Research Solutions
LexisNexis®
ParalegalUser’sGuide
In this manual you will get:
• a basic overview of LexisNexis® Total Practice Solutions,
• a basic understanding of the structure of the U.S.
legal system, and
• information that will help you do your job more effectively.
You will also learn:
• how to retrieve cases and check the accuracy/validity
of these authorities with Shepard’s® Citations Service, and
• about some exciting new litigation tools available through
the LexisNexis® services.
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Table of Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
LexisNexisTotalPracticeSolutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
StructureoftheU .S .LegalSystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
FederalCourts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
U .S .CircuitMap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
BasicSearchingontheLexisNexisServices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
SigningontoLexisNexis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
UnderstandingLegalCitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
GettingaDocumentonlexis.com® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Shepardizing™andCitationVerificationOnline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
OverviewofShepard’s®CitationsService . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
DefinitionsofShepard’sAnalyses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
HistoryofYourCase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Shepard’sTreatmentsforStatutes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Shepard’sHistoryDefinitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
HowtoShepardize® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Shepard’s®Signal™Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
RestrictingYourShepard’sReport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Shepard’s®BriefSuite™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
LitigationSolutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
LexisNexis®TotalLitigator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
AppliedDiscovery® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
LexisNexis®File&ServeServiceofProcess . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 CaseMap® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
CourtLink®DocumentRetrievalService . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
LexisNexis®SmartLinx®Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
LexisNexisParalegalCertificatePrograms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
ParalegalCertificateofMastery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
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Introduction
Thepurposeofthismanualisthreefold:
1 . togiveyouabasicoverviewofLexisNexis
TotalPracticeSolutions;
2 . togiveyouabasicunderstandingofthestructure
oftheU .S .legalsystem,and
3 . toprovideyouwithinformationthatwillhelpyou
doyourjobmoreeffectively .
Youwilllearnhowtoretrievecasesandhowtocheckthe
accuracyandvalidityoftheseauthoritiesthroughtheShepard’s®
CitationsService .Youwillalsolearnaboutsomeexcitingnew
litigationtoolsfromLexisNexisthatcanmakeyourjobeasier .
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LexisNexis Total Practice Solutions— Helping you achieve excellence in the business and practice of law
Tosucceed,youneedhigh-qualitytoolsandservicesthatwillhelpyouinallareasofapractice .LexisNexisdeliversTotalPracticeSolutionstohelpyoubetterserveyourattorneys,improveproductivity,growthepractice,increaseprofitabilityandpreparecaseswithmoreinsight—withoutsacrificingquality .Theresultoflisteningcarefullytoourcustomersandrespondingtoyourneeds,LexisNexisTotalPracticeSolutionsaredesignedforthewaylegalprofessionalswork,inallareasthatareessentialtotheirsuccess:
Client Development—Industry-leadingnetworkingandmarketingresourcestohelpyouandtheattorneysyouworkwithgrowthepractice .
Research Solutions—Exclusivesourcesvitaltoyourclients’success .
Practice Management—Resourcesproventoimprovefirmproductivityandprofitability .
Litigation Services—Vitalresourcestohelpyougainstrategicinsightandgreatercontrolthroughouttheentirelitigationprocess .
WhenyourfirmchoosesflexibleTotalPracticeSolutionsfromLexisNexis,youcanimprovetheserviceyouprovidetoyourattorneys,improvefirmproductivity,increaseprofitabilityandhelpyourfirm’sattorneysstrategicallygrowthepractice .
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Structure of the U.S. Legal System
Federal Courts
District CourtsInthefederalcourtssystem,acasebeginsinUnitedStatesDistrictCourt .Eachdistrictcourtresideswithinthegeographicboundariesofasinglestateorterritory .Smallstatesmayhaveonlyonefederaldistrictcourt,whilelargerstateshaveasmanyassix .Wherethereareanumberofdistrictcourts,theyaregeographicallydivided(e .g .,NorthernDistrict,SouthernDistrict,EasternDistrict,WesternDistrict,CentralDistrict,andMiddleDistrict) .NewYorkhasfourDistrictcourts:NorthernDistrict,EasternDistrict,WesternDistrictandSouthernDistrict .
EachdistrictalsohasaBankruptcyCourt .TheBankruptcyCourtsdealwiththeadministrationoftheBankruptcyActandarepresidedoverbyaBankruptcyjudge .
Therearealsospecialtycourtsthathearcertaintypesofcases .Theseinclude:TaxCourt,ClaimsCourt,VeteranAppeals,MilitaryAppeals,PatentsCourtandmore .
Circuit Courts of AppealsTheU .S .CircuitCourtsofAppealshearappealsinthefederalcourt(i .e .,appealsoftheU .S .DistrictCourtdecisions) .Therearethirteencircuitcourts;elevenofthemarenumbered(e .g .,FirstCircuit,SecondCircuit,etc .) .TheothertwocircuitsaretheU .S .CourtofAppealsfortheDistrictofColumbiaCircuitandtheUnitedStatesCourtofAppealsfortheFederalCircuit .Thefollowingisabreakdownoftheelevennumberedcircuits: 1stCircuit — Maine,NewHampshire,RhodeIsland,Massachusetts,
PuertoRico 2ndCircuit — NewYork,Vermont,Connecticut 3rdCircuit — Pennsylvania,NewJersey,Delaware,U .S .VirginIslands 4thCircuit — Virginia,W .Virginia,Maryland,NorthCarolina,
SouthCarolina 5thCircuit — Louisiana,Texas,Mississippi 6thCircuit — Michigan,Kentucky,Tennessee,Ohio 7thCircuit — Illinois,Indiana,Wisconsin 8thCircuit — Nebraska,Arkansas,Missouri,Iowa,Minnesota,
NorthDakota,SouthDakota 9thCircuit — California,Washington,Oregon,Idaho,Montana,
Nevada,Arizona,Alabama,Hawaii,Guam 10thCircuit — Colorado,Utah,Kansas,NewMexico,Oklahoma,
Wyoming 11thCircuit — Alabama,Florida,GeorgiaEachCourtofAppealshasatleastthreesittingjudges .TheCourtgenerallyconvenesasapanelofthreejudgesforeachcase .
