Starting Your Research
Assignments with Ease
You’ll normally have a citation to a statute or a case to start your
research. The best way to begin is to use the citation you have to find
the related authority you need. The cross-referencing features of
Lexis Advance® make this a snap, saving you valuable time and
ensuring you find the authority you need quickly and easily.
Researching with a statutory citation:
Start by entering the citation to your statute in the red box and clicking the search button. The format of statutory
citations varies from federal to state, and state by state. The example below uses a federal statute. The first
number of the citation is the statutory title. The abbreviation between the numbers identifies the code (e.g.,
United States Code Service). The second number is the individual section under the statutory title.
TITLE
CODE
SECTION
18 U.S.C.S. 3109
Your search retrieves your statute and separate tab with all the sources that mention your statue.
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2
1
3
1
Use your statute to find the related authority you need with:
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2
1
3
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Table of Contents
Easily see where your statute fits
into the overall code, and get any
companion sections.
Annotations
Quickly find the important cases
applying or interpreting your
statute organized by legal topic.
The Shepard’s® Citations Service
Retrieve a list of all the cases citing
to or following your statute, and a
report of its legislative history.
Start your research assignments with ease
Researching with a case citation:
Enter the citation to your case in the red box and click the search button. The first number of the citation is the
volume of the reporter (book the case is published in). The abbreviation between the numbers identifies the
reporter. The second number is the page of the reporter where your case is found.
volume
REPORTER
326
U.S.
PAGE
310
Your search retrieves your case and a separate tab with all the sources that mention your case.
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1
3
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Use your case to find the related authority you need with:
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LexisNexis® Case Summaries
& LexisNexis® Headnotes
Quickly get up to speed on the
facts and legal issues of your
case. At the top of each case
you’ll find a Case Summary
followed by Headnotes.
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Topic Summary Reports
Get a detailed summary of
unfamiliar legal topics, including:
legal definitions, links to seminal
cases, elements of a cause of
action, links to related
secondary sources.
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Legal Issue Trail™
Automatically find the cases that
support or follow a quote from
your case.
LexisNexis, Lexis Advance, Shepard’s and the Knowledge Burst logo are registered trademarks and Legal Issue Trail is a trademark of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used
under license. Other products or services may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. © 2013 LexisNexis. All rights reserved.
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