Internet Legal Research for Professor Mika’s Legal Drafting
Class
April 21, 2010
Outline
Forms – form sites, gov’t, statutorySample transactional docs & pleadingsCase MapInteractive Forms
Free Web v. Lexis/Westlaw
It’s Free!May have info on current topicsBe careful of reliability/currency of web
pagesLexis/Westlaw better search
mechanisms
Forms
Forms and Practice Materials Resource Guide
Forms and Sample Contracts
Who publishes the site? A legal publisher? bar association?
Does the site sell forms?Who wrote the form?Use with caution, tailor to your facts
Sites for Pro Ses
Franklin County Law Library - frequently requested forms are prepared by the library.
Cleveland Law Library’s FAQs ex. Living Wills/Durable Power Of Attorney
Attorney Work Product Sites
• JDSupra - Documents are tied to attorney profiles
• Scribd
• DocStoc
• LawLink
TRY IT
Look for a lease form on JD Supra
Find information about the attorney who submitted the form
Evaluating Web Sites
Credibility: author; possible bias, accuracy.
Currency / Updating, CoverageWriting Quality Ease of useStability
Transactional Documents via SEC EDGAR
• sample SEC filings
• documents attached: management contracts, executive compensation plans, articles of incorporation, by-laws, material contracts, voting trust agreements See Item 601, Regulation S-K.
SEC Edgar Full Text Search Features
Fields for company name, SIC code, date, form type (but not exhibit type)
Natural language or BooleanPhrase (“”), AND, OR, NOT, truncation
(*, communicat* ), proximity operator (general NEAR1 motors )
Past 4 years
Try it
Find an executive compensation plan which provides for a parking space
More sophisticated SEC Filing databases
Lexis and WestlawMergentonline – Available via University
Library, Cleveland PublicSECInfo.com
Government Agency Forms
Forms.gov State of Ohio - Agency Forms
Court Forms
Casemaker – Ohio court & agency formsCourts’ web sitesLLRX- Court Rules, Forms and Dockets
- links to federal & state courts Forms and Practice Materials Guide
Court Dockets
PACER – Federal Court docketsLLRX to find state court dockets
See – Legal research on the Web- Dockets
Dockets - Ohio
Ohio – full text of documents on Summit and Montgomery County & others
Full text on Ohio Supreme Court docket, 2006 and later
PACER
8 cents a pageMoney savers:
Justia Federal District Court Dockets FreeCourtDockets.comRecap PACER Recycling Center
Court Dockets
May search a case opinion database first, find case, then go on docket
Free Case Law
Google Scholar Ohio Supreme Court More:
Legal Research on the Web – Case Law
A2J Author
• Creates question and answer session to help fill out a form
• For law schools, legal service organizations, courts and members for non-commercial use
• Kansas Divorce Forms
• NPADO.org – noncommercial use only
Statutory Forms
American Law Sources On-Line (ALSO) Ohio Revised Code
Legal Drafting Advice
• Cleveland Marshall Law Library’s Research Guide: Forms and Practice Materials
• AdamsDrafting Blog
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