# How do I search for specific legal cases?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 30, 2011, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850 "2011-12-30T18:07:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850/1 "2011-12-30T18:07:35Z")

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How do I go about searching for a specific kind of lawsuit or class action? I’ve got decent Google-Fu but I want to know if there are legal- specific search engines I can use. Do I have to pay for them?

Trying to cut through lots of dead leads and find answers.

Thanks !

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**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850/2 "2011-12-30T18:49:42Z")

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US Supreme Court and some appeals court decisions are generally available through [findlaw](http://www.findlaw.com/) or [justia](http://www.justia.com/). I think some state’s supreme court decisions can also be accessed through regular search engines and websites. But for any serious legal research, you need access to Lexis or Westlaw. It’s possible there are short-term subscriptions available, but it’s probably much better for you to go to the law library in your county courthouse, or at a nearby law school. There you can possibly get a librarian to help you get started.

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**Author:** ![isaiahrobinson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/85e7bf/32.png) [@isaiahrobinson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/isaiahrobinson)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850/3 "2011-12-30T19:02:51Z")

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Yep, LexisNexis and WestLaw is the answer.

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**Author:** ![TheFifthYear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@TheFifthYear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFifthYear)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850/4 "2011-12-30T19:05:23Z")

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[Lexis](http://www.lexisone.com/lx1/caselaw/freecaselaw?action=FCLDisplayCaseSearchForm)has a free site that is useful. It is restricted to the last ten years (except S.Ct cases which go all the way back). Might want to try Google Scholar as well…it’s pretty rough, but might be worth a try.

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [December 31, 2011, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-search-for-specific-legal-cases/607850/5 "2011-12-31T17:48:32Z")

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Excellent stuff, thank you !