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United States Supreme CourtTheSupremeCourtoftheUnitedStatesisthehighestandfinalcourtinthefederalsystem .IthasjurisdictionoverallfederalcasesintheU .S .TheU .S .SupremeCourtcanalsoreviewdecisionsofthehigheststatecourtswhenthecasesinvolveissuesoffederalorconstitutionallaw .Withfewexceptions,theSupremeCourthearsonlyappealsfromCircuitCourtsofAppealsdecisions .GenerallytheSupremeCourtitselfdecideswhetherornottoentertainanappeal—thisiscalledgrantingapetitionforcertiorari .
State CourtsThemajorityofstatecourtsystemshaveathree-levelschemesimilartotheFederalSystem .Acasebeginsintrialcourt .Thismaybeacity,countyordistrictcourt,andcouldbeeithercriminalorcivil .Civilcasescanbeheardinothertypesofcourts(e .g .,smallclaims,probateandfamily) .
Dependingonthestate,appellatecourtshavedifferentnames—AppellateDivision,DistrictCourtofAppeal,SpecialCourtofAppeal,CourtofCivilAppeals,etc .
ThehigheststatecourtiscalledtheSupremeCourt,exceptforMarylandandNewYorkwherethehighestcourtiscalledtheCourtofAppeals;MaineandMassachusetts(SupremeJudicialCourt);andWestVirginia(SupremeCourtofAppeals) .Althoughsomecasesmayautomaticallybeappealedtothehighestcourt,oftenjurisdictionisdiscretionary(aswiththeU .S .SupremeCourt);andthecourtitselfmayacceptordenytheappeal .
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Basic searching on the LexisNexis services at www.lexis.com
Signing on to LexisNexis
1 . EstablishanInternetconnectionandgotowww.lexis.com
2 . TypeyourLexisNexis®IDandpassword .ClickSign On .(WouldyouliketocreateaCustomIDandpassword,e .g .,aneasy-to-rememberaliasornickname?ClicktheCreateaCustomIDlink .)
3 . Clickatabatthetopofthemenuscreentoselectaresearchoption .
Understanding Legal Citations
LegalCitationsarereferencestocases,statutes,legislativehistorymaterials,administrativelawandsecondaryauthorities .Legalcitationssupportthelegalassertionsmadeaboutthelaw,whetherquoteddirectlyfromthesourceorparaphrased .Acitationrevealstheinformationnecessarytoenableresearcherstolocatethesource .
Allcasecitationsmusthaveatleastfourparts:
1) Casename;2) Volumeofcourtreporterandpageonwhichcitationcanbefound;3) Parentheticalwhichincludesnameofcourtthatissuedtheopinionanddate
ofthedecision;4) Relevantandsubsequenthistory .
Casecitationsgenerallyfollowthisform:
Party names Volume Reporter Page Parenthetical
Smith v Jones 342 F .2d 901 (4thCir .1971)
Generally,eachcitationwillincludethisbasicinformation:Whoisinvolvedinthecase,wherethedecisioncanbefound,andwhenthedecisionwasrendered .Theparentheticalthatfollowsincludesthecourtthatrenderedthedecision,ifnotalreadyclearfromthereporternameandthedateofthedecision .
Codecitationscanfollowdifferentformatsfordifferentstatesandfederalcodes,statutesandregulations .Whenusingthelexis.com service,youcanclickon“citationformats”fromtheGetADocumenttab .Thiswillgiveyouanalphabeticallistofdifferentjurisdictionsandinstructionsonhowtocitetothestatutefromthatjurisdiction .
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Getting a Document on lexis.com
RetrieveindividualdocumentsfromLexisNexisquicklyandeasilywithGetaDocument .Youcanusethedocumentcitation,thenamesoftheparties,orthedocketnumbertoretrievedocuments .
Get a Document by Its Citation1 . ClicktheGet a Document tab .2 . ClicktheCitation tab .(Citationisthedefaultsetting .)3 . Typeinthecitationforthedocumentyouwantto
retrieve,e .g .,��� f�d �� .4 . ClickGet.
Get a Document by Party Name1 . ClicktheGet a Document tab .2 . ClicktheParty Name tab .3 . Typeinthepartynamesforthedocument Youwanttoretrieve,e .g .,smith v. jones .4 . ClickSearch.
Get a Document by Docket Number1 . ClicktheGet a Document tab .2 . ClicktheDocket Number tab .3 . Typeinthedocketnumberforthedocument youwanttoretrieve,e .g .,00-���� .4 . Choosethejurisdictionforthecitedcase
youwanttosee .5 . Selectadaterange(optional) .6 . ClickSearch.
