Adding A Law Librarian To Your Litigation Team
	By Jerry Lawson and Jill Farmer A presentation for ABA Techshow 99
WHY	Litigation is different. The pace is fast. The unexpected is normal. Most important, there's usually more at stake. Few clients are willing to pay litigation costs unless something significant is involved. In this kind of environment, any edge is welcome.
NEW TOOLS	New technology, especially the Internet, is bringing about a research revolution. A good librarian will typically be in a better position to understand what resources are available as well as the strengths and weaknesses of different resources. A classic example of this is the question of whether and when to use the Internet as opposed to the traditional commercial online research services, Westlaw and Lexis. Not that long ago, most lawyers were reluctant to use the Internet for any research. More recently, a few lawyers have begun pressuring their law librarians to drop their online service subscriptions, on the theory that everything they need is available on the Internet. This is a clear instance of a pendulum that is swinging too far. This new trend makes no more sense than the earlier refusal to use the Internet at all. The Internet is not "better" than Westlaw and Lexis. It is DIFFERENT. Each has advantages and disadvantages. Litigators who have access to both the commercial services and the Internet will have a major advantage over those who understand only one or the other. An Internet connection will open up new research avenues (particularly for factual research) and it may let you reduce your Westlaw/Lexis expenses, but the Internet is not yet close to being a complete replacement for the commercial services. It is important for litigators to understand the differences.
THE FACTS ARE OUT THERE	The Internet is particularly strong at factual research, such as finding people, getting news, learning medical or technical information, company information and much more. The book The Internet Fact Finder for Lawyers, by Josh Blackman with David Jank (ABA Law Practice Management Section) is a good introduction to the resources available. Instead of merely providing a giant catalog of Web sites, the book tries to teach techniques. New technology, especially the Internet, has opened up new avenues for rapid, cost effective research. Finding expert witness is just one example. Librarians are an excellent choice for expert witness research and selection. They are familiar with a wide range of online tools to ferret out names and backgrounds. In many instances, librarians will be the best qualified to help.
DESIGNATED SURFERS?	Why is your librarian likely to be your best door to the Internet? With a little Internet training, even the rawest beginner will usually be able to learn enough to have some productive results in a short time. However, it still takes a long time and a lot of practice to become an expert Internet researcher. There is an extraordinary amount of material available on the Internet -- mostly uncatalogued -- and there are many different types of searching tools, with no standard interface and very little overlap in coverage among them. The Internet's research resources are too important to ignore. All attorneys and law librarians with even minimal aptitude for using computers should probably be trained in the basics of Internet research. Today's legal professional needs a basic understanding of how Internet research works, a general idea of the resources available, and an appreciation of how the Internet differs from other research tools. However, because it takes a significant investment of time and training needed to a become an expert Internet researcher, it may be most efficient for law firms to assign the bulk of Internet research work to law librarians as Internet research specialists. The "designated surfer" approach lets law firms take advantage of Internet resources, while minimizing unproductive training time. Librarians have training and experience in formulating searches and navigating different research tools.
BENEFITS	Involving a law librarian as part of your litigation team can pay huge dividends, especially if you bring them in early. Librarians can prove to be valuable team members in many ways: Research can be more comprehensive. Research done by librarians can be more accurate and on-point if they have firsthand knowledge of the issues. Librarians can be better prepared to reply to the inevitable last minute research requests. Even with the best preparation, many trials seem to be nothing but one "emergency" after the other. Who hasn't faced the prospect of cross examining a witness on limited preparation time? Internet search engines may be your best source of short-notice impeachment material. Librarians will be better prepared to assist with the inevitable last-minute research needs if they know the background of the case and what has and has not already been done. The quality of research will be higher. Librarians are exposed to a wide variety of resources; they can suggest angles attorneys haven't thought of, and alert attorneys to resources that will enhance their preparation and presentations. Costs can be better controlled. Librarians have a more clear understanding of the cost/benefit configuration of various online services. They can help streamline litigation costs so that the firm and the client get the best and most reliable research for the least cost. Librarians are in the best position to coordinate some aspects of the litigation effort. Librarians tend to have a familiarity with the work of all different parts of a firm. There may be a brief or memo or expert depositions relevant to your case already in house that you don't know about, but your librarian just might.
A LOOK AT THE FUTURE	Some people think that the widespread availability of free computer databases via the Internet will mean the death of the library profession. However, information professionals, whether they call themselves librarians, or something else, are going to become much more important in the foreseeable future. The volume of useful automated information is growing more rapidly than the development of easy-to-use tools to manage it all. Librarians can help screen, evaluate, and prioritize information, and alert their clientele to new and critical developments in their areas of practice.
CONCLUSION	The Internet is a vast new research source, particularly for factual information. Intelligent use of law librarians can provide litigators with a competitive edge. Bring your law librarian in early on, to obtain the maximum benefit. Technological advances will make law librarians more valuable, not less valuable, in coming years.

Presenters
Jill A. Farmer mailto:kgw@execpc.com	DeWitt Ross & Stevens 2 E. Mifflin St. Madison, Wisconsin 53703
Jerry Lawson mailto:lawson@netlawtools.com	Netlawtools, Inc. 5406 Kinnerly Court Burke, Virginia 22015