I was surprised and disturbed to learn this week that a case's treatment by Shepard's on CD-ROM may differ significantly from its treatment by Lexis.com Shepard's. For example, 777 F. Supp. 445 shows a green light on the CD. The same case Shepardized on Lexis.com shows a red stop sign.
This disturbed me so much that I chose 35 cases at random and compared their treatment by the two products. Of the 35 cases, 5 showed differing treatment. This is 14% of the cases!
Lexis confirmed that, yes, there are differences, and supplied me with a table describing the differences in detail. Their prompt response and helpfulness impressed me. It showed excellent customer service by Lexis.
As a result of this, my manager is crunching numbers to determine if she can replace the CD's with Lexis.com passwords.
If you want a list of the cases I searched or a copy of the table Lexis sent me, you can email me directly at judy.helms@co.travis.tx.us.
Judy Helms
Ref. Librarian
Travis County Law Library
Austin, Texas 78701
(512)473-9045
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