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When you have multiple cases or code sections
Ifyouhavemorethanfivecasesyou’dliketoretrieve,youcanuseGet&Print .Simplytypeinasmanycitationsasyou’dlike,havethesystempullthefulltextofcases,andprintthem,Shepardizethemandprintareport .ToaccessGet&Print,clickGet & PrintfromtheGetADocumenttab .YouwillbepromptedforyourLexisNexisIDandpassword .
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Shepardizing and Citation Verification Online Overview of Shepard’s Citations Service
Lawyersrelyoncaselaw,regulationsandstatutestosupporttheirargumenttothecourt .Beforeacasecanbecitedwithconfidenceinabrief,ithastobecheckedtomakesurethatitisinfactgoodauthority .Thisisdonebydeterminingthatthecasehasnotbeenreversedbyahighercourt,overruledbyalaterdecisionofthesamecourt,orinanysignificantwayaltered,criticized,orquestionedtothepointwhereitisnolongerpersuasiveauthority .Shepard’sCitationsServiceletsyouverifythevalidityofacitationontheLexisNexisservices .YoucanonlyShepardizeonlineontheLexisNexisservices .
Shepard’sindicatesthemanywaysthatgoodlawcan“gobad,”includingmoresubtlenegativetreatmentsuchas:criticized,distinguished,limited,modifiedandquestioned .ThisisimportantbecauseShepard’sCitationsprovidesanearlywarningsystemasacaselosesitsprecedentialvalue .
Shepard’smayalsobeusedasaresearchtool .ThisisbecausetheShepard’sCitationsServicelistsnotjustnegativehistoryandnegativereferencestoacase,itprovidesPositivereferences .Positivetreatmenthelpsyouidentifysplitsofauthority,findcasesthatstrengthenyourarguments,findfactsoflawevenclosertoyourcase,andconstructaroadmaptohelporganizeandprioritizeyourresearch .
Shepard’sreportsareavailableintwoconvenientformats:
Shepard’sforValidation(KWIC™)—givesyoutheSubsequentAppellateHistoryofyourcaseaswellasallcitingreferenceswithanalysis .
Shepard’sforResearch(FULL)—-givesyoutheSubsequentAppellateHistory,thePriorHistory,anycitingreferencewithorwithoutanalysis,aswellascitestocodes,statutes,ALR®annotationsandotherSecondarySources .
AttorneysalsouseShepard’sasaresearchtooltofindcasesthatsupporttheirargument(s),makesureacaseisstillgoodlaw,diminishthestrengthoftheopposingcounsel’scase,andmore .TheFOCUS™featureinShepard’sletsyoudoafull-textwordsearchofanyandallcitingreferencesfortermsthatarementionedinacitingcase .Ifyouwanttofindcasesthatfollowyourcaseforanyfactuallanguageorlegalconcept,youcanrunaFOCUSsearchfromyourShepard’sreportatnoadditionalcost .
Formoreinformation,orforaShepard’sDemo,seeyourLexisNexisrepresentativeorgotohttp://law.lexisnexis.com/shepards
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AShepard’sReportinFullformatlookslikethis:
Definitions of Shepard’sAnalysesWhenyouretrieveyourShepard’sreport,therewillbedifferentanalysesappliedtoeachcitingreference .Below,arethedefinitionsofthemostcommonlyusedanalyses .
Affirmed—Onappeal,reconsiderationorrehearing,thecitingcaseaffirmsoradherestothecaseyouareShepardizing.
Connected Case—ThecitingcaseisrelatedtothecasethatyouareShepardizing,arisingoutofthesamesubjectmatterorinvolvingthesameparties .
Criticized—Thecitingopiniondisagreeswiththereasoning/resultofthecaseyouareShepardizing,althoughthecitingcourtmaynothaveauthoritytomateriallyaffectitsprecendentialvalue .
Dismissed—ThecitingcasedismissesanappealfromthecaseyouareShepardizing .
Distinguished—ThecitingcasediffersfromthecaseyouareShepardizing,eitherinvolvingdissimilarfactsorrequiringadifferentapplicationoflaw .
Explained—ThecitingopinioninterpretsorclarifiesthecaseyouareShepardizinginasignificantway .
Followed—ThecitingopinionreliesonthecaseyouareShepardizingascontrollingorpersuasiveauthority .
Modified—Onappeal,reconsiderationorrehearing,thecitingcasemodifiesorchangesinsomeway,includingaffirmanceinpartandreversalinpart,thecaseyouareShepardizing .
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Overruled—ThecitingcaseexpresslyoverrulesordisapprovesallorpartofthecaseyouareShepardizing .
Questioned—ThecitingopinionquestionsthecontinuingvalidityorprecedentialvalueofthecaseyouareShepardizingbecauseofinterveningcircumstances,includingjudicialorlegislativeoverruling .
Reversed—Onappeal,reconsiderationorrehearing,thecitingcasereversedthecaseyouareShepardizing .
Same Case—ThecitingcaseinvolvesthesamelitigationasthecaseyouareShepardizing,butatadifferentstageoftheproceedings .
Superseded—Onappeal,reconsiderationorrehearing,thecitingcasesupersedesorissubstitutedforthecaseyouareShepardizing .
Vacated—ThecitingcasevacatedorwithdrawsthecaseyouareShepardizing .
History of Your Case
Shepard’swillgiveyoutheHistoryofyourcaseintwosections:
Subsequent Appellate History—ProvidesthechainoflaterdecisionspublishedasacasemovesthroughtheappealsprocessinactionsdirectlyrelatedtotheShepardized ™case .Itincludesreversals,affirmances,appealsgrantedanddeniedremands,etc .
