Client FYI - Updates and Case Analysis Tips

FYI for February 2009

TextMap® 5 is almost here! You asked for an easy way to create links to exhibits referenced in your case transcripts … a PDF report of your transcripts and annotations with all linked exhibits … and the ability to play back video of your depositions, synchronized with the transcript text. TextMap 5 will deliver all that and more. Read this month’s FYI for more details about this exciting March release.


February Client FYI Quick Links


Get Ready to Experience TextMap® 5

You already know that TextMap transcript management tool creates a searchable database of your electronic transcripts from depositions, examinations and other proceedings. Just upload a transcript, and you can easily search, summarize, annotate, issue-code, and attach notes to important passages. Next month, with the release of TextMap 5, you will gain the added benefits of fast and easy exhibit linking within transcripts, PDF reports of your transcripts with linked exhibits, synchronized video to allow playback of the deposition video—synchronized with the transcript text—and more!

We hope you were among the LegalTech® New York attendees who were able to preview a live demo of TextMap 5. If you missed it, here is a recap of why the release is receiving such high praise:

Easy-to-Use Exhibit Linking

  • Link transcripts to exhibits automatically—and economically—through an easy-to-use wizard. There’s no need to pay for separate linking software, as with some competing products.
  • Link documents and exhibits to your annotations. Attach any number of electronic files to your notes … always have your key case documents and notes right at your fingertips!
  • Take your linked exhibits on the road with you when you create a case replica in TextMap 5 (just like you can do in CaseMap® 8).
  • Create and share PDF reports with embedded exhibits and documents. For example, you can create a condensed transcript with endnotes in PDF and include hyperlinks to attached exhibits. And as always, TextMap PDF reports can include a hyperlinked word index, as well as bookmarks to annotations and sections of the word index.
  • Quickly explore all exhibits and documents linked to each transcript. Import evidence packages provided by court reporters via YesLaw CDs and DVDs.

Play Deposition Video Synchronized to the Transcript

  • Play back the video of your depositions synchronized with the transcript text. Search for key phrases in a transcript and then start playing the video immediately from that location.
  • Annotate important passages of the transcript and play back just that portion of the video testimony.

Why TextMap?

TextMap enables you to uncover key testimony faster, collaborate more effectively with trial team members and summarize transcripts more effectively. You can use it to produce a variety of practical, polished reports and generate a single index covering multiple transcripts. And you can save money since TextMap comes at a fraction of the cost of other transcript summary tools.

TextMap Integrates with CaseMap

Here are just a few examples of convenient integration between TextMap and CaseMap:

  • Annotate a transcript and send it as a fact into CaseMap
  • Send deposition facts to CaseMap for analysis
  • Send CaseMap issue outlines to TextMap and maintain the outline hierarchy
  • Include linked CaseMap facts when you generate TextMap reports

  • And now, share linked documents and exhibits between CaseMap and TextMap

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One-Hour CLE Webinar: Does Your Litigation Team Connect the Dots?

Find out how more litigation teams are using CaseMap, TextMap and the entire suite of litigation tools and research content from LexisNexis to connect the dots―driving greater efficiency and cost-effectiveness throughout the litigation process.

Join us on Thursday, February 26, for a free 1-Hour CLE Webinar, Connecting the Dots for More Efficient, Effective Litigation.

Delivered in the context of the workflow of a case, the Webinar will explain how to use integrated litigation tools and research content to:

  • Reduce risk exposure through greater case clarity
  • Gain greater control over discovery and rising discovery costs
  • Collaborate more effectively and strategically with team members
  • Capture, organize and connect case facts and research―along with your own case insights

You’ll leave this Webinar with a deeper understanding of several best practices for streamlining litigation processes and harnessing the critical case thinking of your entire litigation team.

There are two versions of the Webinar—one for outside counsel and one for in-house counsel. Please sign up for the one that best suits you and earn 1 free CLE credit.

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30-Second Skill Tuning: By Issue Reports

The CaseMap "By Issue" reporting option makes it a cinch to create word-processing documents that organize facts, documents, case law research, etc., according to the pertinent issues. For example, one mouse click can create a Microsoft® Word document that displays the name of each case issue and, underneath it, a table of facts that bear on the issue.

See a sample By Issue report.

Here's how to create a By Issue report:

1. Choose the spreadsheet you want to use as the basis for the report, e.g. Facts, Objects - Documents, Research - Authorities.

2. If you wish, filter the spreadsheet to limit the records that will be used to create the report, and rearrange the columns in the spreadsheet to determine which columns appear in the word-processing tables.

3. On the Reports menu within CaseMap*, select By Issue Report Wizard …

4. Use the By Issue Report Wizard to select the spreadsheet you want and then customize. You can create the report in Word, Corel® WordPerfect® or HTML.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact CaseMap support at 904-373-2160.

*If you are using an earlier version of CaseMap that does not include the Reports menu, you can still create By Issue reports. Go to the File menu, select Send To, X By Issue (where X is the name of the spreadsheet you're viewing in CaseMap) and then select your target―Word, WordPerfect or HTML.

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Facts vs. Event Objects

This month we decided to take a moment to answer the question, “If I am entering Events in my chronology on the Facts spreadsheet, why bother using Events on the Objects spreadsheet?” If you are unsure about what purpose Event objects serve in CaseMap, read on.

