Legal research is a necessary part of virtually any legal case. In fact, according to an ABA report, the average attorney spends 20% of their working hours on legal research. That number is nearly 30% for those attorneys who have less than ten years of experience. Despite the fact that research is critical to understanding and developing a legal issue or argument, legal research resources can be scarce for many firms. Some of the most prevalent constraints are discussed below.
Time Constraints
Good legal research takes time. You must sift through secondary sources, statutes, regulations, and potentially hundreds of cases for any given issue. Summarizing and synthesizing all of this information into usable material for your particular case requires lots of time and effort. While this process may be passed off to lower-level associates, even they may not be able to invest in fully developing a research issue because of other demands on their time. Preparing broad legal research – such as 50-state surveys – in a timely fashion can be a challenge, and finding the right research partner can free up internal resources.
Access to Resources
Legal research often requires access to expensive resources such as legal databases and extensive libraries. Some firms are not able to balance these costs and still make the kind of profit they need. While some excellent resources are free, especially for state and local laws and regulations, it requires expert knowledge of how to navigate and use these resources in order to do effective research.
Client Demands
Clients, rightly so, have high demands of their attorneys. They expect their lawyers to know and comprehend a wide variety of legal issues. As a result, some clients do not fully understand or appreciate the need for legal research. Unfortunately, that leads to slashing billable time for research, even when it was necessary and appropriate based on the circumstances of the case. Many insurance companies, for example, require that you obtain prior approval before researching anything. Finding cost-effective ways to get the legal research one needs becomes critical in this hyper-constrained environment.
Easing the Strain for Legal Research Resources
Using a legal services partner for areas such as legal research is a good way to save time and money while also meeting high expectations from your clients. Baer Reed provides legal research in a cost-effective way that can meet your needs. Contact us for more information.
Mr. Reyes graduated with honors from the Ateneo de Manila University, where he received the Procter and Gamble Student Excellence Award. He obtained his Juris Doctor degree from the Ateneo de Manila School of Law. During law school, Mr. Reyes was part of the Philippine delegation to the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot held in Vienna, Austria. He was also a member of the Ateneo Society of International Law and the St. Thomas More Debate Society. He completed his internship at the Public Attorney’s Office. He wrote a thesis entitled: “To Kill A White Elephant: An Analysis of the Fiduciary Exception to the Corporate Attorney-Client Privilege”. Mr. Reyes is admitted to practice law in the Philippines and the State of New York.
Ms. Lardizabal-Manzano is a graduate of San Sebastian College-Recoletos, where she earned her B.A. in Political Science. In 2003, she received her law degree from Lyceum of the Philippines and was admitted to practice law in 2004.
Matthew Hersh earned a B.A. in Political Science from Columbia University in 1990 and graduated cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 1999. He also holds a master’s degree in international relations from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.
Cap. Avi Levak (Res. IDF) graduated from from Israel’s prestigious Ben-Gurion University of the Negev with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Mathematics. He is also a Leadership and Communication coach trained in TuT coaching by Alon gal in Israel. Avi specializes in high-level, in-depth analysis of business and client needs, within systems and software strategy and architecture.
Ms. Tyler graduated cum laude from Georgetown University and received her law degree, cum laude, from Georgetown University Law Center. During law school, she interned at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. She also worked on The Tax Lawyer journal and was a member of the award-winning Barristers’ Council Mock Trial Team. Ms. Tyler is admitted to practice law in the State of California and the District of Columbia.
Ms. Cruz-Anonuevo graduated cum laude and top nine in her batch from Miriam College with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in InternationalStudies. She obtained her Juris Doctor degree from Ateneo de Manila University School of Law in Rockwell. During law school, she interned in Rivera, Santos, Maranan & Associates. She was also part of Ateneo’s Labor Law Bar Operations. She wrote her thesis on, “Stealing Privacy: Limitations on Media’s Photographic Invasion.,” Ms. Cruz-Anonuevo is admitted to practice law in the Philippines.
Ms. Aquino-Batallones obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Development Studies (with Minors in Global Politics and Hispanic Studies) from the Ateneo de Manila University. In 2011, she received her Juris Doctor degree from Ateneo de Manila University School of Law. During law school, she interned at Romulo Mabanta Buenaventura Sayoc & de los Angeles then became an intern of Ateneo Legal Services Center’s Clinical Legal Education Program.
Mr. De Guzman graduated from San Beda College with a degree of Bachelor of Arts Major in Economics and received his law degree from San Beda College of Law. He is multilingual and is fluent in three languages: Chinese, Filipino, and English. He was admitted to the Philippine Bar in 2003.