November 2018

Over the past decade as LexisNexis snapped up one innovative product after another, I repeatedly begged Lexis executives to weave these new assets into the LexisAdvance research platform. The good news is that they are moving ahead with integrating Ravel content in Lexis Advance. The bad news is that the spunky and disruptive Ravel brand will recede into the past as it is reborn as  Context within the Lexis Advance platform.

When I first reviewed Ravel Law, I marveled at the boldness of the Founders’ vision. Nic Reed and Daniel Lewis graduated from Stanford Law School and then hooked up with some folks at the Stanford Design School with the goal of reinventing the legal research process. My original post Ravel Law: Legal Research Radically Reimagined included this observation: “For those of us who learned research using taxonomical hierarchies, viewing research results on Ravel is like landing in an alternate universe. Interpreting  Ravel search results requires the learning a “visual language” of a new research landscape.”  The bold vision remains, but  the brand we knew as Ravel is
Continue Reading LexisNexis Relaunches Ravel Law as Context: Analytics on Judges and Expert Witnesses With Daubert Scorecard

Bloomberg Law has added attorney analytics to their suite of litigation analytics which has included  analytics for companies, law firms and judges. Product Manager, David Kleiman provided me with a demo and responded to my questions. As law firms  embrace analytics for business intelligence, pitches and litigation strategy it is more important than ever for have a clear understanding of the parameters of all analytics. How complicated that it be – as you will see below – there are lots of issues which impact the results delivered by every analytics product.

What attorneys are covered?

The attorney analytics includes analytics for 100,000 attorneys from  775 law firms. The analytics in Bloomberg  Law  are limited to cases involving  the representation of companies in federal courts from January 1 2007 to the present. Attorney names are extracted from docket sheets. There is a “type ahead” feature when typing a lawyer name a list
Continue Reading Bloomberg Law Adds Attorney Litigation Analytics

Today Thomson Reuters issued a press release announcing that more than 1,500 organizations have upgraded from Westlaw to Westlaw Edge. I guess you can’t begrudge Thomson Reuters trying to change the subject.  On Tuesday I wrote about the re-organization that Has led to the layoff of countless seasoned executives, managers and staff across the organization.

I wish today’s press release provided more demographics about the 1,500 customers. It is not clear how that breaks down among government, corporate and law firm customers. Only two ALM 100 firms are named in the press release. There could be other ALM 100 firms which have a policy not to allow the firm’s name to be used in marketing materials.

I  wrote about the significant new features offered in Westlaw Edge when it was released in July of this year. This new platform represents Thomson Reuters largest investment in Artificial Intelligence since 2010.  Westlaw Edge  features include advanced natural language answers,  a completely new analytics product, an innovative new citation feature “Citation Risk Analyzer” and “Statutes Compare.”

New Features The press release also highlights that since the launch of Westlaw Edge in July Thompson Reuters has continued adding new content and functionality. New features
Continue Reading Changing the Subject from Layoffs – Thomson Reuters Celebrates 1,500 Westlaw Edge Subscribers – Still Faces Market Resistance and The Challenge of ROI.

If you have any friends at Thomson Reuters Legal – it is time to reach out and reconnect. Over the past few weeks multiple sources have confirmed  to me that executives, managers and staff across TR have been “invited to find new employers.”  Some of the people impacted have been fixtures in the legal publishing and tech industry for
Continue Reading Widespread Layoffs at Thomson Reuters Legal – Office Closings to Follow

Fastcase continues its content expansion strategy. Today they are announcing a new partnership with James Publishing. James Publishing, founded in 1981, publishes  legal practice materials  including model pleadings, client letters, and step-by-step procedural checklists, pattern arguments, model questions,  and practice tips. According to their website they focus on federal practice as well as practice in…

Law firm subscribers to TRG Screen‘s Quest, Research Monitor and Smart Recharge products will be thrilled to hear that TRG has secured long term strategic investment from Pamlico Capital, a Charlotte, NC based private equity firm. The Research Monitor product helps law firms collect utilization and ROI data on the high ticket digital resources that lawyers and administrators rely to inform the business and practice of law.  Quest is a research workflow tool that helps research teams across multiple offices and timezones manage and optimize  workflow. Both products help law library directors and CKOs optimize digital and staff resources and budgets. According to Steve Matthews, CEO at TRG Screen, about 75% of the Amlaw 100 firms now subscribe to one of TRG’s products.

The press release highlights some important promises to subscribers: “With Pamlico’s backing, TRG Screen will accelerate its investment in its unique portfolio of spend and usage capabilities, adding new solutions that bring
Continue Reading TRG Screen Owner of Legal Workflow and Analytics Tools Quest, Research Monitor and Smart Recharge Gets Capital Infusion

Fastcase and the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)  announced the launch of a new biannual law journal  focused on the tumultuous landscape of immigration law. The journal which is to launch in 2019, will cover “current and pragmatic” immigration law topics. Editor-in-Chief is Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia, Samuel Weiss Faculty Scholar and Clinical Professor of Law at Penn State Law in University Park.

Earlier this year I wrote a post  about Fastcase’s launch of it’s own  publishing imprint – Full Court Press. The AILA Law Journal will be the second  Full Court Press journal following  RAIL: The Journal of Robotics, Artificial Intelligence & Law.   Like RAIL, the new journal will be available in print, as an eBook, and within the Fastcase legal research
Continue Reading Fastcase to Launch Immigration Journal with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)