IP Tools & Strategies: Westlaw v. LexisNexis for IP Research

Email Poll Conducted by Professor Jon Cavicchi

October 2006

Professors

• I use Westlaw all the time because my Lexis password expired at some point and by the time I got it renewed I was hooked on Westlaw, purely because I knew the search terms and the database names.  I agree with whomever the other professor was, that it's more a matter of QWERTY-effect, i.e., once you learn a certain set of tools you use those tools.  I have absolutely no knowledge in differences in content and would appreciate your input on that, particularly with regard to foreign and international law.  Embarrassingly, as I am a Lexis author, I consistently use WESTLAW.
• I prefer Lexis for searching due to several search functions available on Lexis that are not available on Westlaw (I think) like the "atleast#" function.  However, Westlaw does give access to additional sources that are incredibly helpful, including specific IP treatises. I still prefer Lexis in general, probably because I learned it first.  But if I am looking for completeness (e.g., cases from the early 1800s or from Delaware chancery court or something like that) I try to back that up with a Westlaw search.
• I do not wish to be quoted. I use WestLaw because WestLaw provides McCarthy - I teach Trademarks.  Further, I appreciated the opportunity to download a pdf version of a case, exactly as it appears in the case reporter.  I considered this one of the great features of WestLaw but it seems to have vanished. Damn it.  WestLaw also has COA which I think is a great tool for research and not merely for practice. [A recent discovery for me, is Hein on Line. Being able to see an article as it actually appears that struck me as being most valuable.]  I suspect, for reasons lost in the mist, that I used WestLaw first and felt comfortable with it.  [I recall that in practice, prior to on-line research, most law offices in the state relied on Am Jur 2d over CJS.  There was no good reason that I could discern except habit.]  Try as I might I never found LexisNexis intuitive in the slightest degree.  If I need to use LexisNexis it would be to find Nimmer On Copyright.  The truth is that I seldom consult LexisNexis for any reason. I do recall that for a long while I could not access LexisNexis due to some foul up involving my access code. In any event,  I see no reason to hop back and forth.  There may be good reasons but I don't know what they are. KeyCite for example seems to work as well as Shepard's. So there is no need to use LexisNexis for that reason.  I see that most of the above is only tangential to IP research but . . . . I never employ any of the help services provided by WestLaw.  I can't say why.  I probably under use what WestLaw offers, much like I under use my word processors.
• I use Westlaw exclusively, except for those few opinions that are available only on Lexis and not on Westlaw.  Why?  I find it easier to use, I like being able to search by key number (99k! for copyright, etc.), I'm used to using it, so I'm much more proficient at it.  Ironic, since my copyright casebook is published by Lexis. Hope that helps.  I prefer not to be quoted, because of the casebook, but you can use my other remarks without attribution.
• I started my career using Lexis, probably because my law school had that before Westlaw. Eventually I switched to using Westlaw more than Lexis, in part because I found (and still find) their search interface more user-friendly (for me, anyway). My previous law schools also maintained subscriptions to both Lexis and Westlaw, which was nice to have and I'm glad that's practically a universal practice now. Since I use TWEN to post my course materials, I'm almost exclusively a Westlaw user. I would use Lexis more, I suppose, if my research covered areas where there's not already an information overload - from Westlaw to SSRN to online journals and websites - and where "hot news" isn't posted as quickly on the Web (though that might just be me.)
• I use Lexis for two reasons: 1)  Westlaw has never been able to get my user-friendly "id" working, so I have to use my Westlaw password and it's too much trouble.  It's also too much trouble to do the necessary work to figure out why Westlaw can't get my id working.  Though I've discussed it with them, they don't seem to interested in figuring it out.  2)  Lexis has this really cool feature that I don't think many people use.  You can include a term in your search string like "lxcite(344 f3d 104)."  This brings up anything that cites 344 f3d 104 (in all of its parallel citation forms).  You can combine it with other search terms, like (copyright and lxcite(344 f3d 104).  This is so much handier than using shepardize. Keep me anonymous please! 
