Introduction to Cost-Effective Online Research

With the Westlaw ® access that you enjoy as a student, you may not be accustomed to thinking about the efficiency of your online research. In the real world, whether you are a new associate, a sole practitioner, or other legal professional, cost-effective research is a necessary skill. There are many ways to save money and time when searching on Westlaw and still getting the results you need. Saving time is saving money.

The best advice we can give you! Call a Westlaw ® Reference Attorney before signing on to Westlaw if you are not completely sure of –the steps you must take to retrieve the needed document(s) –the database(s) most likely to contain the documents or information you need –the database(s) that will be most cost-effective –the most effective way to structure a search –the printing option to choose –the billing method to choose WEST

Know the Terms of Your Firm’s Contract with Westlaw WestlawPRO ® plans are available to small firms, government agencies, and state trial courts. –There is a flat monthly rate for databases within the plan. Jurisdictional Topical Analytical News Searching outside the WestlawPRO Plan databases incurs regular hourly or transactional pricing. You will see a warning screen when attempting to access a database outside your employer’s pro plan.

There are also Customized flat rate plans –a flat-rate payment each month for access to Westlaw –some databases are excluded –some plans have upper limits on usage Traditional Subscription Plans –pay standard transaction or hourly rate –unlimited access to databases Ask the organization’s librarian or administrator about the terms of your organization’s plan.

Use Print Resources to Supplement Online Research Use your library’s print resources to help you refine your issue(s) and determine which type of document (e.g., case, statute, or law review article) you need before going online. After running a search and retrieving relevant documents online, print the citations list and read the documents offline in books.

Use Find Use Find to retrieve a document when you know its citation. –$ 5.50 for cases, statutes or news –Find saves time and money because you don’t have to access the database and then formulate a search. –Simply access Find and type the document’s citation, e.g., 404 nw2d 606. Find

cast If you don’t know the correct citation format, access Find and type the publication’s abbreviation, e.g., ca st, to display a fill-in-the- blank template. Find Template