Prior History—Providescitationstoearlierdecisions .
Shepard’s Treatments for Statutes
Shepard’sCitationsofferscomprehensivecitationcoverageofFederalandStateStatutes/Regulationsandprovidesyouwiththeabilitytocheckcitations,findparallelcitations,andviewthehistoryofacitedcaseorstatute,andthetreatmentaccordedtoitbysubsequentcases .
Constitutional—Thecitingcaseupholdstheconstitutionalityofthestatute,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizing .
Followed—Thecitingopinionexpresslyreliesonthestatute,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizingascontrollingauthority .
Interpreted—Thecitingopinioninterpretsthestatute,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizinginsomesignificantway,oftenincludingadiscussionofthestatute’slegislativehistory .
Retrospective—Thecitingopiniondiscussesretrospectiveorprospectiveapplicationofthestatute,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizing .
Unconstitutional—Thecitingcasedeclaresunconstitutionalthestatute,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizing .
Void/Invalid—Thecitingcasedeclaresvoidorinvalidthestatutes,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizingbecauseitconflictswithanauthoritythattakespriority .
Valid—Thecitingcaseupholdsthevalidityofthestatute,ruleorregulationyouareShepardizing .
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Shepard’sHistory Definitions
Shepard’sprovidesyouwithpriorhistoryandtheofficialstatusofcase-lawcitations .Shepard’salsoreferencesAnnotatedLawReporters,FederalandLawyer’sEditionannotationsthatdiscussthesearchedcaseandanyrelatedhistory .HerearesomecommonlyusedTreatmentcodes,alongwiththeirdefinitions .
Aff’d—AnAppellatecourthasupheldthejudgment,decreeororderofalowercourtoradministrativeagency,inawrittenopinionwhichconfirmsorratifiesthecorrectnessoftheresultinthelowercourtorbody .Theearlierresultisstillgoodlaw,althoughfurtherappealispossibleifahighercourtexists .
Aff’d in part, rev in part—Anappellatecourthasupheldpartofthejudgmentofalowercourtoragencybuthasoverturnedtheremainderofthejudgment .Thatpartofthelowercourtdecisionbeingoverturnedshouldnolongerbeconsideredgoodlaw .
Amended—-Acourthaschangedorimproveditsownearlierjudgment,orderoropinion,inoneormoreways,generallybymeansofadditionsordeletions,therebylimitingthecontinuingvalidityorprecedentialvalueoftheearliercase .
Appeal denied—Anappellatecourthasrefusedtoacceptorhearanappealofthejudgment,decreeororderofalowercourtoradministrativeagency .Thepriorcaseisstillgoodlaw,althoughfurtherappealispossibleifahighercourtexists .
Cert denied—Ahighercourthasexerciseditsdiscretionnottoacceptorhearanappealfromalowercourt,byrefusingtoissueawritofcertiorari,whichwouldrequirethelowercourttoproduceacertifiedrecordofthecasedecidedthereinforpurposesofappellatereview .Thelowercourtresultisstillgoodlaw,althoughfurtherappealmaystillbepossible .
Cert granted—Ahighercourthasexerciseditsdiscretiontoacceptorhearanappealfromalowercourt,byagreeingtoissueawritofcertiorari,acommonlawprocessrequiringthelowercourttoproduceacertifiedrecordofthecasedecidedthereinforpurposesofappellatereview .Therewilllikelybeasubsequentorderoropinionbythehighercourttoindicateitsdispositionoftheappeal .
Later proceeding—Usedtoconnecttogethercasesfromthesamedirectlitigationchain,whentheuseofamorespecificordispositivephraseisnotappropriateorpossible .
Mot granted—Apartytoanactionhasmovedforaruleororderdirectingsomeacttobedoneintheirfavor,andthecourthasgrantedthatrequest .
On remand—Acasehasbeensentbackfromanappellatecourttoalowercourtfromwhichtheproceedingoriginated,totakesomefurtheractiononit .
Reh’g granted—-Thecourthasgrantedthemotionofapartytorehearargumentsthatresultedinanearlieropinion .
Remanded—Anappellatecourthasreturnedacasetoalowercourtforentryofproperjudgment,foranewtrialorforsomeotherfurtherproceeding .Therewilllikelybeasubsequentjudgment,orderoropinionbythelowercourtindicatingitsdispositionofthecase .
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How to Shepardize
UsingShepard’sCitationsonthelexis.comservice .
1 . SignontotheLexisNexisservicesontheWebatwww.lexis.com .2 . TypeinyourLexisNexisIDnumberandyourPasswordandclickSign on .3 . ClickCheck a Citation .Adialogboxwillappear .4 . TypeinthecitationthatyouwishtocheckandchooseaShepard’sformat
(Shepard’sforValidationorShepard’sforResearch) .5 . ClickCheck .
YourShepard’sreportwilldefaulttoFULLformat .Ifyouwishtochangeformats,simplyclickonthedesiredformatatthetop-leftcornerofthescreen .
Shepard’s Signal™ IndicatorsShepard’sSignalindicatorsgiveyouanat-a-glanceindicationoftheprecedentialstatusofacase .Shepard’sSignalindicatorsappearatthetopofShepard’sresultsandonLexisNexiscasedocuments .Whenyou’rereadingacaseonline,clickontheShepard’sSignalindicatortoShepardizethatdecision:
Shepard’sontheLexisNexisservicesisupdatedevery24hoursandlistsallreferencestoacase .Inaddition,allcitedcasesinclude:
a) theshortnameofthecase;b) theexactpagewhereyourcaseiscited;c) ahighlightedjumplinktothefulltextofthereferencingcitation .
