How to find Feedback Box on Blackboard

 

As I have mentioned, it will be very useful to run the CALI lessons that I wrote for each exercise.  Here is how you can find the link.

This image is what you see in the Grade Box. Click on Your Grade.

You need to use the outside scroll bar to scroll all the way down to find the Feedback. The first arrow is pointing to the PDF of your exercise. The second arrow is pointing to Show More Content.  Click on Show More Content and you will open up the Feedback box which contains a note to you from me and the link to the CALI lesson I wrote for that specific exercise.

This image is the Feedback box you will see.

 

 

Review: Cases, Court Rules and Citators

You can Shepardize and KeyCite court rules.

TRUE

*****************************************************************

What references can you find in Citing References in KeyCite?

All Choices.
Cases only
Regulations only
Secondary Sources only

*****************************************************************

Why are the Headnotes in Westlaw useful?

They are useful to find cases dealing with the same issue.

They are useful because when you click on them you are taken to the place in the case which discusses the matter in the Headnote.

In the image, you see Headnotes 1 and 2. If you click on the square with 1 and the square with 2, you will be sent to the place in the case where the information for those two headnotes can be found.

In this image, the arrow is pointing to numbers 1 and 2 in squares.  Number 1 is for Headnote 1 and Number 2 is for Headnote 2.  The information for both Headnote 1 and Headnote 2 came from the indicated paragraph.

Headnotes allow you to easily find out how other jurisdictions have dealt with the matter in the Headnote.

All responses are correct.

*****************************************************************

Shepard’s and KeyCite may not report cases or legislation indirectly overruling a case.

TRUE  However, Westlaw Edge has a new product – named Overruling Risk which is trying to provide information about cases that might indirectly overrule the case that you are KeyCiting.

 

Review: Practice-Ready Resources

Why should forms be used carefully?

All three choices  CORRECT
Quality varies.
May not be current.
Models or examples only.  Must be tailored.

First, the quality of legal forms will vary greatly. The sources discussed in the CALI lesson are generally reliable, but you will still need to make sure a particular form is appropriate for its intended purpose.

Similarly, be sure to verify the currency of the legal forms. The law changes all the time, and you want to know whether a particular form reflects the present state of the law.

Finally, remember that legal forms are models or examples only. Rarely, if ever, is it appropriate to use a form verbatim. Rather, it is a starting point, and the form will need to be tailored to fit the specific facts of the situation for which you are drafting the instrument and the jurisdiction in which you are working.

*****************************************************************

There are two basic types of legal forms: procedural and transactional.

TRUE:  There are two basic types of legal forms, transactional forms, which are legal instruments and agreements, such as a sales contract or a lease, entered into between two or more parties in a transaction, and procedural forms, which are documents filed in court, such as a complaint or a motion.

*****************************************************************

Why is it useful to use legal forms?

All of the answers.

Using legal forms enables attorneys to be more efficient because they have an example from which to start drafting their own instruments.

Using legal forms enables attorneys to draft more effective instruments because the forms are often drafted by experienced attorneys and contain language and clauses that have proven successful and withstood judicial scrutiny.

Using legal forms enables attorneys to educate themselves about the substance of the law surrounding a particular transaction or agreement.

*****************************************************************

The three main types of transactional form books are general, jurisdictional, and subject-specific.

CORRECT

*****************************************************************

Lexis and Westlaw also provide FORMS databases.

On Lexis, you can find Forms under Content Type and then FORMS.  Then you can filter by state or by Practice Area.

On Westlaw, you can find Forms under Content Types and then FORMS.  Then you have the filter by Forms by State or Forms by Topic.

Both platforms are offering Forms from the materials available on their platforms which means, in all probability, the forms are from different resources.  So while you have both platforms available to you, search for specific forms on both Lexis Advance and Westlaw Edge and analyze the materials received.

Remember when you are searching for forms, do not use the terms “plaintiff” or “defendant” or other general terms.  Use terms that describe the issue at hand.  For example, use “substitution” and “death, ” if you are looking for a motion to substitute the executor of the estate for the deceased plaintiff in an action that the deceased plaintiff filed to recover a sum of money.

