legal research

Updated 10/31/16

Types of searches include:

  1. specific information;
  2. company etc., and
  3. general information.

The best source is a “pointer page” dedicated to collecting links related to topics you are interested in.

The second best are sites that are not practice area specific, and there tend to be several types:

  1. law school libraries;
  2. general; and
  3. private librarians.

Search engines

  • e.g., DuckDuckGo.com, or http://www.google.com,
  • you need to understand if they search sites or pages (resulting in more hits from multiple pages at one site), and the search logic used, e.g., all words (“and”) or any word (“or”).
  • Natural language searches tend to be “fuzzier” than Boolean logic (“and”; or”; “not”).
  • Some engines use the “realnames” database.
  • “Direct hit” databases use site popularity to direct you to the sites they think you are likely seeking.
  • Most sites appear on more than one engine and only 1/3 are unique to one engine.
  • Many search engines use the same databases but different search patterns giving same results in different order.
  • Metasearch engines, e.g., ixquick http://www.ixquick.com/, search multiple engines with one search but cannot tailor the search with flexible syntax – use a single engine if you think/know there is a web page and what it may be named and are seeking the URL rather than just information, and a mega search engine if you are looking for information and have tried one or two sites without success.

Subject indices

Commercial Services [“free”]

  • Missouri Lawyers Weekly New 2/27/01 Updated 3/7/11
  • LexisOne New 2/27/01 Updated 7/6/10
    • Resources for small law firms – news, legal research, practice management tools & expert advise, case law, forms, statutory law guide & more [limited to prior 5 years information]

Commercial Services [charge]

  • Westlaw prearranged account or credit card

Law Libraries

General

Directories

Statutes and Jurisprudence

Missouri

Databases