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Westlaw

Westlaw

3 8.5
An online service lawyers and students use to find laws and court cases
  • proper noun
translation icon : Westlaw
  • The ABA 2002 Legal Technology Report found 50 percent of respondents used Westlaw, and 37 percent used Lexis.
  • Westlaw databases
  • research utilizing Westlaw
  • search on Westlaw

The next free resource that I would use is Westlaw.

Examples

  • Many legal professionals rely on Westlaw for comprehensive research and case law access.

  • A Westlaw search generates 67 reported opinions by Carlin from his time on the City Court.

    Academic text (2017)

  • My feeling is if you do a search on Westlaw, you will find the relevant cases more quickly.

    Academic text (1999)

  • "But now Westlaw is not just competitive in news search but may have an edge."

    Academic text (2004)

  • In response, Westlaw this fall added hourly pricing as an option for its web product.

    Academic text (1999)

  • The increasing scope of Westlaw and the addition of the specialized IDELR database only partially mitigate this limitation.

    Academic text (2012)

  • I used Westlaw to gather the necessary legal documents for my case.

  • Students in law school often learn to navigate Westlaw as part of their legal research training.

How Capable

legal expert
  • Specialized
4.2
legal assistant
  • Specialized
3.8
Westlaw
3 8.5
documenter
  • Specialized
4.5

Surface Forms

Westlaw main

Morphology

Westlaw = west + law (semi-transparent) = West + law

Formed from the clear words 'west' + 'law', but as a brand name it refers to a specific legal research service rather than a general concept of 'western law'.

Etymology

The word Westlaw comes from joining West, the name of the publishing company, and law ('legal rules'), so it names a service for looking up legal information and doing legal research.