Using LexisNexis^TM by Credit Card

The LexisNexis^TM by Credit Card product in the LexisNexis™ research system provides easy-to-use search templates that give you access to the LexisNexis services with the convenience of your credit card. No subscription is required. You can quickly retrieve a case or statute, check citations, or perform more in-depth research using your own terms. There's no charge for searching; you pay only for the documents you view.

NOTE:   We recommend that you print your purchased documents as soon as you retrieve them. Document databases are updated frequently as new information is received. This process changes various identification numbers within the database structure which may prevent the retrieval of your purchased document at a later time.

To use the LexisNexis by Credit Card search templates, follow these easy steps:

1. Select the search template you want to use and submit your search.
   
2. Enter your user ID and password. (First-time users need to complete a brief registration process.)
   
3. From your search results cite list, select the document you want to purchase.
   
4. Approve the charge to your credit card.

Click on the links below for more information about the LexisNexis by Credit Card search options.

• Searching with your terms
• Get a Case or Statute
  
• Check a Citation
  

The left navigation bar on all LexisNexis by Credit Card pages contains links to the following additional features:

Order History

Use the Order History for invoicing and accounting purposes and to review your credit card purchase records. You can also sort the purchase records by date and/or client. Records appear for all searches submitted using the LexisNexis by Credit Card product and the Daily Opinion Service. Click here for more information about the Order History.

Documents Purchased

When you submit a search using the LexisNexis by Credit Card search templates, your search is automatically saved for a short time and added to the Documents Purchased log. Click on a search link in the Documents Purchased log to view your search results.

NOTE:  We strongly recommend that you retrieve your documents as soon as possible after purchasing them because an unscheduled update of the source databse could render them unrecoverable.

Here are some frequently asked questions about LexisNexis by Credit Card

1. Will I receive an invoice when I purchase documents using LexisNexis by Credit Card?

   No, you will not receive any type of invoice in the mail. However, you will receive an electronic receipt on your screen after purchasing documents and you can print a copy of it at that time.

2. How do I know what sources are included in each file?

   After choosing a source, you can click on the source information link to the right of the file.

3. What types of assistance are available for LexisNexis by Credit Card?

   For registration questions or billing issues, please contact LexisNexis Customer Service at 1-800-897-3183. Research assistance is provided via the page help and tips located within the LexisNexis by Credit Card product.

Search Using Your Own Terms

To submit a search using your own terms, click a link in the appropriate category on the "Enter a Legal Citation or Select a Source" form, which appears on the LexisNexis™ by Credit Card main page. A search template displays. Use the Terms field on the template to enter the search terms you want to use for your search.

• You can define relationships between your search terms, using Boolean connectors. Click here for more information about Boolean searching and using connectors.
  
  
• If you wish, you can enter your search terms in plain English without having to use any special terms. Click here for information about entering a search term using the system's "natural language" capability.
  
  
• The search templates are easy to use; however, if you need more information about the fields, read the Search Tips below the template.
  

Getting a Case or Statute

The LexisNexis™ by Credit Card product offers several ways, described below, to retrieve individual legal documents.

Retrieve a Case

You can retrieve a case using one of three methods:

by Citation

Using either an official or unofficial citation, you can display the text of these types of documents:

• Cases, federal and state
• Slip laws (Advance Legislative Service and Public laws)
• Administrative decisions
• Law review articles
• Congressional Record
• Cumulative Bulletin
• Federal Register
• Internal Revenue Bulletin
• Private Letter Rulings
• Revenue Rulings
• Revenue Procedures

Some examples of different case citations include:

• 480 us 102 finds a Supreme Court case.
  
• 812 f.2d 911 finds a U.S. Court of Appeals case.
  
• 123 f.supp. 484 finds a U.S. District Court case.
  
• 351 a.2d 349 finds a state court case cited by its national reporter system cite.
  
• 69 n.j 123 finds a state court case cited by its official cite.
  
