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Product Overview of Fastcase
Fastcase is a comprehensive and innovative legal research service designed to streamline and enhance the process of legal research for attorneys, law firms, and legal professionals. Here’s a detailed look at what Fastcase does and its key features and functionality.
What Fastcase Does
Fastcase is a next-generation legal research platform that provides access to a vast array of legal resources, including federal and state case law, statutes, regulations, court rules, constitutions, and law review articles. This extensive library is made accessible through partnerships with over 80 national, state, and county bar associations across the United States, often as a free member benefit.
Key Features
Advanced Search Capabilities
- Citation Lookup: Users can enter a specific citation to directly access a document.
- Boolean Searches: Utilize standard Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT, etc.) to refine searches. The platform supports complex searches with features like phrase searching and proximity operators (e.g., `capital w/3 punishment`).
- Natural Language Searches: Users can enter search phrases in natural language, similar to how they would ask a question or make a statement, making the search process more intuitive.
Proprietary Research Tools
- Authority Check: This feature allows users to navigate all cited authorities within a document, helping to find supporting arguments quickly.
- Bad Law Bot: An innovative tool that quickly determines when courts have commented negatively on a case, ensuring users are aware of potentially weakened precedents.
- Interactive Timeline: Helps in locating the most relevant cases faster by visualizing the timeline of legal developments.
User-Friendly Interface
- Type-Ahead Feature: A predictive typing feature that suggests search terms as the user types, similar to popular search engines, to speed up the search process.
- Hotkeys: Keyboard shortcuts that enable navigation without using the mouse, compatible with screen readers for accessibility.
Document Management and Collaboration
- Highlighting Search Terms: Automatically highlights each instance of the search terms within the document, even when terms appear separately. This feature can be customized and turned off if needed.
- Bookmarking and Alerts: Users can bookmark documents, create alerts, and view the history of their research all in one place.
- Unlimited Printing and Sharing: Allows for unlimited printing and sharing of documents via public links, facilitating collaboration.
Comprehensive Coverage
- Federal and State Resources: Access to federal and 50-state constitutions, case law, statutes, and codes.
- Docket Alarm Integration: Optional integration with Docket Alarm, which provides access to state and federal jurisdiction dockets, including pleadings, motions, complaints, and exhibits.
Continuous Updates and Support
- Daily Updates: Fastcase adds over 5,000 new documents per day, ensuring the database remains current and comprehensive.
- Tutorial Videos and Webinars: Offers short tutorial videos and webinars to help users master the platform’s features and stay updated on new functionalities.
In summary, Fastcase is a powerful, user-friendly, and continuously updated legal research platform that democratizes access to legal information, making it an indispensable tool for legal professionals. Its advanced search capabilities, proprietary research tools, and robust document management features make it a smarter alternative for legal research.
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