Remember there are also numerous form books

Please review the CALI Lessons: Researching and Working with Transactional Forms and Researching and Working with Procedural Forms on LessonLink https://www.cali.org/courses/8026

****************************************************************

Read the following statements about attorneys’ use of forms.

Select the entry that is NOT true.

NOT TRUE Attorneys use procedural/practice forms by simply filling in the blanks with relevant party names, thereby bypassing the need for careful analysis of the case.

Internal firm resources such as pleading banks provide a very useful source of forms for attorneys

Sample procedural/practice forms are available on Westlaw Edge, Lexis Advance, and other online sources.

Sample procedural/practice forms are available in books published by major legal publishers.

*****************************************************************

Now let’s suppose that prior to his death Mr. Xander had initiated an action against Mr. Zorba to recover a sum of money owed to him by Mr. Zorba.

Now, Mrs. Xander as the executor of her husband’s estate needs to file a motion to substitute her as executor of the estate for her husband as the plaintiff in the action.

What keywords would you use to search the printed index or to use a terms and connectors search on Westlaw or Lexis?

Substitution and Death  CORRECT
Plaintiff and Defendant
Plaintiff and Substitution
Death and Plaintiff

Remember when you are searching for forms, do not use the terms “plaintiff” or “defendant” or other general terms.  Use terms that describe the issue at hand.  For example, use “substitution” and “death, ” if you are looking for a motion to substitute the executor of the estate for the deceased plaintiff in an action that the deceased plaintiff filed to recover a sum of money.

Online, it would be wise to use a truncated form of substitution to retrieve all variations of it (such as substitute!).

You could combine this with the other key term and do a proximity connector search such as death /4 substitut!    Remember to be sure that you are using the appropriate proximity connectors for the online platform.

*****************************************************************

You must look at the court rules for your jurisdiction to help you determine which of the following?

Timing for filing of documents with the court
How to serve the opposing side with notice of the lawsuit
Cost of filing a case with the court
All are Correct

 

Review: Administrative Law

Can you KeyCite and Shepardize 26 C.F.R. § 1.1–1?

Yes, you can KeyCite and Shepardize federal regulations.

*****************************************************************

A final regulation is published first in the Federal Register.

TRUE

*****************************************************************

After publication in the Federal Register, they will be codified and published in the Code of Federal Regulations.

TRUE

*****************************************************************

How is the Code of Federal Regulations arranged?

President
Topic  Correct Arranged by topic for ease of use.
Date
Congress

*****************************************************************

Do states issue regulations?

YES, states issue regulations.

*****************************************************************

When was the last major disaster declaration for Florida other than for the Pandemic and what was the reason?

What was your source?  Be sure to use an authoritative source.

Hurricane Dorian & Florida Division of Emergency Management Website

Key Largo Flooding & Florida Division of Emergency Management Website

Hurricane Sally & FEMA Website CORRECT

Florida HURRICANE SALLY (DR-4564-FL)

Incident Period: September 14, 2020 – September 28, 2020

Major Disaster Declaration declared on September 23, 2020

https://www.fema.gov/disaster/declarations?field_dv2_state_territory_tribal_value=FL&field_year_value=All&field_dv2_declaration_type_value=DR&field_dv2_incident_type_target_id_selective=All

*****************************************************************

How many comments were received on the proposed rule dealing with Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Removing the Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife?    The proposed rule was posted on March 15, 2019.

757,041 CORRECT
801,403
500,312
908,451

Regulations.gov for the proposed rule posted on March 15, 2019.

https://www.regulations.gov/document/FWS-HQ-ES-2018-0097-0001

*****************************************************************

Are Executive Orders laws?

NO “Executive Orders are not laws; Instead, they direct agencies, where agencies have discretion, to implement policies, take actions, or follow procedures outlined in the order.”  See Chapter, 3, Administrative Law by Stephen Johnson in materials.

*****************************************************************

Where can you find an explanation of a final regulation which includes summaries of comments submitted and the agency’s response to these comments?