Shepard’s listscasesfromthehighestcourttothelowestcourt .
Warning:Negativetreatmentisindicated—showsthatthecasecontainsstrongnegativehistoryortreatmentofyourcase(i .e .,overruledorreversed) .
Questioned:Validityquestionedbycitingrefs—containstreatmentthatquestionsthecontinuingvalidityorprecendentialvalueofyourcasebecauseofinterveningcircumstances,includingjudicialorlegislativeoverruling .
Caution:Possiblenegativetreatment—containshistoryortreatmentthatmayhaveasignificantnegativeimpactonyourcase(i .e .,distinguishedorcriticized) .
Positivetreatmentisindicated—containshistoryortreatmentofyourcasethathasapositiveimpactonyourcase(i .e .,affirmedorfollowed) .
CitingRefs .WithAnalysisAvailable—containstreatmentofyourcasethatisneitherpositivenornegative(i .e .,explained) .
Citationinformationavailable—citingreferencesareavailableforyourcase,butdonothaveahistoryortreatmentanalysis .(i .e .,lawreviews) .
ClickonanyShepard’s editorialtreatmentcode(e .g .,distinguished,questioned)toviewitsdefinition .
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Restricting Your Shepard’s Report
Asmentionedearlier,Shepard’shastwoprimaryfunctions .Thefirstfunctionistovalidateyourcite,tomakesureitisstillgoodlawandapersuasiveargumenttouseinabrief .Sometimes,attorneysareonlyinterestedinaparticularjurisdiction,oraparticulartreatmentcode .YoucanrestrictyourShepard’sreportbytreatmentcode,jurisdiction,date,etc .tomeetthespecificcriteriathatyouneed .
AtthetopofyourShepard’sreportscreen,youwillseefivedifferentoptions:
Save as Shepard’s Alert®—Shepard’sAlertdeliversregularupdatesshowingadditionalcitingreferencesandanypotentialimpacttothevalidityofthecitationyouaremonitoring .
Unrestricted—bringsyoubacktoyourunrestrictedShepard’sreport .Youcanalwaysgobacktoyouroriginalunrestrictedreportregardlessofhowmanydifferentrestrictionsyouhavedone .
All Negative—clickAll NegtorestrictyourShepard’sreporttoshowonlythosecasesthatmayerodethestrengthofyourcase .Forexample,ifthereisaFollowedtreatmentcodeinyouroriginalreportandyouclickonAllNeg,thecasesthathadtheFollowedtreatmentcodewillnolongerappear .
All Positive—restrictsyourShepard’sreporttoshowonlythosecasesthatciteyourcasethathavePositivetreatmentapplied .ThisisagoodrestrictiontouseifyouareusingShepard’sforResearch .
FOCUS - Restrict by—givesyouachecklistofdifferentwaystorestrictyourreport .Youcanchooseseveraljurisdictions,differentanalysis,LexisNexis®Headnotes,etc .byclickingintheboxandclickingApply .
ThereisnochargetorestrictyourShepard’sreportandyoucanrestrictandusetheFOCUSfeatureasmanytimesasyoulike .
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Shepard’s Brief Suite
TheShepard’sBriefSuiteincludesfour,powerfuldocument-draftingandlegal-validationapplicationsthathelpindraftinghigh-qualitylegaldocuments(e .g .,briefs,pleadings,memoranda) .Thesedesktop-basedapplicationsprovideauthoritativeShepard’sanalysiswithinworkproduct,offerguidanceonformatting,automaticallyconstructTablesofAuthoritiesandaddShepard’shyperlinkstointernaldocuments .
Shepard’s BriefSuiteincludes:
• Shepard’s ® CheckCite®—Extractsvirtuallyallcase-lawandlaw-reviewcitationsfromadocument,submitsthemtoShepard’s;retrievesthemostcurrentShepard’sandAuto-Cite®reportsandvalidatesthecitations;andretrievesfull-textdocuments .Italsoensuresallquotedcaselawconformstotheactualreportedorexistinglanguageintheopinion .
• Shepard’s®StyleCheck™—Ensurescitationsconformtoproperlegalcitationformatssoyoucanbeconfidentyourbrief,pleadingormemorandumisformattedaccordingtoBluebookstandards .
• Shepard’s®FullAuthority®—BuildaTableofAuthorities(TOA)automaticallyandcustomizeittofityourspecificneeds .
• Shepard’sLink™—AddLexisNexishyperlinkstoMicrosoft®Worddocuments .TheselinksalsoletyouShepardizeallcitedlegalauthorityquickly .Youcanevenretrievecross-referencingiconsthatmightappearifyouhaveindexedusingalocalsearchengine(e .g .,Google™Desktop,MSN®Search,etc .) .
Shepard’s BriefSuitewillhelpyou:
• Uncover Possible Trouble Spots as You Draft—Shepard’sLink(formerlyLEXLink™)copiesyourbrieformemorandumandpinpointsitscitations—caselaw,lawreviews,statutes .ThenitaddsShepard’sSignalindicatorspluslinkstothefull-textdocumentsandfull-textShepard’sreports .Itevenblocksandchecksdocumentsections .
