My last post laid out Westlaw and Lexis policies for summer access for law students. There may be times during the summer where you won’t qualify for student access and you may be looking for some free sources to use before jumping onto a firm’s expensive Westlaw/Lexis account. There are a number of free/low-cost alternatives available to you and it would be a good idea to become familiar with them in case you need them. The Law Library subscribes to 2 such legal research systems, Fastcase and Loislaw, that BYU law students have access to over the summer.
Fastcase also provides free legal research apps for your iPhone and iPad that are great tools. Another great free resource is Google Scholar’s Legal Opinions and Journals. Using the Advanced Search feature, you can narrow down your case law search to a specific jurisdiction or court. For more ideas on free and low-cost resources, check out our Free and Low-Cost Legal Research subject page or Free and Low-Cost Research Resources for Any Budget from Student Lawyer magazine.