Code of Federal Regulations
Agency’s website
In the preamble published with the Final Rule in the Federal Register CORRECT  The Administrative Procedures Act requires the Agency to provide a “concise general statement of [the]…basis and purpose” of the rules.   The Agency publishes this explanation with the final rule in the Federal Register. See Chapter 3, Administrative Law by Stephen Johnson

Also, see this section in the CFR

https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/1/18.12 – dealing with the Preamble’s requirements.

*****************************************************************

When is the closing date for comments on the proposed rule dealing with Coastwise Endorsement Eligibility Determination for a Foreign-built Vessel:  PALE HORSE (Motor Vessel)?

July 19, 2021  CORRECT
August 19, 2021
July 30, 2021
July 23, 2021

See https://www.regulations.gov/document/MARAD-2021-0112-0001 on Regulations.gov

 

Review: Statutes

You are using an Annotated Statute.  What additional materials might you find that would be very useful to your research?

You may find a summary of cases, citations to secondary sources, legislative materials, court documents plus other useful materials.

Annotated statutes are extremely useful.

Be sure you know how to find these additional materials using Lexis and Westlaw.

Below is an image of a Nebraska Statute on Westlaw Edge.  You can see the arrow on the left pointing to Notes of Decisions where you will find the summary of the important cases that have cited the statute.

For this statute, there is one case in Notes of Decisions.  As you can see in the image below.

The arrow on the right is pointing to Citing References where you will find cases (7), statutes & court rules, (2) secondary sources (7), appellate court documents (9), and trial court documents (8).

Below is the Nebraska Statute on Lexis. Below the statute, you will see Judicial Decisions. The arrow is pointing to the one case Lexis has decided to include in this section.  The Judicial Decisions.  This is similar to Notes of Decisions on Westlaw.

In the image below, the arrow is pointing to the Shepard’s document which is similar to KeyCite when the document is opened.

The image below is the Shepard’s document. opened.  As you can see it opens to Citing Decisions.  The top arrow on the left points to Citing Decisions (8) and the second arrow points to Other Citing Sources which for this statute is one law review article.

You will also find some of these additional materials in the print versions published by Lexis and Thomson Reuters (Westlaw).  If you are using the print statutes, you will also need to use KeyCite and Shepard’s.

*****************************************************************

Can you KeyCite and Shepardize statutes?

YES

However, be sure that the materials you use pertain to the version of the statute you are researching.

Statutes can be amended, etc. so you need to be sure that the additional materials (e.g. cases)  discuss the version of the statute that you are researching.

*****************************************************************

It’s 5:00 o’clock on a Friday, and you just received an email requesting a list of cases that interpret whether entering into a lease in Illinois would submit a party to jurisdiction in Illinois, according to the state’s long-arm statute. You can get a head start on your research by retrieving the long-arm statute and browsing the Notes of Decisions in Westlaw and the Judicial Decisions in Lexis.

One more time.  Notes of Decisions are annotations that summarize important cases that have interpreted a statute or regulation, giving you a more complete picture of how the law has been applied.  The Judicial Decisions in Lexis are similar.

*****************************************************************

If you are doing statutory research, can KeyCite and Shepard’s reports identify new or pending legislation?

Yes. KeyCite and Shepard’s can identify new or pending legislation.

 

Review: Secondary Sources

Which source is a secondary source?

American Law Reports American Law Reports (frequently abbreviated and referred to as ALR) contain in-depth articles on narrow topics of the law. ALR articles, called annotations, provide background, analysis, and citations to relevant cases, statutes, law review articles, and other annotations.

United States Reports:  U.S. Supreme Court cases.

California Code: The code (statutes) of the State of California.

Federal Register: The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents.

ANSWER: American Law Reports is a secondary source.

****************************************************************

For most research projects, it is recommended that you begin your research with a primary source.

Correct

*****************************************************************

Which source is the most authoritative?

Treatise on Constitutional Law:  Substance and Procedure  Ronald Rotunda and John Nowak  Thomson Reuters

Florida Jurisprudence, 2d

Encyclopedia of the American Constitution

Civil Procedure: Examples and Explanations Joseph W. Glannon  Wolters Kluwer

Most Authoritative: Treatise on Constitutional Law:  Substance and Procedure  Ronald Rotunda and John Nowak  Thomson Reuters   A scholarly treatise by well-respected authors and publisher.

