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Westlaw Review: Legal Research Software

Lawyerist Rating for Westlaw

Rating Breakdown

Our Rating: 3.8/5

Our rating is based on our subjective judgment. Use our resources—including our rating and community ratings and reviews—to find the best fit for your firm.

Community Rating: 1.3/5 (based on 3 ratings)

The community rating is based on the average of the community reviews below.

Composite Rating: 3/5

The composite rating is a weighted average of our rating and the community ratings below.

3/5

Overview

Featured Rating

What is Westlaw?

Westlaw is an online legal research platform with a multitude of different subscriptions and services with various pricing tiers. Essentially, it’s a proprietary database of case law, statutes, treatises, and other secondary sources from legal technology heavyweight Thomson Reuters. Along with LexisNexis, it’s currently the industry standard for case lookup and secondary source searches. And, just like LexisNexis, many have found Westlaw’s pricing to be cost-prohibitive. However, firms needing comprehensive legal research are unlikely to find a more thorough database.

Starting Cost: $133/user/month (Westlaw Classic, 1 state, 1-year contract)

Pros

Secondary Sources
Citation Check

Cons

Expensive
No Integrations
Not for Solos

Overview

Featured Ratings

Westlaw Review: Legal Research Software Features

Customer Experience & Support

Price & Value

Security

Innovation & Future-Proofing

Overview

Featured Rating

Westlaw Review: Legal Research Software Video

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Product Details

Apps

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Microsoft Word
Practical Law

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Pros

Secondary Sources
Citation Check

Cons

Expensive
No Integrations
Not for Solos

Pros

Secondary Sources
Citation Check
Integrations

Cons

Expensive
No Open API
Not for Solos

Read LexisNexis Review

Pros

Open API
Docket Search
Bar Assoc. Deals
Public Records Search

Cons

Limited Secondary Sources
No Business Search
Not for Large Firms

Read Fastcase Review

Pros

Docket Search
Bar Assoc. Deals
Tribal Court Opinions

Cons

Limited Secondary Sources
No Case Alerts
No Integrations

Read Review

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I use Westlaw?

Westlaw is a cloud-based legal research subscription platform. It can be used through any modern browser. Users can also leverage it in other places, like Microsoft Word, by using select add-ons.

What is the price of Westlaw?

A one-year commitment to Westlaw Classic for one state costs firms $132.80/month. This Westlaw pricing tier includes case law, statutes, KeyCites, and Court Rules for one state. Classic with all states (aka Westlaw Classic Primary Law All States) starts at $200/month; all states and federal (aka Westlaw Classic Primary All States and Federal) begins at $266.40/month. Westlaw Edge, which includes the above features and additional “AI-enhanced capabilities,” starts at $194.40 for a single state. The newest product, Westlaw Precision, which “harnesses the power of generative AI” and provides “AI-assisted research,” requires a conversation to learn pricing.

Does Westlaw integrate with my Law Practice Management Software?

No, Westlaw's legal subscription service does not directly integrate with any Law Practice Management Software.

Does Westlaw have a MS Word plugin?

Yes. A Microsoft Word add-in is included in every Westlaw pricing tier.

Does Westlaw search caselaw?

Yes. Every pricing tier for Westlaw includes a subscription to at least one state's case law.

What secondary sources does Westlaw have?

Westlaw has a wealth of secondary sources. This sets them apart from some of the other legal research providers. However, users will need to add-on additional features, or opt for one of the higher priced subscription tiers to get access to them.

Is Westlaw reliable?

Yes. Our reviewers find that Westlaw's information is generally considered up-to-date and reliable.

Is Westlaw difficult to use?

Yes, and No. Basic Boolean searches can be done quite easily, however, some Westlaw subscriptions come with advanced features that may be a bit more difficult to master.

Can I get docket information from Westlaw?

Yes. Many of the higher priced Westlaw subscriptions come with the ability to search dockets. However, our review finds that the availability in state courts can be a bit spotty.

Does Westlaw have reminders and alerts?

Yes. As of this review, even in the Classic Westlaw pricing tier, users get access to case alerts and search reminders.

Additional Details about Westlaw

Westlaw Subscription Pricing

At the time of this review, Westlaw offers three pricing tiers.

Westlaw Classic

Classic is a no-frills legal research database. This Westlaw pricing tier is intended to compete with some of the less established legal research platforms out there like Fastcase. It’s much less expensive than Westlaw’s other plans but can quickly add up with customizations. At its most basic, this Westlaw subscription runs $133/user/month, which includes State Court case law (for one state), KeyCites, Statutes, and Court Rules. It doesn’t include what they are known for—robust secondary sources.

Westlaw Edge

Edge is now Westlaw’s mid-tier product. And at somewhere around $194/user/month, roughly $60 more than Classic. This plan adds some Edge features to the Classic plan. It includes litigation analytics, predictive searching, and KeyCite Overruling Risk. But users still must increase their plan, or include substantial add-ons, to access Federal Law, analytics, dockets, and secondary sources.