• Match Your Work to Bluebook Standards in Seconds—Shepard’sStyleCheckchecksstyleagainstThe Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation(18thEdition)publishedbytheHarvardLawReviewAssociation,oryoucanoptfortheCalifornia Style Manual .Nocitationmarkingisneeded .Shepard’sStyleCheck(formerlyCiteRite®)checkstextandfootnotesforcaselaw,federalandstatestatutes,federallegislativehistory,modelcodes,uniformcodes,lawreviews,books,services,signals,shortformsandcomplicatedstringcites .
• Add More Flexibility with Shepard’s® BriefCheck™ for the Web—Shepard’s BriefCheckfortheWebidentifieslegalcitationswithinyourdocument,validatescitationsthroughShepard’s CitationsServiceandgeneratesaconcisesummaryreporttaggingproblemcites .WhileShepard’sCheckCite softwarecheckscase-lawandlaw-reviewcitations,Shepard’s BriefCheckontheWebalsochecksU .S .andstatestatutes,patents,tax&treasurymaterials,andlegislativedocumentsaswell .Geta“smart”answersetforstatutes—onlythoseShepard’s reportswithlegislativehistoryandcitingdecisionswithnegativeanalysis .
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• Verify Citations and Quotations in One Step—Shepard’sCheckCitecollectsyourbrief’scase-lawandlaw-reviewcitations,verifiesthemthroughShepard’sCitationsServiceandAuto-Citeandgeneratesasummaryreportthattagsproblemcitesforimmediateattention .Plus,itensuresallquotedcaselawconformstotheactualreportedorexistinglanguageinthecase-lawopinion .Notonlyarequoteerrorsreported,yourCheckCitereportalsoprovidesthecorrectlanguage .
• Create a Table of Authorities Cited in Your Brief—Shepard’sFullAuthorityprepareseachciteforthetable .Chooseyourtablecriteria .CasesandstatutesaswellasU .S .andstatematerialscanbeseparated .Alphabetizebydefendantorpublicpartynameandsortbycategory(case,statuteormiscellaneous) .Removeexplanatorysecondparentheticals,expandabbreviations,andcorrectsimplepunctuationerrors .Notaggingormarkingcitations!FullAuthorityunderlinesreporterabbreviations,casenamesandhistories,andevenlocatesshortforms .Optionsmakeiteasytocombinelong-andshort-formcitations,addreporters,orspecifyalternativespellings .
Shepard’sBriefSuiteisavailabletoLexisNexissubscribersasanadditionalsubscription .TalktoyourLexisNexisaccountteamtofindoutmoreaboutShepard’sBriefSuitedesktopsoftwareorgotohttp://law.lexisnexis.com/shepards-brief-suiteandtakeatour .
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Litigation Solutions
LexisNexisoffersend-to-endlitigationsolutionsthataretiedtothelitigationlifecycle .Ourcomprehensivecollectionofindustry-leadinglitigationinformation,toolsandservicesareavailablethroughonesource—anintuitivelyorganizedWebplatformcalledLexisNexis®TotalLitigator .Someofthesolutionsthatmaybeparticularlyusefultoyouaredescribedbelow .
LexisNexis Total Litigator
LexisNexisTotalLitigatorisanintuitivelyorganized,comprehensiveWebplatformthatintegratesthecompleteportfolioofLexisNexislitigationresourcesaroundthetasksyoumustaccomplishthroughoutthelitigationworkflow .Fromcaseassessmenttocourtappearance,youcanfind,manageandusevitalinformationseamlessly .TotalLitigatorprovidesaneasy-to-usetooltouncoverthevitalinformationnecessarytogainarealstrategicedgethroughoutthelifecycleofanycase .
TotalLitigatoroffersarevolutionaryparadigmshiftinmanagingthelitigationprocess .YounolongerneedtoremembertheexactLexisNexisresourcesyourequire .SimplyidentifyaspecificlitigationtaskandTotalLitigatorsuggeststhebestresources—oftenpresentingresultsfrommultipleresourcessimultaneously .Forthesereasons,TotalLitigatorisspecificallyendorsedasthe“bestoptionforlitigators”bytheNationalInstituteforTrialAdvocacy(NITA®),andsupportedbytheDefenseResearchInstitute .TotalLitigatorisalsofullycompatiblewithLexisNexis®TotalSearch .
Applied Discovery
Createdforattorneysbyattorneys,AppliedDiscoveryistheleadingproviderofelectronicdiscoveryservices .Asingle-stopsolution,itprovidesacompleterangeofsuperiore-discoveryservices:Consulting,Data Gathering,Media Restoration,Forensics,Data ProcessingandDocument Production .Ourexpertconsultingservicescoverallphasesofthee-discoveryprocess—fromlitigationpreparednessandcost-effectivedatacollectiontodevelopingstrategicapproachestodocumentreview—tailoredspecificallytotheneedsofyourcase .
• Expertconsultingservices• Unrivaleddataprocessingaccuracy• Industry-leadingprocessingspeed• Flexible,customizedprofessionalservice• Theabilitytorevieworproducedocumentsasyouneedthem
LexisNexis® File & Serve Service of Process
LawfirmsuseLexisNexisFile&ServeServiceofProcesstogainmoreconvenienceandcontrolovermanagingserviceofprocess(processservice) .AnylawfirmcanuseLexisNexistoservesummonses,complaints,subpoenas,letters,interrogatoriesandotherlitigationdocuments .LexisNexisworkswithanetworkoffast,reliableprocessserversnationwideandworldwide .Getflexiblesubmissionanddeliveryoptions .Evensubmitdocumentsonline .Andmonitordeliveryonlineaswell .
