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Simple Strategies for Successful Terms and Connectors Searching Whether you access Westlaw on a daily basis or only occasionally, you may wish you knew how to use the Terms and Connectors search method more efficiently. Clip and save the following tips for successful Terms and Connectors searching. BEGIN YOUR
SEARCH When you search using Terms and Connectors, you simply enter a query that consists of key terms from your issue and connectors specifying the relationship between those terms. You can search using Terms and Connectors in all Westlaw databases. To begin your search, complete the following steps: 1. Before you sign on, choose search terms significant to your issue. Consider using synonyms and antonyms as alternative terms. Use the singular nonpossessive form of your terms; Westlaw automatically retrieves regular and irregular plurals and possessive forms. 2.
Decide
which connectors to place between your terms. For example, you can specify that
your terms appear in the same sentence or the same paragraph. 3.
Sign
on Westlaw and access a database. If necessary, click the Terms and
Connectors tab at the top of the Query Editor dialog box. 4. Type your query in the Terms and Connectors Query text box and click Search. After
selecting terms for your query, use connectors to specify the relationships
that should exist between search terms in your retrieved documents. Listed
below is a chart of Westlaw connectors. You can also view a list of connectors
when you access a database. Simply right-click to display a pop-up menu from
which you can choose Connectors. Note: In westlaw.com, click
Connectors/Expanders Reference List to view the list of connectors.
A compound word may appear as one word, as a hyphenated word or as two separate words. If your search term is a compound word, use its hyphenated form to retrieve all variations. For example, type good-will to retrieve good-will, good will and goodwill. Abbreviations may appear with or without periods or spaces. To retrieve the various forms of an abbreviation, enter it with periods and without spaces. For example, type e.p.a. to retrieve E.P.A., E. P. A., E P A and EPA. You can use the universal character (*) to represent a variable character. For example, if you're unsure of how to spell a name, use the universal character, e.g., type peters*n to retrieve Peterson and Petersen. When you place a universal character at the end of a term, you specify the maximum length of the term, e.g., type jur** to retrieve jury or juror but not jurist. LOCATE
VARYING FORMS OF A WORD To retrieve varying forms of a word, use the root expander (!). For example, type contribut! to retrieve contributed, contributor, contributing, contribution and contributory. Occasionally
you will want to exclude documents from your search. To exclude documents, use
the BUT NOT connector (%). Westlaw excludes everything that follows the percent
symbol in a search. For example, to retrieve cases discussing carpal tunnel
syndrome, but not cases classified under topic 413 (Workers' Compensation),
type carp*l-tunnel % to(413). If you
have questions about searching using the Terms and Connectors search method,
call the West Group Reference Attorneys at 1-800-REF-ATTY (1-800-733-2889). You
can also schedule a convenient telephone training session with a Westlaw expert
by calling 1-800-328-0109 anytime between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., central time,
Monday through Friday. Most training sessions are free.
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