LEXIS-NEXIS Academic

What is LexisNexis Academic? (Link) This is an online database which offers access to a wide range of full text resources, including primary and secondary U.S. legal materials. An overview of the contents is listed below:

  • News
  • U.S. legal materials:
    • Federal and State Cases
    • Shepard’s Citations
    • Landmark Cases
    • Supreme Court Briefs
    • Federal Statutes, Codes, and Regulations
    • State Statutes, Codes and Regulations
    • Law Reviews
    • Legal Reference (includes AmJur2d, legal dictionaries, and Martindale-Hubbell)
    • Patents
    • Tax Law
    • International Legal materials
    • Companies
    • Subject Areas (Accounting, Environmental Studies, Government and Politics, Health and Medical Care, People, and Consumer Information)

    Where Can I Access LexisNexis Academic? No password is required.  Follow this link.

    What is the fastest way to find a court decision? From the EasySearch Home screen, use the Look up a Legal Case search boxes: By Citation, by Parties, or by Topic.

    How do I Shepardize  a case? If you have retrieved a case, you will see a Shepardize link at the top of the displayed case.

    If you want to go directly to Shepard’s , select the Shepard’s  link under US Legal on the left side of the EasySearch screen.  This search box provides assistance with citation format. Note: Shepard’s  on LexisNexis Academic does not include all the sources available on Shepard’s  in full LexisNexis. For example, you may Shepardize cases but not statutes. Check the citation formats for coverage. Note: Once at a Shepard’s  display, you can link to the full text of some of the documents.

    What are the Search Methods?

    EasySearch : This is the Home screen for this database.  This method is most useful for finding a case when you have the citation or the names of parties.

    Search Forms : When at the EasySearch screen, if you use the pull down menu on the left side, you can select a heading to search.  For example, under U.S. Legal, you might select Federal and State Cases. You are then taken to a U.S. Federal and State Cases Search Form. This form offers search boxes with pull down menus for search connectors as well as providing other ways to refine your search. *

    Power Search:  This method allows the most sophisticated searching using either Terms and Connectors (Boolean Searching as well as special LexisNexis connectors) or Natural Language searching.*

     *Be sure to click on the question mark (?) symbol for help in constructing searches.

     How do I find more detailed information about sources available on LexisNexis  Academic?    The Search Forms, such as the one for Federal and State Cases, offer links to source information; you can select the heading, Sources, from the EasySearch  Home screen and link to the Browse or Find; or if you are at the Power Search screen, there are links to Browse or Find.*

      *Be sure to click on the information symbol (i) for more source information.