1. ABOVE ALL - ALLOW NO DISTRACTIONS
- The meter is running
- Close your door
- Turn off your phone
- FOCUS
2. Know your issue
- Never begin with a key word case search
- Do some background research to become familiar with your topic
- See the Secondary Sources Tab of this Guide
- Do you know what the acronymns stand for?
- Are there terms of art you need to look up?
3. Write down your search statement on paper
- Start with a plan
- What will you do if you find too much?
- What will you do if you find too little?
4. When in doubt call customer service. All three companies have 24/7 toll-free phone numbers:
- LEXIS (800) 543-6862 (menu option 1)
- Westlaw (800) REF-ATTY
- BloombergLaw (888) 560-2529
5. Pre-Filter
- narrow down by jurisdiction
- narrow down by type of material
6. Change the display order
- Relevance may not the best way to view a list
- Change to Date-newest first or Most Cited
7. Too much is better than too little - Start broad and narrow down
8. Observe the 15 minute rule of thumb
- if you haven't found anything relevant within 15 minutes STOP
- more time won't help
- log off and regroup
9. Print sparingly
10. Understand the charges
- No matter what the pricing plan, start with a BROAD search and stay within it.
- Flat-rate plan or
- Transactional
