Lexis Releases its New Platform, Lexis+

Back in July, Lexis began to roll out a new platform to librarians and professors in law schools. As of August, all law students only have access to Lexis+, while professors will still be able to access Lexis Advance until the end of the year. Most importantly, the new platform does not require new registration and set-up. You will be able to log-in using your existing credentials.

The new platform does have a slightly new look. On the research page, you will see a red wave image. When you toggle to different aspects such as practical guidance and brief analysis, the color of the wave changes. The Explore box is still on that initial search page, letting you choose content type, jurisdiction, topic, source, etc. As you run searches and move through the content, many of the pages still have the look and feel of Lexis Advance.

There are several new features on Lexis+. First, when you run a search on the legal research portion, the search will also include any of the materials available on Practical Guidance. Previously, you needed to search this separately. Also, there is the ability to edit your search without going back to the first search box. There will be a little pencil icon next to your search, which can be used to edit the search. Additionally, there is a search tree map that shows you how the different operators you use in your search yielded the results you see. Lexis has also added a new Shepard’s feature called Shepard’s at risk, which provides you with notice when a case you are using itself relies on authority that has received negative treatment. Additionally, the platform now has code compare, which can compare two versions of a statute side-by-side.

As part of the new platform launch, Lexis also announced a few name changes. In the U.S. and Canada, Lexis is removing the Advance moniker from all of its products and will simply be known as Lexis. Further, Lexis Practice Advisor is being renamed Practical Guidance in the U.S. and Canada. You can see more information about Lexis+ from the press release issued on September 14.