[blindLaw] Lexis and Westlaw

[Sanho Steele-Louchart]

Julie: 

I opted out of the group classes and worked one on one with a legal research specialist, the head of our library system. We worked together for 1.5 hours once a week for 15 weeks. I initially used the mobile browser version of Westlaw, m.next.westlaw.com, but have begun using the full version now that it's better with Google Chrome. I have Westlaw Edge or whatever the newest version is. I'm running JAWS 20 and Windows 10 with the newest update of Chrome. The only thing I can't seem to do is access Litigation Analytics, which are graphics. Otherwise it's just a matter of learning what's coded as a heading versus a separator versus a graphic for efficient navigation purposes. 

I personally avoid Lexis unless I'm specifically using the Public Records search. I do everything on my state's various databases, Westlaw, and Pacer. 

Warmth, 
Sanho 


> On Sep 26, 2020, at 12:34 AM, Julie McGinnity via BlindLaw <blindlaw at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi everyone,
> 
> I hope you are having a wonderful weekend. This is my first semester
> of law school, and as a part of our legal rhetoric curriculum, we have
> to do these research assignments using Lexis and Westlaw. A
> representative from each service did trainings with us, and I found
> them just short of useless as a blind person. For our first research
> assignment, I just figured out the platforms myself and gave myself
> extra time to do the work.
> 
> I'm sure many of you use or have used Lexis and/or Westlaw on a daily
> basis. Any favorite tips? Any advice on which features are
> inaccessible? I really don't want to get myself into a mess, needing
> to do something on one of those platforms and finding out I can't
> access a feature with Jaws.
> 
> Also, did any of you have to take trainings on the platforms as law
> students? Did you find a way to make them useful? Were you able to get
> an accommodation allowing you to skip out on the group training and
> meet with a representative individually? Are there representatives at
> these companies who know about screen reader access?
> 
> I know these are a lot of questions, but I genuinely want to be
> successful at legal research. Any kind of advice or whatever you could
> give would be so helpful to this struggling 1L.
> 
> Thanks much.
> 
> -- 
> Julie A. McGinnity
> MM Vocal Performance, 2015; American University Washington College of
> Law, JD Candidate 2023
> 
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