Being a law student entitles you to a life of case studies, debates, and other activities. All these are required for you to earn your juris doctor degree. But before you get your case studies and debate materials done, for example, you have to do a lot of research. Even upon finally earning your juris doctor, the nature of your job will require you to do more and more research. You don’t have to worry, though, for being a lawyer nowadays no longer requires you to wade in bookshelves or spend endless hours in the library. With Westlaw, you get the answers to your questions right in front of you–on your very own computer screen! (1)
Law School vs. Westlaw
Westlaw should not be confused as an online law school, though. Westlaw is essentially an online research engine. (1) It uses high-technology innovation to provide users with business, legal, and regulatory information, gathered and reviewed intensively by its group of editors who happen to be licensed law practitioners. (2) (3) On top of that, Westlaw also produces more than 60,000,000 books and 500 libraries in CD-ROM’s every year. (2) This ensures that law students and lawyers alike always get up-to-date information regarding their field of choice.
How Westlaw Came Into Being
Would you believe it? Westlaw is actually already 135 years old. Westlaw is a brainchild of John B. West in 1872, but it actually came into realization only when West Publishing was established in 1992. (1) (2) Later on, in the year 1996, it was acquired by the Thomson Legal and Regulatory Group of Companies. (2) That brought about its current name, Thomson West. (1)
What Westlaw Has In Store For Lawyers And Law Students
Westlaw is hailed as the online research engine of choice by the American Bar Association (ABA) in 2001 and has bagged the prestigious Readers’ Choice Award in law office computing in 2004. (3) Let’s find out why:
* Westlaw is run by a team of editors who “walk the talk.” Almost everybody at Westlaw is a licensed attorney, so you get the impression that every bit of information you get from the site is reliable and up-to-date.
* Westlaw knows that people freak out at the first sight of law terminologies and what-have-you’s. That’s why its pool of lawyer-editors makes everything easier for you to understand. The site is very easy to navigate, very user-friendly, and it contains really useful information.
(1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westlaw
(2) http://west.thomson.com/overview/
(3) http://west.thomson.com/westlaw/difference/