What is a citatory, and why are citators important in determining the current status of a case? What are the names of Westlaw's and Lexis's online citators? Briefly describe Shepard's Citations . ?

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Answer 1

A citator is a book or online service that provides the history and interpretation of a statute, regulation, or court decision and a list of the cases, statutes, and regulations that have interpreted, applied, or modified a statute or regulation. Citators are important to determine whether a case is still "good law" or whether it may be "bad law"-that is, it has been reversed or modified on appeal.Both Westlaw and Lexis provide online citators. In Lexis, the primary citator isShepard's.Westlaw provides a similar service, called KeyCite.Shepard's Citationshas developed the most comprehensive system of case citators in theUnited States.Shepard'slists every case published in an official or unofficial reporter by its citation. Every region of the National Reporter System, and more, is covered.Shepard'shas been so widely used in the legal profession that the termShepardizingmeans checking what has happened to a case over time. One of the most valuable functions ofShepard'sis that it provides a means to verify the history of a case. For example, if a paralegal wants to know whether a certain court decision has been reversed by a higher court,Shepard'sprovides that information.Shepard'sis available in both printed and online (through Lexis) versions. It takes some time before the printed versions ofShepard'scitators are updated, so a paralegal is most likely to use the online version to make sure his or her research is up to date.?