: in front of a site or domain. For example, [ site:youtube.com cat videos] .
- Exclude words from your search: Enter - in front of a word that you want to leave out.
Are Westlaw citations correct?
One mistake students and attorneys alike make is assuming that research systems like Westlaw and Lexis Advance provide properly Bluebooked citations. This is usually incorrect, but the citations these services produce look pretty good.
What is the difference between Westlaw and LexisNexis?
LexisNexis provides access to an extensive collection of legal content, case law, statutes, regulations, verdicts, and more. Westlaw also has expansive content but has a narrower focus specifically on US legal research.
Can you search Westlaw by judge?
Click into either Cases or Trial Court Orders from the Westlaw homepage. Then select the Advanced link to the right of the search bar to go to the template. 2. Under Document Fields, type the name of the judge into the appropriate box.
Can I use Westlaw for free?
Note that California's online regulations and online case law are made available through "free" portals provided by Westlaw and Lexis, respectively.