• I use TWEN extensively for my classes but I prefer Lexis for my research because it is easier to keep multiple tabs open in a single tabbed browser as well as to cut and paste into Word.
• One service is enough, and WL was the one I started with. If either had the PQ, however, that might push me to use it. I do not search the PQ at BNA -- have no idea whether I can. I always use the WL version if available. I hate Lexis downloads b/c textraneous material is embedded in the text. A real pain to get rid of it and it's not even easy because of all the clutter to be sure where reporter page breaks occur.
• Like your colleague, I began to use Westlaw in law school and never really looked back.  It could be that Lexis has better features, but the difficulties associated with switching over have always prevented me from trying to find out.
• I use both for everything.  The one that provides updated access to USPTO patent prosecution file histories will clearly get my vote.
• My answer is very utilitarian. I learned LEXIS in law school and stayed with it because it was easier than learning two systems. A couple of years ago I switched to Westlaw because of TWEN and the fact that my law firm decided to opt for Westlaw over Lexis.
• I use Westlaw.  I like the fip-cs database.  Also, I like the way the international databases are set up.  But mostly, it's a lock-in story: I can remember the way to do specific kinds of searches on westlaw and don't know how to do the same on Lexis.  I only use Lexis for the nexis database and for some foreign databases not on Westlaw.  (or maybe, they are on westlaw but I got used to findng them on lexis). 
• You can add another tick mark in the category of “learned Lexis first” for me. Lexis offers an “academic universe” version – or at least it used to – so I used Lexis a lot in graduate school. When I got to law school, I was already comfortable with Lexis. I have never become comfortable with Westlaw. Once in a while, I really do need a special feature and must consider which system will work best. For a recent paper, I was trying to estimate copyright caseloads for particular courts and wanted to pull up cases based on the number of references to a particular word (i.e., “copyright!”). Lexis allows “atleast#” searches. Westlaw, so far as I know, does not. So I stuck with Lexis and did searches for cases with at least 5, 10, and 20 references to “copyright!” on a circuit-by-circuit basis. It worked pretty well.
• I started with Lexis in law school, preferring it because it had better content and I liked being able to slip over and use the news database as a break from legal research. This was from 1991-1994 when I was a law student.  I started as a law professor in 1996 and began with Lexis because of the loyalty in law school.  But sometine in 1998 or so, Lexis changed its interface on the web version and  found it confounding.  As a result, I have been a Westlaw person ever since and have enjoyed it. The interface is familiar and stable and the coverage is comparable to Lexis now for the non-legal, news materials.  So I am probably not going to switch again anytime soon.
• I use lexis becuase I find the frames on westlaw and almost everything else about westlaw annoying.
• I prefer Lexis for most things because it has a copyright database and a trademark database rather than a federal IP law database, and I usually am looking for either/or, not both
• I use WL exclusively. I spent the summer of 1999  using Lexis exclusively because that was the only option offered by my firm at the time. I then switched over to WL when I was given the choice. I believe my preference stems from a combination of the fact that WL had more of a presence where I attended law school and WL's more attractive (to me at least) graphic presentation.  But my students seem to have a preference for Lexis - they have told me they believe it is more user-friendly.
• I use Westlaw for the same reason that your other colleague mentioned.  I started using Westlaw in law school – b/c of the key notes and frankly the better, more intuitive interface – and have kept using it ever since.  If I need something only available on Lexis, I have the library folks obtain it and email it to me.
• I use Lexis when possible because I find Westlaw's single-window interface design maddening.  I like to keep multiple windows open, jumping back and forth between several threads.  In particular, I like to take a case, Sheperdize it, and possible Sheperdize some of the cases citing it.  Westlaw's use of a popup window keyed to the window behind it causes unpredictable results if you are moving between several cases and throwing popups from each.

