Principles of Electronic Searching

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Principles of Electronic Searching
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GOALS

• Retrieve as many relevant and as few irrelevant
  documents as possible
• Documents are current, up-to-date, still good
  law, and fit appropriate time frame
• Efficient and cost-effective

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Five Steps

• Select the appropriate legal research tool
• Select the appropriate database (WL) or source
  (L)
• Construct search likely to find results that
  address your issue (TARC)
• Execute search
• Review results

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Constructing a Search (TARC)

• Terms or words
• Alternate terms, synonyms, antonyms
• Plurals? Phrases?
• Root expanders / truncation
  /wildcards
• Connectors

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T TERMS OR WORDS

• SURGEON, SPONGE, FOREIGN OBJECT, PATIENT,
  SURGERY, OPERATION, HOSPITAL, MEDICAL
  MALPRACTICE

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A ALTERNATE TERMS

• SURGEON
• SPONGE

• DOCTOR, PHYSICIAN
• FOREIGN OBJECT

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PLURALS, PHRASES

• PLURAL AUTOMATIC
• SINGULAR IS AUTOMATIC ON LEXIS, NOT WL
• FOREIGN OBJECT

• SURGEON FINDS SURGEON, SURGEONS, SURGEONS
• NOT SURGEONS
• WL FOREIGN OBJECT
• L FOREIGN OBJECT

CAUTION PHRASE SEARCHING AUTOMATIC ON LEXIS
(SEAT BELT DEFENSE)
WITHOUT THE QUOTES, WL SEARCHES FOR FOREIGN OR
OBJECT
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RULES OF THUMB

• USE SINGULAR
• USE CONNECTORS INSTEAD OF PHRASES
• EXCEPTIONS, OF COURSE

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USE A PHRASE?
Grand! /20 visit! /3 right

• Grandparent visitation rights
• Grandparent visiting rights
• Visitation rights of grandparents
• Visiting rights of grandparents
• Right of visitation in the grandparents

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Truncation / Root Expander

• Exclamation mark ! finds root word plus all
  words made by adding letters to the end of it
• Assum! finds assume, assumes, assumed, assumption
• Assump! - only finds assumption
• What does grandparent! find that grandparent
  doesnt find?
• Irregular plurals -- child! finds child, childs,
  children, childrens, childish

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Truncation / Wild Card

• Asterisk replaces a character anywhere in a
  word (except at beginning)
• Use one asterisk for each character you want to
  replace.
• Bank finds bank, banks, banked, banker,
  banking, but not bankruptcy
• Use to find irregular plurals
• Womn

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Connectors

• And,
• Or (ltspacegt on Westlaw)
• Proximity

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And

• Requires that both search terms appear in results
• ANYWHERE in document
• Surgeon and sponge

Surgeon
Sponge
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Or

• Requires that either search term appear in
  results
• Broadens the search
• Surgeon or Doctor

Surgeon
Doctor
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Proximity Connectors

• Require search terms to appear . . .
• within x number of words of each other
• in same sentence, any order
• in same paragraph, any order
• Use to improve relevancy
• AND in full text search

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Proximity Connectors

• surgeon /s sponge
• surgeon /p sponge
• surgeon /100 sponge

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Preliminaries

• What is the issue?
• Jurisdiction?
• Where should I start?
• Primary or Secondary
• If primary, . . . If secondary, . . .
• Search terms? (wwwwwh)
• Print or electronic?

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RECAP

• Terms SURGEON, SPONGE
• Alternatives (synonyms, antonyms, alt. spelling)
  DOCTOR OR PHYSICIAN INSTRUMENT OR FOREIGN
  OBJECT
• Root Expanders surg! or physicn or scalp
• Connectors and, or, /s, /p, /100

surg! or doctor or physician /60 sponge or
foreign object or instrument
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Seat belt defense

• What you want
• (Seat belt defense) or (seatbelt defense)
• You type Seat belt or seatbelt defense
• Westlaw seat or belt or seatbelt or defense
• Lexis seat belt or seatbelt defense
• Better search
• Seat belt or seatbelt /3 defense