*****************************************************************

Can you KeyCite or Shepardize law review/journal articles?

Yes.  You can KeyCite or Shepardize law review/journal articles.   (You will find out what sources have cited the law review/journal.)

*****************************************************************

Is ALR is a comprehensive source?

NO  American Law Reports is not a comprehensive source. American Law Reports (frequently abbreviated and referred to as ALR) contain in-depth articles on narrow topics of the law. ALR articles, called annotations, provide background, analysis, and citations to relevant cases, statutes, law review articles, and other annotations.

*****************************************************************

What references can you find in Citing References in KeyCite?

Cases only

Regulations only

Secondary Sources only

All Choices – CORRECT 

*****************************************************************

Often useful for researching emerging areas of law

Law ReviewCORRECT A law review (or law journal) is a scholarly journal or publication that focuses on a wide array of legal issues. A law review is a type of legal periodical. 

Treatise: A treatise focuses on a single area of law and is written by experts in that area. Treatises range from broad, multi-volume sets to narrowly focused one-volume titles.  Practitioners rely heavily on treatises for the detailed coverage and practical tips they contain. The content varies tremendously, but you can usually find thorough explanations of the law at issue along with citations to relevant cases, statutes, regulations, and other secondary sources. Some treatises also contain the full text of these materials in appendices.

Legal Encyclopedia: A legal encyclopedia is a comprehensive set of brief articles on legal topics. It is arranged similarly to a general encyclopedia,

American Law Reports: American Law Reports (frequently abbreviated and referred to as ALR) contain in-depth articles on narrow topics of the law. ALR articles, called annotations, provide background, analysis, and citations to relevant cases, statutes, law review articles, and other annotations.

*****************************************************************

Provides in-depth treatment of an area of law

Treatise CORRECT A treatise focuses on a single area of law and is written by experts in that area. Treatises range from broad, multi-volume sets to narrowly focused one-volume titles.  Practitioners rely heavily on treatises for the detailed coverage and practical tips they contain. The content varies tremendously, but you can usually find thorough explanations of the law at issue along with citations to relevant cases, statutes, regulations, and other secondary sources. Some treatises also contain the full text of these materials in appendices.

American Law Reports: American Law Reports (frequently abbreviated and referred to as ALR) contain in-depth articles on narrow topics of the law. ALR articles, called annotations, provide background, analysis, and citations to relevant cases, statutes, law review articles, and other annotations.

Restatements: Restatements are secondary sources that seek to “restate” the legal rules that constitute the common law in a particular area. They are written by the American Law Institute (ALI).

Legal Encyclopedia: A legal encyclopedia is a comprehensive set of brief articles on legal topics. It is arranged similarly to a general encyclopedia.

*****************************************************************

Provides analysis on narrow legal topics

American Law ReportsCORRECT  American Law Reports (frequently abbreviated and referred to as ALR) contain in-depth articles on narrow topics of the law. ALR articles, called annotations, provide background, analysis, and citations to relevant cases, statutes, law review articles, and other annotations.

Restatements: Restatements are secondary sources that seek to “restate” the legal rules that constitute the common law in a particular area. They are written by the American Law Institute (ALI).

Practice materials/aids: Practice materials are those resources that focus on aspects of legal practice rather than exploring the law from an academic, historical, or public-policy perspective. These resources come in many forms, and each resource has its own set of features.

Legal Encyclopedia:  A legal encyclopedia is a comprehensive set of brief articles on legal topics. It is arranged similarly to a general encyclopedia.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Review: Terms, Connectors, and Expanders

You want to retrieve documents that contain any of the following terms: dogcanineGerman Shepherd.

Is this search correctly formatted?

dog OR canine OR “german shepherd”

YES

*****************************************************************

To avoid having to remember Westlaw/Lexis differences, you can follow these three rules so your searches will work on both systems.

1. Type in ORs between alternative terms (dog OR canine)

2. Type phrases in quotation marks (“police dog”)

3. Type nouns in the singular (dog)

The answer is TRUE.