3L's

• Lexis; just b/c I got used to using it.
• I'm a Westlaw user.  I learned Westlaw prior to law school in some of my internships and found it easy to understand with the information I needed easily accessible.  Lexis just never seemed as simple.
• I much perfer lexis for user friendlyness, but inevitably, my first and second stop in researching a new legal question or drafting a document will be to visit Westlaw's key digest for the current law on that topic in NH (or elsewhare) and search West's Allforms for similar documents already drafted by others (the order of these two varies). A third reason I need Westlaw is the Table of contents page that allows you to brows extensive treatasise on a variety of topics in a intuitive root tree system. But, for just grabbing cases and using the NH practise seriese, I much prefer Lexis.
• I prefer Lexis way more than Westlaw.  Honestly I think it is because I like the screen layout and color scheme more on Lexis than on Westlaw.  It may sound dumb, but Lexis just feels more comfortable.
• Personally I use Lexis because Westlaw wasn't using 3-ring binder holes in their paper 2 yrs ago and I just got in the habit of printing out cases with Lexis. Also Lexis invented Shepardizing.
• Westlaw. I prefer to work on Lexis, because I think it is more user friendly for New Hampshire Law.  The RSA's are easier to work through on Lexis and Lexis has the New Hampshire practice series on line.  Although I alternate between both, I prefer Lexis.  I also think I tend to get more hits on Lexis on all inquiries and I think its easier to shepardize on Lexis. I prefer Lexis because I think the layout is easier to read and access.  Only when Lexis does not have an opinion, e.g., unpublisehd, do I resort to Westlaw.  Then again, Westlaw doesn't have some opinions that only Lexis has...  All in all, I like Lexis better.
• I prefer Lexis, but I cant really say why for sure.  Maybe it is just the overall look and feel of the site.  Westlaw looks like something out of an late 80's computer program.  The area of law searches also seem more intuitive.  But I'll have to admit, I only use these programs for a find by citation type search.  I have found that google does better than both most of the time.
• I use both. Overall I think that Westlaw has more features, but it is really frustrating when it logs you out in the middle of the search. However, they definetly have better training. Regarding the content - I generally use Lexis for Intellectual property search. Also, feature of finding a source on Lexis is nice. Bottom line is that if I have time I do research on both - often they provide different results. If not, then it depends on the subject. If I had to choose one, Westlaw would probably win.
• in general I prefer west law for primary source because of the West Key number system and headnotes.  I find them to work much better than Lexis's versions.  In addition it is helpful when alternating between print and electronic resources to keep consistent with the Key number system.  The only time I prefer Lexis for primary resources is for Patent issues since Lexis has a preconfigured Patent Law tab which allows me to search many different jurisidictions for patent law cases.  I have not found an equivalent on Westlaw, but I wouldn't be surprised to find out that it is there.  I use Lexis for secondary sources. 
• Westlaw, Primarily layout (far more efficient and research oriented, less cluttered) Plus power... more documents, better presentation.

GP Students

• Here are a few of the reasons I leaned toward Westlaw, to the exclusion of Lexis: 1.  Access to the West key number system. 2.  The research librarians at my law firm preferred Westlaw. 3.  Excellent service in the past, including help writing queries and finding databases.
• I am an LLM student and this year has been my first experience using a researching tool such Lexis Nexis or Westlaw. I definitely prefer Westlaw because it is easy to make a search, the databases are more familiar to use and in IP topics it has McCarthy among other authors.
• I'm one of those nerds who prefers book research to online research, so I'll say West because of the reporters and reference numbers.  And generally, I prefer Westlaw's color scheme to Lexis' - the red/black combo of Lexis really gets to my eyes.  Also, I got an iPod using Westlaw points...it further secured its favorite status with nice presents.
• I use both, for trademark research, i use westlaw fir it has McCarthy on it. And otherwise, as user friendly, it is Lexis. But if I have to choose one, it would be Westlaw.
• I prefer Westlaw - it is more "instinctive."
• I prefer Westlaw because the materials as well as cases I want to research are well organized to understand easier.
• We can't get ex parte cases (with uspq citations) from Westlaw (for example: Ex parte Lyell (17 U.S.P.Q.2D (BNA) 1548). In that case, I will use Lexis. However, if I don't know which database would contain the information I need, I won't search that in Lexis. I will do that on Westlaw. Westlaw also has a unique function (keycite) to check case histories by using flow charts. That's very convenient. I don't think Lexis provides the same service. In addition, we can get case dockets for current litigations in Westlaw, but my Lexis student account is not allowed to access that same information. I don't know these two database well since we still do not talk about the search skill in the Legal Skill class yet. Above are just my person thoughts.
• West law is easier, and their representative comes quite often.
• I prefer Westlaw because I find that it is easier to navigate my way through it and I like the availability of tabs that are "IP friendly." For instance, they offer tabs for patent practioners which combine useful resources in one tab. I must admit I have spent little time on Lexis because I did not get a good first impression of it so I really have no idea if they offer the tab process that Westlaw does. The only positive I have to say about Lexis is that I do like their case briefs better than Westlaws. Overall though, I would use Westlaw.
• For me it depends on the topic I research for. If I have a trademark law issue I tend to use Westlaw because the McCarthy treatise is pretty good, and if it is some other issue I may use both, generally the one I used for the last search. However I have to admit that in printing cases I prefer Lexis. Sometimes I even find out the cases in Westlaw and print out the cases in Lexis. Wish this helps for the article.