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CaseMap
CaseMap,whichmakesiteasytoorganize,evaluateandexplorethefacts,thecastofcharacters,andtheissuesinacase,isdesignedforuseonalltypesofcasesandbyalltypesoflitigatorsandinvestigators .EnterinformationdirectlyinCaseMapspreadsheetsoremploythe“Send-to-CaseMap”featuretocullcriticalpassagesdirectlyfromdocumentsandtranscripts .Morethan15softwareproductsofferthisspecialCaseMapintegrationthatmakesiteasierforyoutoanalyzeacase .
CaseMapiseasytolearnanduse,offeringaconsistentdesign,ease-of-usefeatures,andapre-builtexamplecase .Additionally,CaseMapsoftwareintegrateswithnumerousotherlitigationsupportandelectronicdiscoverytools,includingAdobe®Acrobat®,AppliedDiscovery,Binder,Concordance™,JFSLitigator’sNotebook,KPMG’sDiscoveryRadar,LiveNote®andSanction .OneormoreofthesoftwareproductsyoualreadyuseprobablylinksseamlesslywithCaseMap,allowingyoutocreateapracticalandpolishedworkproduct .
CourtLink® Document Retrieval Service
OrderdocketsanddocumentsfromallfederalandstatecourtswiththeCourtLinkDocumentRetrievalService .CourtLinkoffersacombinationofonlineaccesstothenation’scourtsandadvancedsearchingandnotificationcapabilitiestoprovideyouwithlitigationintelligencetools .TheCourtLinkserviceprovidesdeeper,morestrategicwaystosearchelectronicfilings .Thesixfunctionalareasare:
Alerts—Automatice-mailnotificationofnewlyfiledcasesinkeyjurisdictionsletyoubeamongthefirsttoknowaboutanewlyfiledcase,sometimesbeforeyourclient(orprospectiveclient)isserved .
Tracks—Stayup-to-dateonnewdevelopmentsinexistingcasesthroughautomatice-mailnotificationonchangestoexistingcasesatthefrequencyyouspecify(daily,weekly,monthly) .
Search—PinpointexactlywhatyouneedbysearchingthroughU .S .DistrictCourtCivilandCriminaldocketsorU .S .BankruptcyCourtrecordsbycourt,datefiled,subjectmatter,litigant,attorney,judge,keyword,bankruptcychapter,etc .Searchselectedstateandlocalcourtsinreal-timebylitigantnameandcasetype;courtsincludetheCircuitCourtofCookCounty,DelawareChancery,all62countiesofNewYorkandmore .
Retrieve—WhenyouknowtheU .S .DistrictorBankruptcycourtcasenumber,retrieveafilinginseconds .Requestreal-timeupdatedcasedetailsfromfederalandselectedstateandlocalcourts,includingtheCircuitCourtofCookCounty,DelawareChancery,all62countiesofNewYorkandmore .
Order Documents—Requestunderlyingdocuments(complaints,judgments,motions,orders,etc .)withtypicalturnaroundtimeof24to48hours .Receiveelectronicorderconfirmationandpersonalizedtracking;savetimeandhasslewithasinglemonthlyinvoice .
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Strategic Profiles—TheCourtLinkservicehelpsyoubuildstrategicprofilesofthelitigants,opposingcounselandjudgeinyourcase .Profiletypesare:
Litigant Profile—Gainmeaningfulinsightintoapubliccompany’slitigationhistory;viewadirectionaloverviewoflitigationactivitybynatureofsuitandgeography .Determinewhichlawfirmshaverepresentedthecompanyinthepast;benefitsarelitigationintelligenceandcross-sellingopportunities .
Attorney Profile—Seeasamplingofanattorney’sexperienceandsuccessinaspecificnatureofsuitorinfrontofaparticularjudge;benefitsarecompetitiveintelligenceand,fromarecruitingstandpoint,atooltoverifycaseexperience .
Judicial Profile—Identifyajudge’srulinghistoryinacasetypeandalistofattorneysorfirmswhohaveappearedbeforethejudge;benefitis,byuncoveringajudge’sexperienceinaparticularnatureofsuit,youwillbebetterequippedtoarguepersuasivelybeforethatjudge .
LexisNexis SmartLinx Feature
CombthroughbillionsofpublicrecordsinasinglesearchtolocateandconnectfactsatlightningspeedwiththeSmartLinxpublicrecordreportproduct .Retrievenames,addresses,phonenumbersandotherinformationandconnectthisdatatoappropriatepeople,businessesandlocations .TherearemanyusesforSmartLinxresearch,includinglitigation .Forexample:
• Simplifyduediligenceresearchbylocatingthefactsyouneedthroughasingleservice .
• Speedyourlitigationbyquicklylocatinginformationregardingelusiveparties,witnesses,defendants,judgmentdebtors,childsupportobligors,pensionbeneficiaries,heirsandothers .
• Increasesettlementopportunitiesbyuncoveringhiddenownershipofassets .• Reviewthefinancialhistoryofindividualsbyfindingtheirbankruptcyhistory,
outstandingliens,judgments,etc .• Verifywitnessbackgroundandpotentialcredibilitybycheckinglicensestatus,
certifications,degrees,etc .• Lookforconflictsofinterestbytrackinganindividual’sbusinessaffiliations .• Finddetailedinformationoncompaniesbyreviewingsecretaryofstatefilings,
DBArecordsandmore .• Gathercompetitiveintelligencetoenhanceyourbusinessdevelopmentplan
withextensivecompanyrecords .