If you follow these three rules your searches will work on either system.

*****************************************************************

You want to retrieve documents about a dog or canine or German Shepherd biting or scratching.

dog OR canine OR “german shepherd” /S bite OR scratch

Is this search correctly formatted?

The search is NOT correctly formulated.  The verbs need to be truncated. Expanders should be used.

Correctly Formulated Search

dog OR canine OR “german shepherd” /S bit! OR scratch!

*****************************************************************

You want to retrieve documents about summary judgment and a dog or canine or German Shepherd biting or scratching a fleeing suspect.

dog OR canine OR “german shepherd” /S bit! OR scratch! /P flee! /S suspect  AND “summary judgment”

Is this search correctly formatted?

The search is correctly formulated.

*****************************************************************

On both Westlaw and Lexis, you truncate terms by putting an  !  at the root.

Example: bit! OR scratch!

TRUE

****************************************************************

You want to retrieve documents about a dog or canine or German Shepherd biting or scratching a suspect.

dog OR canine OR “german shepherd” /S bit! OR scratch! /P suspect

Is this search correctly formatted?

YES

****************************************************************

You want to retrieve documents about school liability for a student’s injury or death which occurred while she was running, exercising, or weight lifting.

school /S liab! /P injur! OR death /P exercis! OR run! OR (lift! /5 weight)

Is this search correctly formatted?

YES  The search is correctly formulated since there are parentheses around lift! /5 weight.

*****************************************************************

An Evaluating Authority question:

Is American Jurisprudence, 2d more authoritative than Ronald Rotunda’s and John Nowak’s Treatise on Constitutional Law: Substance and Procedure?

NO

The treatise – Ronald Rotunda’s and John Nowak’s Treatise on Constitutional Law: Substance and Procedure -is more authoritative than the encyclopedia -American Jurisprudence 2d.

*****************************************************************

On Lexis Advance, when running a terms and connectors search, you must enclose phrases such as “summary judgment” or “res ipsa loquitur” in quotation marks since spaces between words are interpreted as ORs.

False 

But you can do so without a problem so it may be easier to just use ( )  on both Westlaw and Lexis.

*****************************************************************

A Google question:

Can you use Google to search another website?

YES

By using Google’s Advanced Search feature you can use Google to search another website.

*****************************************************************

The order of operation is the same for both Westlaw and Lexis Advance.

The answer is TRUE. If you follow these three rules your searches will work on either system.

1. Parentheses

2. OR

3. Proximity connectors

4. AND

5. NOT

*****************************************************************

On Westlaw, when running a terms and connectors search, you should always type nouns in plural form so you will retrieve both the singular and plural forms.

FALSE  On Westlaw, the plural form of a word only retrieves the plural and plural possessive forms.

*****************************************************************

You want to retrieve documents that contain all of the following terms: dogcanineGerman Shepherd.

dog AND canine OR “german shepherd”

Is this search correctly formatted?

NO  The search is NOT correctly formulated. The terms should be separated by ANDs.

THE Correctly Formulated Search

dogs AND canine AND “german shepherd”

*****************************************************************

A question about DuckDuckGO.

Which statement is true about DuckDuckGo?

Keeps your search history private.

*****************************************************************

You want to retrieve all documents about a pedestrian who is blind, sightless, or has a vision impairment (impairment of vision, vision that is impaired, etc.).

blind! OR sightless OR vision /5 impair! /S pedestrian

Is this search correctly formatted?

NO  The search is NOT correctly formulated. There should be parentheses around vision /5 impair!.

The Correctly Formulated Search

blind! OR sightless OR (vision /5 impair!) /S pedestrian

*****************************************************************

Please let me know your questions.

Forms

On Lexis, you can find Forms under Content Type and then FORMS.  Then you can filter by state or by Practice Area.

On Westlaw, you can find Forms under Content Types and then FORMS.  Then you have the filter by Forms by State or Forms by Topic.

Both platforms are offering Forms from the materials available on their platforms which means, in all probability, the forms are from different resources.  So while you have both platforms available to you, search for specific forms on both Lexis Advance and Westlaw Edge and analyze the materials received.

