CLASS EXERCISE

Name  _______________________________________

Date  ________________________________________

FINDING CASE LAW

Think about the following questions as we work through our searches.

1. What sources are available to locate case law on the topic of inheritance rights for same sex partners?  What formats? Which one will you start with? Why?

2.  What terms did you use? Why?

3. If you narrowed your search, what criteria did you use? Why?

4.  Which states and/or circuits seem to you to have the most litigation on the topic? Does this help you structure your search? What concepts do the cases you examined bring out? Do your searches elicit particular statutes or parts of the Constitution as authority for the courts' decisions?

Sample searches online

Search #1

On Lexis select the state court cases file. Search with the following terms: (domestic partner or same sex) w/15 (insurance or benefits or death or inheritance)

Examine the following case: In re Estate of Hall

Scan the "headnotes" of the case. Which one(s) seem most relevant to our search? What arguments advanced by the parties and in the court's decision look useful for further research? 

Select Estate, Gift & Trust Law: Last Will & Testament: Family Allowance, Homestead & Spouse's Elective Share. Note that you  have several choices when searching this topic. Re-run the original search in state caselaw. Examine your results.  What advantages/disadvantages does that have? (Note that LEXIS saves your searches under "HIstory" at the bottom of the screen).

Instead of searching the original set of terms, ask the system to provide you with similar words and concepts. Select the Estate cases, all states database. Note that you can let the system use the search terms it draws down from the original case you looked at, or you can provide the system with your original search and ask for similar words and concepts. Try both approaches and compare your results. If you choose to let the system provide the search terms and concepts (the first choice listed), you will have to check off the terms you want to use. Examine the terms the system gives you. How would you rate their usefulness? (This is LEXIS' version of natural language searching).

Instead of searching the original case law database, rerun your original search using the Estate Law Review Articles database. What results do you get? What advantages/disadvantages does this approach have? What kind of material do you uncover? 

Select one of the other databases (e.g. Estate law review articles or Legal News) and either run the original search again or try a new search. 

Search #3

Rerun your search: (domestic partner or same sex) w/15 (insurance or benefits or death or inheritance). Examine the case: Estate of June M. Fowler. Select the "edit query" option. Select the "document segments" mode. Note that you can restrict your search by specifying that your search terms must appear in specific segments. (domestic partner or same sex) w/15 (insurance or benefits or death or inheritance),

Using the case Estate of June M. Fowler, select the "more like this" option at the top of the screen. Examine the options that LEXIS provides you. Compare the choices to the choices LEXIS provided you in search # 2 (the natural language search option).

Go back to the case and select the TOA (Table of Authorities) option. What additional searches does the result suggest to you? Click on the "Show parallel cites" option and look at the result. What is the difference between the Table of Authorities option and the Shepardizing option?

Finally, examine the first page of the case. What do you notice about the availability of the case? What does this tell you about the usefulness of this case in litigation?

Search #4

Go back to your original search: File: state court cases and Search (domestic partner or same sex) w/15 (insurance or benefits or death or inheritance). Run this search again and select the case: Connors v. City of Boston. Where is this case reported? Where could you find a discussion of it?  What does the yellow triangle to the left of the case citation mean? Search on the yellow triangle. What further information about the case can you uncover? What further discussion of the case or concepts discussed in it can you locate? Note that you can find out more about Shepardizing by selecting All Sources--Lexis Information and Training--Product Guide--Shepard's Citations.

Search #5

On Westlaw select the ALLSTATES after 1944 database. Run the original search: ("domestic partner" "same sex") w/15  (insurance benefits death inheritance). Remember that Westlaw reads spaces as an "or" so if you want to combine concept you must use either the word "and" or a connector of some sort (for example +5 to indicate that the terms must be within 5 words of each other). What are your results?

Think about how you could limit your search terms. Try including just the word "inheritance". What are your results?

Run the following search: ("domestic partner" "same sex") +15 (inheritance benefits estate insurance).  Examine your results. Select the following case: Vazquez v. Hawthorne. Examine the headnotes provided. Which one(s) seem(s) most helpful for our research? Note the date of the case. Where is it available?

Run the search in natural language mode:. find cases in which a domestic partner or same sex partner wants to inherit property. (Note also that WESTLWA saves your recent queries).

What are your results? Examine the case Bailey v. City of Austin.  Where is it reported?  Does this information give you another source to consult?

Examine the case Slattery v. City of New York. What additional useful information about sources of law can you get from the synposis of the case?

Select the KeyCite icon for the first headnote. What additional resources does it give you? Select the Treatises & Encyclopedia option and examine the citations given. Examine the Law reviews and journals option. Select one of the cites given (by checking the box) and search it. It will show up on the left hand side of the screen. Select it by clicking on the blue number preceding the cite. Examine the article. Note that Westlaw also gives you links to citations within the article just as it does for cases and statutes. (LEXIS also has this linking feature). What limitations would you expect to find in regard to linked materials? 

Search #6

Select the terms and connectors option again and use in the search: ("domestic partner" "same sex") +15 (inheritance benefits estate insurance). Then select the Field restrictions option. Examine the list of fields. Note that you can further narrow your search by limiting where you would like to find your search terms.

On your own, examine the KeySearch feature at the top of the WESTLAW screen. What advantages does it have for searching?

On your own, practice downloading and emailing yourself lists of citations and full texts of cases or other materials you find.

Search #7

Using terms that you think appropriate, try searching the Louisiana Digest for same sex or domestic partner inheritance cases. Notice that the Digest like all West publications allows you to search several indexes, such as the Descriptive Word Index, and the Words and Phrases Index. (Carried over to state case law--printed materials exercise).

Search #8

For our class project, find five cases in at least two different jurisdictions that seem relevant to our topic. Give complete citations and a three to five line annotation for each case indicating why the case is important (e.g. "Court held that state statutes recognize "Marriage" only between persons of opposite sex and that in cases of intestacy only surviving individuals involved in such a relationship can inherit. "

use natural language query    tips for searching