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LexisNexis Paralegal Certificate of Mastery
LexisNexishasastrongcommitmenttoparalegalsasexemplifiedbyourParalegalCertificateprograms .
Paralegal Certificate of Mastery
ThegoalofthisprogramistofamiliarizeyouwiththeLexisNexissearchmethodsneededtofindthetypesofinformationparalegalsmostoftenneed .Fiveone-hourtrainingsessionscoverthetopicsofInitialCaseAnalysis,CiteChecking,LocatingandProfilingPeople,andCompany&FinancialResearch .Duringthetrainingsessionsforthisprogram,youwilllearn:
Initial Case Analysis using the LexisNexis services at www.lexis.comParalegalsveryoftenarechargedwiththetaskofdoingtheinitialcaseanalysiswhenanewclientcomesinthedoor—doweordowenothaveacase?Ifso,whatareourchancesforasuccessfuloutcome?InitialcaseanalysisinvolvesresearchingtopicsthroughLexis®SearchAdvisor,whichwillhelpidentifyrelevantprimaryandsecondaryauthoritythatmayaffectyourcase .Youwilllearnhowtoeffectivelysearchforcasesandstatutes,aswellasLexisNexis®MatthewBender®treatisesandothersecondarylegalpublications .
Cite Checking with Shepard’s , available exclusively on the LexisNexis services at www.lexis.comAmajortaskofparalegalsischeckingcitationsinthefirm’slegaldocuments,aswellasthoseofopposingcounsel .ThisclassisdesignedtohelpyouunderstandthevalueofusingShepard’sforresearchandforcasevalidation,withanin-depthlookathowtoanalyzeandcustomizeaShepard’sreport .
Drafting legal documents using the LexisNexis® services at www.lexis.com Paralegalsandattorneysspendasignificantamountoftheirtimedraftingdocumentsforcourtandforaclient’spersonalandbusinessinterests .LexisNexishasunsurpassedresourcestohelpyoudraftthosedocuments .Thisclasswillhelpyouunderstandthedifferenttypesofformsmostoftendraftedbyparalegalsandattorneys,aswellasidentifywheretofindtheseformsonlexis.com .Inaddition,manyoftheseformsalsocontainpracticepointerstohelpguideyouontheproperuseoftheform .
Public Records and News on the LexisNexis® services at www.lexis.comParalegalsusepublicrecordsandnewssourcesalottohelpthemcompileinformationonmajorplayersinacase,trackdownwitnesses,findexpertwitnesses,locatepropertyandotherassets,tonameafew .Thisclassisdesignedtoshowthevalueofgoingbeyondjustcases,statutes,andtreatisesonyourcase,anditwillshowyouhowthesesourcesofinformationcanaidindiscoveryandduediligence .
Company & Financial Information on the LexisNexis® services at www.lexis.comParalegalsmustoftenfindinformationaboutcompaniesforaspecificcaseorforclientdevelopmentpurposes .ThisclasswillhelpyouunderstandhowtousetheLexisNexiscompany&financialsourcestonotonlyadvanceresearchonopposingparties,buttofindinformationonpresentbusinessclientsandprospectiveclients .Youwilllearnhowtolocateinformationoncorporateaffiliationsandfindin-depthcompanyreports,aswellasfinancialfilings .YouwillalsolearnhowtostreamlineyourresearchusingLexisNexis®AnalyzerandLexisNexis®Dossier .
Get CLE Credit from
NALA and NFPA
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Aftercompletingthetraining,you’llbeamoreflexibleandefficientresearcher,increasingyourvaluetothefirm .Asanadditionalbenefittoyou,theParalegalCertificateofMasterytrainingprogramshavebeenapprovedbybothNALAandNFPAforCLEcredits .
Bestofall,youdon’tevenhavetoleavetheofficetoattendthetrainingsessions!AspecialLexisNexistelephonictrainingrepresentativecantrainyourightoverthephoneattimesmostconvenientforyou .Aftercompletingeachprogram,you’llreceiveahandsomeCertificateofMasteryandaspecialgiftfromLexisNexistocelebrateyoursuccess .
We’re Available Virtually Around the ClockAsalways,ifyouhaveanyquestionsrelatingtoyourresearchorwithanyLexisNexisrelatedproduct,youcancontactyourfirm’sLexisNexisrepresentative,callLexisNexisCustomerSupportat800 .543 .6862orgotoourWebsitejustforparalegalsat:www.lexisnexis.com/paralegal
LexisNexis,lexis.com,Shepard’s,Shepardize,CheckCite,FullAuthorityandCiteRiteareregisteredtrademarksandFOCUS,KWIC,Shepardized,Shepardizing,Shepard’sAlert,Shepard’sSignal,Shepard’sLinkandLEXLinkaretrademarksofReedElsevierPropertiesInc .usedunderlicense .CourtLinkandCaseMapareregisteredtrademarksofLexisNexisCourtLink,Inc .SmartLinxisaregisteredtrademarkandBriefCheck,BriefSuiteandStyleCheckaretrademarksofofLexisNexis,adivisionofReedElsevierInc .AppliedDiscoveryisaregisteredtrademarkandConcordanceisatrademarkofAppliedDiscovery,Inc .AutoCiteisaregisteredtrademarkofReedElsevierInc .Otherproductsandservicesmaybetrademarksorregisteredtrademarksoftheirrespectivecorporations .©2007LexisNexis,adivisionofReedElsevierInc .Allrightsreserved .LO18453-00507
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