Article Abstract #8

Understanding LexisNexis

LexisNexis has become an integral part of legal scholarship. Understanding LexisNexis is a book produced by the LexisNexis corporation that explains the most efficient way to use their web-based database. This particular book is aimed at the law student, and then by extraction, the individuals who assist law students such as law librarians.

The book is divided up into three sections. The first part explains how to find case law and then how to check its validity through a process called “Shepardizing.” This is especially important at the Indiana Law School Library because due to budget constraints the subscription to the paper Shepard’s was cancelled. The second part of the book is devoted to secondary sources such as treatises and law reviews. It also contains subject specific research guides. This section is of the most use to law students, especially those writing for a law review or on a moot court team because this is where one finds the basic introductory information on a subject. The final part of the book is legislative material which is of the least use to a law student.