Westlaw Precision with CoCounsel

Westlaw Precision with CoCounsel is the premier research product. Users can request a free trial, but there does not appear to be any specific pricing details on the website. They bill this product as a way to cut research time significantly. At this time, it does not appear to be a useful product for small to medium sized law firms. Precision is worth mentioning because we expect most up-and-coming AI features to live here. Already Westlaw promotes this option as an AI tool that “provides relevant answers to research questions with links to trusted Westlaw authority.

KeyCite Overruling Risk

KeyCite Overruling Risk comes with the Edge and Precision subscriptions. It expands KeyCite by flagging a case if that case relies on bad or overruled law. Users can find cases that have been explicitly overruled through Keycite, all at once.

Statutes Compare

Statutes Compare allows statutory revisions comparisons on the state and federal level to help understand the legislative intent. This insight allows incorporation of legislative intent into business advice and litigation advocacy. Statutes Compare shows exactly how a statute has evolved and is included with a Westlaw Edge or Precision subscription.

Secondary Sources

Westlaw’s software features a comprehensive secondary sources database that includes a streamlined interface to browse and bookmark publications. This is where Westlaw (and LexisNexis) set themselves apart from the rest. However, this is also where they charge the most. Currently, users need to add-on secondary sources to any of their subscriptions, often at a significant price.

Who Westlaw is for

Westlaw’s Classic plans are likely to be more attractive to firms of all sizes who are looking for a legal research solution. These plans are actually more limited than other, less expensive, resources out there. Firms needing sources from more than one state, or that bill on a flat fee, might not find the best fit in Westlaw.

Alternatively, larger law firms billing for associate research time may actually find Westlaw Edge or Precision costs less for their clients. Additionally, firms that need a specific secondary source along with case law review, will likely need to include an add-on to their Westlaw subscription at an additional cost.

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Westlaw Community Reviews

Based on 3 Ratings

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David G. says:

February 1, 2021 at 11:37 am

Love to Hate Westlaw

(2)

I’m a solo litigation attorney and like many others, I was hooked during law school by the free Westlaw access provided to students (this is like giving free cigarettes to high schoolers). I’ve been on my own since 2009 and during most of that time, I’ve paid for a Westlaw subscription that gives me access to pretty much all state/federal caselaw, but not much else.

Here’s the reality — as a litigator, you can’t afford to lose a case because your research missed something important. So, I regard access to a solid legal research tool to be non-optional.

Having said that, while I like the Westlaw service, I absolutely cannot stand the COMPANY. They are HORRIBLE. Westlaw’s contract terms are simply abusive. Example = if you sign a 12-month contract, it will automatically renew (with a significant increase) unless you cancel, in writing, within a narrow window of time. Also, can you cancel via email? NOPE. The ONLY accepted method of cancelation is to send SNAIL MAIL. In the year 2021, what company would do such a thing?

It’s like Westlaw is being operated by a group of greedy a-holes who learned their sharp business practices in the early 1980s and have refused to consider changing with the times.

Honestly, given the size of this market, I would really like to see someone like Google or maybe Amazon create a competing service that will simply drive Westlaw out of business….or at least force them to seriously change their business practices.

On that note, I am VERY close to giving CaseText a try. Their pricing is WAY more reasonable and the service seems good…..I just don’t like the format of their website (WAY too much white space on every page).

Melinda M. says:

November 8, 2020 at 6:52 pm

Bait and Switch

(1)

I did a free trial merely so I could read my own article. During the trial, a salesman reached out and after talking he outfitted me with a custom product to address my estate planning needs. This included a custom home page.
Lo and behold, a few months in (after using the product only a couple times) I managed to click on a different service that appears on my home page and incurred an extra $174 charge for “viewing a document” not in my plan. I have no idea what I did, but it took a couple weeks to get them to give me a “one time only credit” whereupon I was basically called a liar. I sent in a request to cancel my contract based on the horrible service experience and being afraid to use the product–still didn’t know how I incurred the extra charge.
The very snippy reply indicated that they believe both parties need to uphold the contracts, so I couldn’t quit until my year was up. Further, my request to cancel was not viewed as a “request to terminate” under termination clause so if I failed to make a request to terminate at least sixty days prior to the end of the contract, I would be re-renewed for another year at an increased rate.
You know what else this company doesn’t have in their pages of fine print? A non-disparagement clause.
In my opinion, they are the worst of the legal research options and I will never, ever recommend doing business with them.

Shayla D. says:

September 13, 2019 at 5:26 am

Fake free trial

(1)

I literally signed up for a 7 day free trial, and tried it out for a few hours tops. It kept logging me out. I tried to sign back in hours later and it said I could no longer have access. I called the number, and I was literally told that I had used up my 5 free hours. According to them, it’s 5 free hours or 7 days, whichever occurs first. That’s not true! I used it for only 2 hours. They should know since they track all search history, etc. What a joke! Right off the bat and these guys are alerady breaching imlied warranties! Being dishonest right off the bat is not the best way to win customers. I’ll keep shopping.