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INTERNET SITES FOR REAL ESTATE AND BANKRUPTCY LAWYERS

By Paul D. Pearlstein and Colin W. Uckert

The internet has become one of the most popular methods of research. While it is no substitute for a good law library, it is quick, usually inexpensive and available 24 hours a day.

While most attorneys under 65 have their own computer, many avoid the internet because it can be frustrating. Having the fastest, newest computer equipment will lower the frustration level but experience is the real equalizer. I recommend getting on the web and playing with the various sites for several hours. Some sites are easier to use than others and some will be more closely tuned to your specific query.

Often a real treasure of an article or a research paper will be located that simply is not available from library research. Such a find offsets some of the dead end research time on the net. Whenever complete frustration sets in, westlaw and lexis are both on the net - for a price.

My dream would be to have a District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia web site that provides transaction forms, pooled research memoranda and a brief bank for a myriad of mundane as well as esoteric and cutting edge topics.

The following pages present web sites that may prove helpful to the practitioner. Since the web sites are changing and expanding constantly, all readers are invited to suggest new addressed and to comment on the ones that are listed. With future supplements, this chapter will be improved by your input.

Note that many of these sites are linked to other sites. You may find that using only one or two sites and their links will provide most of the information you need. Because of the nonstandard protocols, it is easier to stay in the site you are most comfortable with and use the linkage where you can.

Contents

(All site addresses follow "http://" unless otherwise indicated)

SEARCH ENGINES

General

Legal

*Both lexis and westlaw are the grandaddys of legal information retrieval. They are pricey, but offer the most information, the best indexing and the fastest retrieval. They have only recently begun to allow non-subscription use on a pay-as-you-use basis.

REAL ESTATE RELATED LINKS

General

Home sales

Remodeling and Home Improvement

Mortgage Lenders

LAW RELATED LINKS

Local Information

Appellate Courts

Codes
General

Bankruptcy sites

Court Opinions and Information Federal Federal Court Cases and Dockets LAW LIBRARIES AND LAW SCHOOLS LAW JOURNALS

LIBRARY CATALOGS INTERNET USE

(Chapter 13 of the 1999 Supplement to Real Estate Practice in the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, editor Paul D. Pearlstein. Published and sold by The Bar Association of the District of Columbia 202-223-6600. Reproduced with permission of BADC.)

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