Free & Low-Cost Legal Research
A searchable directory of official and low-cost research sources — never paywalled or copyrighted reproductions. Each source shows coverage, authority, and limitations.
The Research Source Ladder
Move from orientation to primary law to validation. Free sources rarely provide citator treatment — confirm before relying.
Define the legal question, the controlling jurisdiction, and the procedural posture before searching.
Locate statutes, regulations, rules, and cases that govern in your jurisdiction.
Verify the authority is current — check for amendments, repeals, and pending changes.
Use a citator or citing-reference process to confirm the case is still good law and how it has been treated.
Read the complete opinion or statute. Record pin cites and exact quotations.
Review local rules, judge-specific requirements, and filing procedures.
Document sources, searches, and reasoning so your work is verifiable and defensible.
Fastcase vs. LexisNexis vs. Westlaw
A side-by-side on the features that matter most to solos and small firms — AI tools, citators, secondary sources, jurisdictional coverage, support, and integrations. Click a row to expand.
| Feature | Fastcase (vLex) | LexisNexis (Lexis+) | Westlaw |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI-powered tools | Automated case summaries, Forecite citation-network suggestions, interactive timeline, Vincent AI (via vLex) | AI Drafting, Brief Analysis, Lexis Answers Q&A, Litigation Analytics, Protégé Legal AI agent | AI Jurisdictional Surveys, CoCounsel, Deep Research agentic AI, KeyCite Overruling Risk, Quick Check brief analyzer |
| Citator (is it good law?) | Authority Check Report and "Bad Law Bot" — self-described as less complete than Shepard’s/KeyCite | Shepard’s signals (red/yellow flags) across cases, statutes & more; auto-integrated into AI results | KeyCite red/yellow flags plus AI-driven Overruling Risk warnings; full historical procedural analysis |
| Secondary sources | ABA Books (250+ titles), Fastcase treatise library, HeinOnline law reviews | Matthew Bender treatises, state practice guides, Practical Guidance modules, strong legal news | Treatises, practice guides, form books & legal encyclopedias — depth varies by subscription package |
| Primary law coverage | Comprehensive U.S. federal & state case law, statutes, regulations — on par with the larger services | All published case law, full U.S. Code, all 50 states’ statutes/regs, admin codes & AG opinions | Complete historical case law archives; annotated statutes & court rules for all federal/state jurisdictions |
| Customer support | Self-help resources, bar-hosted training; email/phone during business hours only | 24/7 research support with live specialists; extensive live and on-demand training | 24/7 live research assistance by phone/chat with dedicated reference attorneys; high-touch onboarding |
| Integrations | Clio, MyCase, Rocket Matter, NextChapter; Word/Chrome extension; public Legal Data API | Lexis for Microsoft Office; no direct practice-management integration or public API | Drafting Assistant for MS Word; no direct practice-management integration or open API |
| Mobile access | iOS/Android app with full research functionality; free tier available | Lexis+ AI mobile app — document summarization, AI research, synced search history | iOS/Android app with full search-history sync back to your account |
Practice-area notes: Fastcase leans on partner publishers for specialized estates/criminal/family/transactional content — good for routine matters. Lexis+ offers deep Matthew Bender treatises and 50-state surveys. Westlaw pairs national resources (Am. Jur., ALR) with state-specific practice series and Practical Law modules. Many solos access Fastcase free through state bar membership — check yours first.
Research source directory
Coverage: All federal courts
Visit sourceCoverage: Federal court locator
Visit sourceCoverage: Federal dockets
Official paid-access system. Check current fee and waiver rules on the official page.
Visit sourceCoverage: Federal and state opinions
Visit sourceCoverage: U.S. Code, CFR, Supreme Court
Visit sourceCoverage: Federal publications
Visit sourceCoverage: Federal legislation
Visit sourceCoverage: Federal agency rules
Visit sourceCoverage: Case law search
Keyword search only — no citator treatment. Always validate with primary sources.
Visit sourceCoverage: eCFR
Visit sourceCoverage: SCOTUS opinions & orders
Visit sourcePaid research platforms
Subscription or pay-per-use; compare before committing.Thomson Reuters. Full primary law, the KeyCite citator, Key Number system, and strong secondary treatises.
Visit platformLexisNexis. Full primary law, the Shepard’s citator, and deep news/business and regulatory content.
Visit platformPrimary law plus dockets, transactional/practice tools, news, and often includes CLE.
Visit platformAI-assisted research and search; now part of Thomson Reuters. Confirm scope and pricing for solo plans.
Visit platformCase law and statutes; frequently included free with state bar membership — check your bar first.
Visit platformGlobal case law and statutes with AI tools (Vincent); strong for international and comparative research.
Visit platformBest for historical statutes, law reviews, treaties, and legislative history; image-based PDFs.
Visit platformState trial-court motion and order analytics — useful for motion practice and judge-specific outcomes.
Visit platformOfficial federal docket access; small per-page fees with annual waiver thresholds.
Visit platformKnow the difference: keyword search finds words; natural-language search finds concepts; citator treatment shows how a case has been subsequently treated; docket search finds filings; primary-source verification confirms the authority itself. Never imply a free source provides citator functionality unless that capability is confirmed.