Things - Ask yourself the What question. Things can be tangible as well as intangible.
Relief - The desired or potential outcomes. Parties may want different types of relief. This is useful to brainstorm because sometimes damages and relief become an issue in a law suit.
Causes of Action & Defenses - The potential claims asserted and responses to those claims. Begin with identifying if something is civil or criminal, federal or state, procedural or substantive.
People - Ask yourself the Who question - parties or people involved and their relationships and roles
Places - Ask yourself the Where question -- jurisdiction, type of location, and other relevant place information
| Search Method | Bloomberg Law | Lexis | Westlaw |
|---|---|---|---|
| Documents by citation | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Headnotes | Some | Yes | Yes |
| Topic Search | Some | Yes | See Key Number search |
| Key Number Search | No | No | Yes |
| Natural Language | No | Yes | Yes |
| Terms & Connectors | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Are there other words or terms meaning the same thing?
The Venn diagram shows 3 concentric circles illustrating 3 synonymous terms linked with the OR connector in a search. The innermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term child. The next circle is labeled as the result set for the term minor and encompasses the result set for child as well. The outermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term juvenile and encompasses the result sets for the terms child and minor.
What related terms might be useful?
The Venn diagram above shows 3 concentric circles illustrating 3 related terms linked with the OR connector in a search. The innermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term cat. The next circle is labeled as the result set for the term dog and encompasses the result set for cat as well. The outermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term animal and encompasses the result sets for the terms cat and dog.
Are there broader terms for your concept?
The Venn diagram above shows 3 concentric circles illustrating 3 related terms going from narrowest to broadest and linked with the OR connector in a search. The innermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term pit-bull. The next circle is labeled as the result set for the term pet and encompasses the result set for pit-bull as well. The outermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term animal and encompasses the result sets for the terms pit-bull and pet.
Are there narrower terms for your concept?
The Venn diagram above shows 3 concentric circles illustrating 3 related terms going from narrowest to broadest and linked with the OR connector in a search. The innermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term pit-bull. The next circle is labeled as the result set for the term pet and encompasses the result set for pit-bull as well. The outermost circle is labeled as the result set for the term animal and encompasses the result sets for the terms pit-bull and pet.
Stop or Noise words are frequently occurring, insignificant words. An example might be articles, pronouns, and prepositions – the, of, a, etc.
Eliminate stop / noise words from a terms & connectors search.
