New State Trial Court Legal Research Database

 Trellis

Multi-state trial court legal research & analytics platform

The Law Library now has access to Trellis, a state trial court legal research and analytics platform. Trellis provides coverage of cases and judges from trial level courts in the following states: AZ, CA, CT, DE, FL, GA, IL, MA, NV, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, TX & WA. Users can access and track trial court dockets and case documents.

You can search Trellis in a variety of ways including natural language and boolean, as well as by judge, party, county and courthouse names. Users can also search by motion types (e.g., summary judgement, demurrer) and by document type, e.g., memorandum.

Trellis is a valuable resource for research related to: motions, discovery, settlements, verdicts, class actions, and expert witnesses. Trellis is also a valuable resource for researching opposing counsel. 

You can access, track and set alerts on trial court dockets and case documents. Trellis provides a Judge Analytics Dashboard. The dashboard allows users to access biographical information and a wide range of analytics data for evaluating and comparing various aspects of a judge's practice. Categories of information include: active cases, average case length, motion grant rate, verdict data, case practice area breakdowns, motion grant rates, case outcomes (dispositions) and case milestones, e.g. average case duration, time to trial, etc.

If you have questions about Trellis, contact the Reference Office.

Law School Success: Books & eBooks

Check out the Law Library's collection of books in print and eBook formats on surviving and succeeding in law school. Our collection includes books on exam prep and performance advice. Additional books and resources on succeeding in law school and exam preparation can be found by searching our catalog using these subject headings:

• Law students -- United States -- Handbooks, manuals, etc

• Law -- study and teaching -- United States

• Law examinations -- United States -- Study Guides

New HeinOnline Collection

 LGBTQ+ Rights 

HeinOnline's new LGBTQ+ Rights collection contains, "materials relating to the gay rights movement in America, including an interactive timeline, as well as subject-coded court cases, scholarly articles, books, pamphlets, reports, and more." It is a unique collection and an important addition to HeinOnline's Social Justice Suite of databases which include

• Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law
• Gun Regulation and Legislation in America
• Civil Rights and Social Justice
• Open Society Justice Initiative

Bloomberg Law, Lexis+ & Westlaw Edge Access for Graduating & Continuing Students

 

Summer 2022 and Beyond

*Employers may prefer/require the use of the employer-issued ID & password for client work.

Spring 2022 Graduates have continued access through Nov. 30, 2022. This access is automatic (no registration required) and is unlimited and unrestricted. 

Continuing Students: you have continued access to Bloomberg Law over the summer. This access is automatic (no registration required) and is unlimited and unrestricted.

If you have any questions, please contact the Bloomberg Law Help Desk or our dedicated Client Service Partner, Stefanie Schuette.

*Employers may prefer/require the use of the employer-issued ID & password for client work.

Spring 2022 Graduates have continued access through Dec. 31, 2022. This access is automatic (no registration required) and is unlimited (excluding Public Records) and unrestricted. Note: your LexisNexis Rewards points will expire on June 30, 2022. Also note: when you sign-on after July 10, your LexisNexis homepage will switch to the graduate view and you will receive a special graduation gift from LexisNexis.

ASPIRE Program for Grads at Non-Profit Organizations

Graduates working in 501 (c)(3) non-profit organizations work may apply for an ASPIRE ID which lasts 12 months beyond graduation. More information about Grad Access and the ASPIRE Program is available at lexisnexis.com/grad-access.

Continuing Students: you have continued access to Lexis+ over the summer using your student LexisNexis credentials. This access is automatic (no registration required).

If you have any questions, please contact our Lexis Account Representative, Sarah Bigler.

Spring 2022 Graduates have access to Westlaw Edge, Practical Law, Practical Law Connect, Drafting Assistant and Doc & Form Builder for 18 months after graduation. Your “Grad Elite” access gives you 60-hours of usage on these products per month to meet any research needs.

To extend access logon at: www.lawschool.westlaw.com.

Questions? Contact our Thomson Reuters Academic Account Manager, Peter Lippmann.

Continuing Students: you can use Westlaw Edge and Practical Law, over the summer for non-commercial research. You can turn to these resources to gain understanding and build confidence in your research skills, but you cannot use them in situations where you are billing a client. Examples of permissible uses for your academic password include:

Summer coursework
Research assistant assignments
Law Review or Journal research
Moot Court research
Non-Profit work
Clinical work
Externship sponsored by the school

You do not have to do anything to gain access to these tools over the summer. If you have any questions, please contact our Thomson Reuters Academic Account Manager, Peter Lippmann.

Spotlight on fastcase

 

What?

The fastcase legal research platform provides a popular and affordable alternative for accessing federal and state primary source materials such as cases, statutes, regulations, and court rules, as well as secondary materials, such as law journal articles. Check out the fastcase Scope of Coverage page for detailed information about the legal content coverage available.

Did you know?

The Law Library’s subscription to fastcase provides onsite access to all library patrons and remote access for U of MN Law students. Access to fastcase is also offered as a free benefit to state bar members in all fifty states. Membership in the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA) is free to Minnesota law students (apply online here). Checkout the MSBA’s Member Services Guide for more information on additional member benefits.

Using fastcase

For help on how to use fastcase visit the fastcase support page where you'll find information on webinars, video tutorials, user guides and more, or contact your friendly reference librarians.

UMN Law Scholarship Repository Surpasses 2.5 Million Downloads!

 

The Law Library is very pleased to announce that there have been over 2.5 million downloads from the University of Minnesota Law School Scholarship Repository! Launched by the Library in 2015, the Repository preserves and promotes the scholarship produced by the Law School's faculty and law journals. The Repository has proven to be a highly successful tool to make the Law School's scholarship available to scholars and researchers nationally and globally.

 

The Faculty Scholarship Collection forms the heart of the Repository, providing open access, when permitted by copyright law, to the scholarship of those Law School faculty members who have consented to having their work included. This was the first content added to the Repository, and it remains its flagship collection. 

 

In recent years, the Library has broadened the scope of the Repository to include the archives of all journals published within the Law School, as well as scholarship produced by the Law School's centers and institutes. In addition, recordings of programs held at the Law School, including symposia and lectures, and scholarly podcasts are included in the Repository. 

 

As the content of the Repository has expanded, the Library has focused on improving the discoverability of this impressive body of scholarship to ensure maximum accessibility and visibility. As of today, scholarship contained in the Repository has been downloaded by scholars and researchers at more than 43,000 institutions in 234 countries. The map above displays the number of downloads by region, and the Library is confident that the Repository's reach will continue to grow.

 

The Law Library is exceptionally proud to support the outstanding scholarship produced at the Law School. We continue to strive to ensure that our community's scholarship is available to scholars and researchers throughout the world now and for posterity. 

New UK & EU Research Database

 

Westlaw Edge UK 

Westlaw Edge UK is now available to all University of Minnesota Law School students, faculty and staff. Users may access a wide range of legal materials including case law, legislation, regulatory and guidance publications, legal journals, and current awareness publications.

Westlaw Edge UK also contains EU case law, legislation, OJC Series, and preparatory acts and treaties.  See the Content and Coverage Brochure for details.