• 1997 us app lexis 19267 finds a LexisNexis™ cite.
  
• 104 pl 208 finds a public law.

by Party Name

Click this link to retrieve cases when you know the names of one or more of the parties. For example, to retrieve cases involving a party named Griggs, you would just enter griggs. To retrieve cases involving parties named Griggs and Duke, you would enter griggs AND duke.

by Docket Number

Click this link to retrieve a case when you know its docket number. A typical docket number might be 88-3512, where the first two digits represent the year of the case. In some cases, something other than a hyphen may separate the two groups of numbers comprising the docket number. In such a case you could enter, for example, 88 AND 3823.

Retrieve a Statute

You can display the full text of a code or statute section when you know the citation for the statute or regulation. Note that it is often necessary to read adjacent sections to fully understand the implications of a code section.

Some examples of different statute citations include:

• Type 28 uscs 1332 for a federal statute. The format is XX uscs YYY, where XX is the title number in the U.S. code and YYY is the section number.
  
  
• Type va code 8.01-229 for a state statute. The most common format is the two-letter postal abbreviation for the state, followed by the word "code" and then the section. However, many states use a different format; for more help with statute formats, click here.
  
  
• Type 23 cfr 750.110 for a section in the Code of Federal Regulations.
  
  
• Type fl admin 46-45.004 for a state administrative code.
  
  
• Type uscs const amend 4 to display the text of the fourth amendment to the constitution. You can find constitutional provisions as if they were statutory provisions.

Checking a Citation

Use the following LexisNexis™ by Credit Card services to check citations and verify cases.

Shepard's^® Citations Service

The Shepard's^® Citations Service combines Shepard's thorough citation information and analysis with the speed and ease of electronic legal research. You can search for citations reported in Federal, State, and National Reporter System publications. For virtually every case on the LexisNexis™ research system, you can find every case or law review article that has cited your selected case, including:

• parallel citations to a case
• case history
• citations to a case
• editorial analysis of a case
• treatment of a case
• citations from law reviews, bar journals, annotations, and legal treatises

Auto-Cite^® Service

The Auto-Cite^® service lets you verify the accuracy of the citation of a case. Auto-Cite also provides a check on a case's value as a precedent, and lets you conduct:

• cite checking to confirm the case name, jurisdiction, and year of decision, plus identify all official citations to a case
• case verification to examine (in chronological order) the subsequent history of a case, both appellate and treatment, that may affect its value as a precedent
• integrated research to review the prior history of a case, identify citations to which it makes negative reference, and find related annotations from ALR^® and Lawyers' Edition, 2d

Using the Order History

When you click the Order History link in the left navigation bar of any LexisNexis™ by Credit Card or Daily Opinion Service page, your Order History displays. Your Order History keeps track of every LexisNexis™ by Credit Card and Daily Opinion Service purchase you've made in the last 90 days. Each purchase you make creates its own record. These records display in reverse chronological order, with the most recent purchase records first. Click here for descriptions of each field in the Order History record.

Use your Order History records to help you:

• Prepare your client invoices
• Keep track of your purchases and credits
• Reconcile your credit card statement

The following capabilities are included with the Order History.

Sorting the Order History

You can sort your purchase records by date and/or by client. Click the 'Sort Order History' link in the left navigation bar to use the Sort feature. Read the information below the Sort Order History form for help with sorting your records.

Printing and Downloading Records

When viewing your Order History purchase records, you can print or download them using your browser's Print or Download function.  To view, print, or download purchase records as a text only page (no graphics), select Printable from the Viewing Format option in the upper right corner of the page. To return to the graphical display of your purchase records, use your browser's Back button.

Securing Your Information

To secure the contents in your Order History, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) functionality is built into the Order History. SSL is an accepted standard method of encryption over the Internet. To protect your private data, LexisNexis™ by Credit Card registration, credit card transactions, and Order History records, access is accepted only through SSL protected channels. To test your browser for SSL functionality, use the Secured Socket Layers Test during the 'Purchase a Document' process.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

To help answer any questions you may have about using the Order History, frequently asked questions and the answers to them are provided. Click here to display the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Understanding Your Order History Records

Each field in the Order History record is described below. The purchase date and time and the record number (for example, 1 of 10) appear in the header of each record.