Remember when you are searching for forms, do not use the terms “plaintiff” or “defendant” or other general terms.  Use terms that describe the issue at hand.  For example, use “substitution” and “death, ” if you are looking for a motion to substitute the executor of the estate for the deceased plaintiff in an action that the deceased plaintiff filed to recover a sum of money.

Remember there are also numerous form books.  Please review the CALI Lessons: Researching and Working with Transactional Forms and Researching and Working with Procedural Forms on LessonLink https://www.cali.org/courses/8026

Bar Materials

One of the features of many bar journals or other communications from the bar is the inclusion of  Discipline and Other Regulator Notices.  If they are available to you, be sure to read so that you know who has been disciplined, etc.  Here is a link for the Washington State Bar Journal.  https://wsba.org/news-events/Bar-News

Another place to find out if a member of the bar has been disciplined is the Members’ Directory or Legal Directory or something similar.  These directories are available to the public.  Here is a link to the legal directory on the website of the Washington State Bar Association – https://www.mywsba.org/personifyebusiness/LegalDirectory.aspx

Another feature is that bar journals publish pertinent articles of interest to bar. 

First, a question.  Is a Third District Court of Appeals’ decision ever binding on a circuit court (trial court) within the jurisdiction of the Second District Court of Appeals? 

Second, an answer. Yes.

The article addressing this issue is titled “CONTROLLING JURISDICTION” AND THE DUTY TO DISCLOSE ADVERSE AUTHORITY: FLORIDA’S DISTRICT COURTS OF APPEAL REIGN SUPREME ON MATTERS OF FIRST IMPRESSION by Keith Rizzardi. 

https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/controlling-jurisdiction-and-the-duty-to-disclose-adverse-authority-floridas-district-courts-of-appeal-reign-supreme-on-matters-of-first-impression/

Bye for now.

Statutes & Legislative History

Statutes

Citation:  To find to a statute you need to know both the TITLE and SECTION.  For example,  the citation 40 U.S.C. 951 provides you both the title (40) and the section (951) to the United States Code. However, Internal Revenue Code, sec. 325(b)(1) does not give you enough information.  You know the section (325(b)(1) but you do not know the title.  You will need to find out that the IRS title is Title 26 of the United States Code.   You have enough information with 32 USCS 8001.  You have the Title which is 32 and the section which is 8001.  You may wonder what is USCS.  It stands for United States Code Annotated which is the title for the Lexis Annotated Statutes.  USCA stands for the United States Code Annotated which is the title for Westlaw’s statutes.

What is a code?  All the current laws are grouped by topic.  Generally, the laws are called statutes.

What are session laws?  All of the laws passed in the legislature in the same year are arranged in chronological order.  It is the text of the law as originally passed.  For example, you may hear attorneys refer to Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972.  They are talking about a specific title in the session law, Education Amendments Act of 1972.  You can find Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 in 42 U.S.C. sections 1681-1688.  Generally, the session laws are called Acts.

Indexes are extremely useful in finding statutes.  You can find a separate index volume in the print statutes and you can find them online in Westlaw Edge.  Here is the link to the Index for the Florida Statutes  https://1.next.westlaw.com/Browse/Home/StatutesCourtRules/FloridaStatutesCourtRules/FloridaStatutesIndex?transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default)

Then look at adoption.

Westlaw – Index for Florida Statutes

Many times when you use an index you will find the appropriate statute in a shorter period of time than when you either use a natural language search or a terms, connector, and expander search.

You never know what terms will be used in a statute (homicide, murder, unlawful killing?) so looking in a subject index saves LOTS of time.

The index often provides you a “road map” of the statutes in a specific area. You find all sections on a topic in one place

Usually, the best place to start statutory research!

How to Research Federal Legislative History 

Hearings before house or senate committees may include both the transcripts of the oral testimony and the written testimony of the witnesses.

Possible Legislative History Documents include bills, floor debates, hearing materials, and Committee Reports. The most important statements during debates are from the chairperson of the congressional committee that considered the bill and from the sponsor of the bill.