This might not be a straight /biz/ question, but it's a serious question, and law is related to /biz/
So I'm a non-law school/pre-law dude who just lucked into a legal research internship. What are some basic resources to use for researching things like case law and pending lawsuits?
bump
I don't have accounts for the PACER system, Westlaw, Bloomberg Law, etc.
I'm on Justia right now looking for active/pending lawsuits
I need some fuckin guidance
>>1248498
Your job should arrange for your Westlaw access. You sign up for a pay-as-you go account, but its not cheap. But there's no reason why you would pay this yourself unless the job is a scam.
PACER accounts are free. You don't need to be a lawyer, so just sign up and get your credentials. Unless you're doing a massive amount of searches, you won't have any fees.
>>1248646
I don't think it's a scam ...
I think he might have thought I had access to Westlaw or PACER through my university, but we don't have a dedicated law program (and our pre-law isn't great from what I can tell), so I do not have access through the school, but I'm going to double check that tomorrow morning.
I didn't realize PACER could be free. I saw the 10 cents a page, $3.00 per document maximum charges, but I thought I couldn't even get that far without being at a law school. I'll investigate further.
Thanks for the reply
Sometimes there are free databases. I.e. Canlii
But it depends on your country and law societies.
>>1248649
>I didn't realize PACER could be free
Just be careful about what you pull off PACER. If your quarterly balance stays low, they waive the fees and don't bill you.
Again, I'll repeat that this should be paid by your employer. Employees shouldn't have to bear work-related expenses like this.
>>1249033
Okay thx. I'll be sure I don't incur any personal charges for this stuff. I really don't think this position is a "scam" though. I'm getting a small stipend. I just think he expected this university to have legitimate access to these paid databases.
