Research Smarter, Not Harder: Legal Research Methods that Save Time without Jeopardizing Results

Legal research plays an integral role in the average attorney’s workday. On average, a fifth of a lawyer’s workday is spent doing it (more if they are right out of school). Whether preparing for a case or refreshing their memory of past law school lessons and legal case precedents, conducting quality legal research also takes a substantial amount of time and effort.

In an effort to lighten the load and cushion the blow, here are seven methods for saving time while conducting your research without sacrificing the quality of the results generated along the way.

1. Use Folder Sharing Technology

An efficient way to save time on legal research without sacrificing quality is to leverage your research with a little help from folder sharing technology. You can connect value to your legal services successfully by using this technology to share your legal research between outside and in-house counsel.

Think about the time you will save through the automatic updates of your shared research and the corresponding citations. These real-time updates boost your productivity and efficiency while lightening the overall load of your legal research at the same time. As a word of caution, if you decide to get involved with folder sharing technology, make sure that you also amp up your cybersecurity protocol to keep your confidential and sensitive data safe and secure.

Related Article: Things like legal research are done much faster when you’re equipped with the right technology. Review our “6 Essential Investments in Technology and Software For Lawyers”

2. Examine How Your Organize Folders

In addition to focusing on how you collect legal research, you must also pay close attention to how you organize that research. This is especially the case if you want to take full advantage of sharing folders and files in-house and with outside counsel. According to the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), you should enhance the precision of your folder organization system by identifying key factors instead of case names.

It is highly recommended to organize each of your legal research folders by research projects, issue and the overall practice area. Using this particular system will make it much easier to filter through and examine the research accordingly, providing you with additional leverage to improve your overall productivity. This is a much better alternative to file and folder organization than simply relying on your email inbox to manage files.

3. Use Charts and Outlines for Efficient Organization

Another helpful tip for organizing your collected legal research is to use such tools as outlines and charts to format it in a simplistic yet structured manner.

Charts

If you want to use a chart, focus on the actual assignment itself or targeted subject matter. You can then design and mold your chart to explore each of the analytical points covered in your research both logically and efficiently. Make sure that you only use a sufficient number of rows and columns. Overdoing the design and formatting of your chart can rob it of its overall efficiency and value.

Outlines

If you are not interested in creating a chart – or simply do not have time to design and structure one – a more time-efficient solution to consider is creating an outline. A well-developed outline is a great tool for integrating your analysis and collected legal research. Once you have surveyed the research, use a drafted outline to organize the key points of your document. While reviewing the research, insert applicable facts and laws wherever necessary.

A well-formatted chart can serve as a solid reference to add with your legal research. On the other hand, a well-crafted outline can serve as the skeletal prewrite of your legal documents and correspondence.

Related Article: The more we work to shave seconds and minutes off everyday tasks, the more time we create for ourselves. Read our article “Clicks & Keystrokes: Shortcuts to Save You Time Creating Legal Documents”

4. Use Google Searches Wisely

When most people need to search for information, almost 40% of lawyers will turn first to Google or Bing as their primary resource – they’re free after all. As an attorney, however, you must approach Google searches a little more strategically than ordinary consumers – especially when it comes to filtering research-based facts out of an extensive list of opinionated statements and unproven theories. There are several tips and tricks that you can use to efficiently use Google for searches in the legal field.

For instance, according to the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys (AAEPA), you should use quotation marks when searching for exact phrases. Otherwise, Google may dissect your phrase on a word-by-word basis – drastically increasing the amount of time you will spend to find what you need. Using quotation marks on your phrases (i.e. “legal search” instead of legal search) tells Google to only search for the documents and web pages that contact the exact phrase. You can also limit the search to specific sources, if necessary.

Related Article: Discover “5 Ways Lawyers Can Optimize Their Computer Setup For Today’s Standards.”

5. Use Mobile Applications Whenever Possible

In addition to using Google searches efficiently and effectively, there is also a host of mobile applications that can generate the same results. There are a number of general legal research applications to choose from, which makes it seemingly difficult to narrow down the list to the point where you have one solid option to use. However, there are quite a few quality resources available that can help you to filter and streamline the list in a fraction of the time. For instance, the UCLA Law Library offers a mobile application specifically for law school students and attorneys for free that consists of an annotated and alphabetized lists of law applications.

6. Do Not Forget about AI Mobile Assistants

In addition to using Google searches and mobile applications, you could also consider using the perfect balance between the two of them: AI mobile assistants. Using Cortana and Siri can really come in handy when conducting legal research or making inquiries on the go. Keep in mind that you will still need to filter the results generated by your inquiries “with a grain of salt” to ensure your leads are accurate and verified.

Related Article: Staying late at the office every night? It’s likely time to look into streamlining your workflow. Read our “7 Time Management Tips for New Lawyers”.

7. Focus on Training Other Staff Members

The time savings and efficiency boosts that you will experience from the legal research methods outlined above can generate first-class results much sooner than you think. However, the long-term savings and overall potential will be greatly hindered if the rest of your colleagues and fellow associates are not on the same page. As the old saying goes, “what is good for the goose is good for the gander.”

You should strive to make sure that everyone else is trained to follow the same steps. Maximize any training opportunities – especially for new attorneys – to either reprogram or replace old habits and procedures related to conducting and collecting legal research.

Lawyers! – Save Even More Time With Legal Document Software

When you’re working with the right research methods, and legal software, you can save even more time researching and preparing legal documents. With Infoware legal document software, you can create professional legal documents in a fraction of the time you normally do. Learn more about our suite of legal software here.