Westlaw Edge Analytics was  voted best new analytics product in the 2018-2019 Dewey B Strategic Hits and Misses survey of DBS readers. Runners Up Included  Lexis Context 2nd, Bloomberg Law Attorney Analytics 3rd, Fastcase Docket Alarm 4th and Lex Machina Contracts module 5th place respectively.  Gavelytics deserves honorable mention as the product receiving the most  “write in” votes. My apologies for inadvertently omitting Gavelytics from the analytics product list.

How Do You Know What Product Is Best For Your Needs? When online research products were gaining a foothold in legal research, the only variation between products was how far back does the caselaw go and how quickly are the new cases loaded. The dates of coverage and speed of updating are only two of dozens of additional variables which much be considered in comparing analytics products. While there has been an explosion in legal analytics products it is almost impossible to make a direct comparison between any of them. Some focus on judges precedent others focus on a judges motion history. Some compare litigation history by attorney others compare only law firms — others provide no analytics on either. Some normalize party names, most products do not. Some products provide data on damages and remedies other do not. Some cover federal courts, others focus on 50  state court data— some provide analytics only one state. Some are single issue providing data on only one topic.

The Documentation Challenge – Which Product Has the Best Documentation?

I can’t recall another research product segment where the products are likely to rise or fall based on the quality of the documentation. If lawyers do not understand the parameters and the limitations of the data delivered in a product – they cannot effectively interpret the results. IF they misunderstand the data and misinterpret the meaning of the data on behalf of a client – the consequences could be catastrophic.

In light of these considerations I asked readers which analytics vendors has the best and worst documentation to support the effective use of their product

The results:

  •               Lex Machina has the BEST documentation
  •               Bloomberg Law has the WORST documentation

Coming Next:  Westlaw Edge, Competitive Intelligence and KM survey results.

Prior Hits and Misses posts:

Part 1:Terminal Outrage: The Results of the 2018-19 Hits and Misses Survey

Part 2 : Best New Products and Features