First, Events are objects just like Persons and Documents; so, they have a Full Name and a Short Name. You are most likely familiar with linking people and documents to Facts using their Short Names, but you may have never considered linking an Event to a Fact.

Why would you link an Event to a Fact? Sometimes you may have a critical event in a case that you want to refer to in several Facts. Entering that Event as an Object on the Events spreadsheet will allow you to take advantage of the benefits of using Short Names: speed of data entry, linking and consistency.

Referring to an Event in a Fact using the Event’s Short Name means that you have to enter only a few characters and select the Short Name from Link Assistant, rather than typing out the Full Name each time. The Event will automatically be linked to each Fact, and filtering—for Facts that mention that Event—is a matter of filtering for the Event’s Short Name on the Facts spreadsheet.

You also have the use of the LS: Facts field for Events (or # Facts if you are already using CaseMap 8), which gives a count of Facts involving a particular Event. You can quickly get a list of those Facts by double-clicking the number.

Obviously, entering an Event object is not nearly as beneficial if you are referring to the event only once. In such a case, you would simply enter a single Fact describing the event.

If you have any questions about Facts vs. Events, just give CaseMap support a call at 904-373-2160, or e-mail casemap.support@lexisnexis.com

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CaseMap® Integrates with SmartDraw® Legal Edition for Easy Legal Graphics

Professional-quality graphics can make a significant difference as you present your case. With SmartDraw Legal Edition business graphics software, you can generate graphics in minutes—crime scene diagrams, accident reconstructions, bar and pie charts, case chronologies and much more.

Now you can add the graphics you create with SmartDraw directly into CaseMap from inside SmartDraw. Just click the CaseMap button on the toolbar, select a category, assign a fact and the job is done. SmartDraw will even launch CaseMap for you if you need to add more information. View screens illustrating these steps.

SmartDraw Legal Edition includes hundreds of pre-drawn templates and more than 20,000 images and symbols. Simply input your information, and SmartDraw does the rest, aligning everything and applying professional design themes. Export your graphic to Microsoft® Office, WordPerfect or PDF.

SmartDraw Legal Edition is used by thousands of attorneys, investigators and law enforcement officials worldwide, including the U.S. Department of Justice. To try SmartDraw Legal Edition at no charge, visit www.smartdraw.com/ln

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Legal Nurse Consultants: Will you be at the 2009 NACLNC® Conference?

Come visit us at the World’s largest conference for legal nurse consultants, taking place in San Antonio March 12 – 13. At the 14th Annual Conference organized by the National Alliance of Certified Legal Nurse Consultants, you can see just how CaseMap and TimeMap provide vital capabilities for savvy legal nurse consultants. Learn how to import medical dictionaries into your CaseMap file and create custom templates specific to LNC needs.

This year you will also be able to see the newly expanded expert witness collection from LexisNexis. With the recent acquisition of IDEX, Inc., LexisNexis now offers the largest, most comprehensive collection of profiles, jury verdicts and settlements, and full-text testimonial transcripts available.

Look for the LexisNexis booth at the entrance to the conference area. We’re also sponsoring the NACLNC general reception on March 12 from 4:30 to 6 P.M. Hope to see you there!

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CaseMap® Training Schedule

Below is our training schedule for classroom and online classes. We also offer on-site classes. Visit our training Web site for more information.

New York City
Feb. 25: FastTrack
Feb. 26: Cert Paralegal
March 4 – 5: Cert Admin

Atlanta
March 17: FastTrack
March 18: Cert Paralegal

 

Dallas
March 10 – 11: Cert Admin
March 12: FastTrack

San Francisco
March 25: Cert Paralegal
March 26: FastTrack

Online Classes *

FastTrack Online
March 16 – 17

Certified Paralegal Online
March 2 – 3

*Online classes are conducted over two days from noon to 2 P.M. and 3:30 to 5:30 P.M. Eastern Time on both days.

To register for any of the above classes, please fill out this registration form (e-mail or fax to us) or call 904-373-2161 with any questions you may have.

CaseMap FastTrack: This day-long course is designed to help new CaseMap customers become power users. It is not intended for clients who have been working with CaseMap for more than a year. Topics include CaseMap strategies, sorting and searching techniques, creating great work product, and using the Send to CaseMap feature in Adobe® Acrobat® and other tools. This is a hands-on class—please bring a laptop computer with CaseMap installed.

Certified Administrator: This two-day course is specifically for litigation support, practice support and IS professionals. The course reviews how to deploy and support CaseMap fact and issue management software and TimeMap® timeline graphing software. This is a hands-on class—please bring a laptop computer with CaseMap and TimeMap installed.

Certified Paralegal: This one-day course for paralegals, legal assistants and other support professionals reviews best practices for inputting and extracting crucial case data. The course also covers how LexisNexis® case analysis tools link with other applications you may be using. This is a hands-on class—please bring a laptop computer with CaseMap installed.

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This is Client FYI 127281a, an eNewsletter from LexisNexis, a leading provider of authoritative legal, news, public records, and business information, and electronic filing services. If you do not wish to receive this eNewsletter from LexisNexis, use this link to let us know.

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