Dear 1L: How to Do Exhaustive Caselaw Research

Dear 1L, Legal research takes time. How do you know when you’ve done enough? Follow this checklist:

1. Find, pull, and skim three relevant cases (from secondary sources, sample briefs, searches under keywords & headnotes, etc.).

2: Pull and review every case cited within the applicable headnotes of the three cases.

3: If you find new relevant cases, add them to your first three.

4: Repeat steps 2 & 3 on the added cases. Soon, you should start to see the same case names reappearing.

—> Keep repeating steps 2 & 3 on new cases until you’re no longer turning up any unfamiliar case names.

5: Shepardize every relevant case you’ve amassed (filtered by applicable headnote(s)).

6: Repeat the above steps until you are familiar with every case.

7: To be extra, super-duper safe, Shepardize all your relevant cases in whichever of the two databases (WL/Lexis) you didn’t first use.

—You should already be familiar with all the case results, but occasionally I pick up another stray on Lexis.
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⭐️ There will come a point when:

▪️ you see all the same cases cited in the cases and Shepard’s results;

▪️ no more unfamiliar case names pop up within those cases or results; and

▪️ there are no more cases to Shepardize.

When that point comes, you should have peace of mind (or as much of it as any lawyer ever feels).
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It can be a laborious process, this “exhaustive” research thing—hence, the name, “exhaustive.” I am sending energy and extra hours in the day to all!

Anyone else have tips to save the 1Ls some time? A different “exhaustive” process you use successfully? Please comment and share!

Fondly,
💌 Amanda