Client

Contains the client information you entered in the search template's Client field before you submitted your search.

Order number

Contains the alphanumeric order number associated with this credit card purchase.

Product

Contains the name of the product you were using when you made the purchase. Normally, LexisNexis™ by Credit Card will appear in this field; however, if you used your LexisNexis by Credit Card ID and password to purchase another LexisNexis™ web product, that product's name will appear here.

Description

Contains a description of the type of purchase you made. For example, Document Retrieval.

Amount

Contains the amount of the purchase, including any applicable taxes.

Status

Contains one of the following status indicators:

• Debit Pending - Indicates that the card has been charged, but the transaction will not be complete until a nightly batch (reconciliation) process is completed.
  
  
• Debit - Indicates that the transaction has successfully completed the nightly batch processing.
  
  
• Credit Pending - Indicates that you have requested a credit, but the transaction has not yet completed the nightly batch processing.
  
  
• Credit - Indicates that the requested credit has successfully completed the nightly batch processing.

  NOTE:  If a record's status remains as Debit Pending or Credit Pending for more than 2 weeks, please call LexisNexis™ Customer Service at 1-800-897-3183.

Card

Contains the type of credit card you used. For example, VISA.

Exp (Expiration Date)

Contains the expiration date of your credit card, based on the credit card information you provided when you made the purchase.

Auth # (Authorization Number)

Contains the authorization number received when the charge to your credit card was approved.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Order History

1. Do I have to use both the Date and the Client fields on the Sort Order History form?

   No. You can use only the Date field or only the Client field to sort your records. However, you can use both Date and Client if you want.

2. How can I keep track of the charges I incurred for a specific client?

   Use the 'Sort By: Client' field on the Sort Order History template to type your client information, and then click the Sort button. This will display a list of every purchase record in the last 90 days that matches the client information you entered.

   Use the 'Sort By: Date' field with the Client field to display purchase records for a specific client within a specified period of time.

3. How do I display purchase records for a specific date or date range?

   Use the 'Sort By: Date' field on the Sort Order History template to restrict your search to a specific date or date range, and click the Sort button. This will bring you a list of every purchase record in the last 90 days that matches the date(s) you entered.

   Use the 'Sort By: Client' field with the Date field to display purchase records for a specific client within a specified period of time.

4. How do I know when a credit has been applied to my account?

   Your Order History keeps track of credits as well as your purchases. Credits will be included in the list of purchase records that you retrieve from your Order History.

5. Credit for a search is listed in my Order History but has not been applied to my credit card yet. Why?

   As with most credit card transactions, credits can sometimes take from 60 to 90 days to be applied to your credit card account. If a credit record is displayed in your Order History, you can be assured that it has been sent to your credit card provider and the processing is under way.

6. Can I print or download my purchase records without your graphics appearing on the page?

   Yes. Click the 'Viewing Format: Printable' link at the top of your purchase record list. Then use your browser's Print or Download function. Click your browser's Back button to return to the graphic presentation of your purchase record list.

7. When I received my monthly credit card statement, I had questions about some of the charges. How can I obtain more information about a specific charge?

   Use your Order History to retrieve detailed information about each of your purchases. It's very informative and should answer any questions. If you still have questions after reviewing the log, please call LexisNexis Customer Service at 1-800-897-3183.

8. Why do you only keep track of my purchase records for 90 days?

   We want to ensure you have ample time to use your Order History for your billing needs or to reconcile your credit card statement. In addition, most credit card companies give you 90 days to contest any charges made to your account. While we hope you do not ever need to contest any of your LexisNexis™ by Credit Card charges, we are ensuring you have the information you need should the situation arise.