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LexisNexis has a new service it calls “CourtLink” (http://www.courtlink.com/)

In “Avoiding Ambush: Tips for the Successful Preparation and Presentation of Witnesses,” August 2003 Product Liability Law & Strategy,  author Kimberly D. Baker, Esq. suggested using Courtlink to ambush key adverse witnesses by “finding the dirt” on them through searching for divorce proceedings, custody issues, probate proceedings, property disputes, other business disputes and criminal matters such as driving under the influence of alcohol or acts of violence. Courtlink provides a new way to use court records. You can develop Strategic Profiles to gain insight into a public company's litigation history or attorney experience of a particular nature or on a particular type of suit, and map out federal litigation trends. Through CourtLink you can search the historical federal civil online records. The database of court records covers 10 to 20 years of cases to pinpoint relevant information and provides a Strategic Profile with graphs, data charts and facts. If you subscribe, you can retrieve dockets and documents from all federal and state courts directly, even if they are not available online. In addition, you can order dockets and documents from any court from one online source.

In the course of litigation, for example, you can get a company's profile and have access to a litigant's case history in a particular nature of suit. The Litigant Profile helps you identify litigation trends and the resolution of those cases. You can view the dockets to see patterns of settlements, mediation, etc., then update all cases identified at the bottom of the page as having “No defense Counsel assigned” to ensure that you see the most up-to-date view of the information.

Besides the company's profile, you can obtain a profile of your opposing counsel by exploring her experience and the legal tactics employed in the past. Viewing dockets to see case resolutions can help identify trends, patterns and track records. Furthermore, you can draw a judicial profile by running a Strategic Profile to uncover a judge's experience in a certain type of case or research attorneys who have argued the same type of case in front of the judge in the past and then look at dockets and order motions, pleadings, etc. to see the legal tactics the judge found compelling.

The advanced searching feature allows you to pinpoint the information you need to develop strategic profiles of individuals, companies, litigants, opposing counsel, or judges. Search the Lexis database of current and historical litigation activity by name, case type or docket number to uncover history or trends and reveal patterns of settlement, mediation and more. The site offers the ability to access discoverable information in the 97% of cases that never make it to trial completion.

The ability to Search and Retrieve provides online access to more than 4,500 courts. The Alert feature will inform you about newly filed cases. It automatically notifies you of newly filed court cases of interest to you – often before the party is served. You can Pinpoint the types of new cases and/or the individuals or companies you want to learn about. Once you set your criteria, Lexis will automatically alert you. The Tracking service tells you about new developments in existing cases. The advanced Track service in CourtLink allows you to keep abreast of new developments in active federal and state cases on a scheduled basis. You can monitor new activity through predefined tracking profiles and receive automatic e-mail notifications.

The available courts include federal district, civil, criminal and bankruptcy databases covering 10 to 20 years of cases. There are more than 3 million civil cases, 1 million criminal cases and 11 million bankruptcy cases. The new federal case flow daily updates approximately 1,100 civil cases, 500 criminal cases, and 6,000 bankruptcy cases, with online access to all or parts of 19 states.

Of course, all this comes at a price. If you're interested, contact LexisNexis.

LexisNexis has a new service it calls “CourtLink” (http://www.courtlink.com/)

In “Avoiding Ambush: Tips for the Successful Preparation and Presentation of Witnesses,” August 2003 Product Liability Law & Strategy,  author Kimberly D. Baker, Esq. suggested using Courtlink to ambush key adverse witnesses by “finding the dirt” on them through searching for divorce proceedings, custody issues, probate proceedings, property disputes, other business disputes and criminal matters such as driving under the influence of alcohol or acts of violence. Courtlink provides a new way to use court records. You can develop Strategic Profiles to gain insight into a public company's litigation history or attorney experience of a particular nature or on a particular type of suit, and map out federal litigation trends. Through CourtLink you can search the historical federal civil online records. The database of court records covers 10 to 20 years of cases to pinpoint relevant information and provides a Strategic Profile with graphs, data charts and facts. If you subscribe, you can retrieve dockets and documents from all federal and state courts directly, even if they are not available online. In addition, you can order dockets and documents from any court from one online source.

In the course of litigation, for example, you can get a company's profile and have access to a litigant's case history in a particular nature of suit. The Litigant Profile helps you identify litigation trends and the resolution of those cases. You can view the dockets to see patterns of settlements, mediation, etc., then update all cases identified at the bottom of the page as having “No defense Counsel assigned” to ensure that you see the most up-to-date view of the information.

Besides the company's profile, you can obtain a profile of your opposing counsel by exploring her experience and the legal tactics employed in the past. Viewing dockets to see case resolutions can help identify trends, patterns and track records. Furthermore, you can draw a judicial profile by running a Strategic Profile to uncover a judge's experience in a certain type of case or research attorneys who have argued the same type of case in front of the judge in the past and then look at dockets and order motions, pleadings, etc. to see the legal tactics the judge found compelling.

The advanced searching feature allows you to pinpoint the information you need to develop strategic profiles of individuals, companies, litigants, opposing counsel, or judges. Search the Lexis database of current and historical litigation activity by name, case type or docket number to uncover history or trends and reveal patterns of settlement, mediation and more. The site offers the ability to access discoverable information in the 97% of cases that never make it to trial completion.

The ability to Search and Retrieve provides online access to more than 4,500 courts. The Alert feature will inform you about newly filed cases. It automatically notifies you of newly filed court cases of interest to you – often before the party is served. You can Pinpoint the types of new cases and/or the individuals or companies you want to learn about. Once you set your criteria, Lexis will automatically alert you. The Tracking service tells you about new developments in existing cases. The advanced Track service in CourtLink allows you to keep abreast of new developments in active federal and state cases on a scheduled basis. You can monitor new activity through predefined tracking profiles and receive automatic e-mail notifications.

The available courts include federal district, civil, criminal and bankruptcy databases covering 10 to 20 years of cases. There are more than 3 million civil cases, 1 million criminal cases and 11 million bankruptcy cases. The new federal case flow daily updates approximately 1,100 civil cases, 500 criminal cases, and 6,000 bankruptcy cases, with online access to all or parts of 19 states.

Of course, all this comes at a price. If you're interested, contact LexisNexis.