vLex have launched an extensive New Zealand case law collection.
If you have been following v-Lex for the past 18 months you’ll have seen a sophisticated roll out and acquisition plan that suggests they may well become the leading international legal research provider globally in the next 2-5 years.
Content is always a nightmmare in the sector but V-Lex appear to have a rolling plan that dwarfs the other players in the market. Only a few weeks ago they rolled out an Irish research service and now they have launched in NZ.
Australian legal research providers will, we believe, be the next to feel their efficiency.
Austlii may have all the historical and some current content in Australia but they are beginning to look like something out of the ancient world compared to the tech that V-Lex are deploying.
Austlii
v-Lex
Never mind the effect of the pandemic, Austlii have been relying on handouts for years and for one reason or another have steadfastly refused to enter into any commercial agreements to generate revenue. This may, as they say, come to bite them in the ass.
State govt, federal govt and law firms will probably be less inclined to put their hands in their pockets for much longer. If we were UTS / UNI NSW we’d suggest opening a conversation with the likes of V-Lex before Austlii becomes a relic that is not rescuable.
WEXIS are on a steady decline when it comes to research; the arrival of a new player in the market will add further pressures to their bottom lines.
Lexis / Westlaw Research
Small local providers of research and possible AI research such as Bar Net Jade & Ailira could have possibly captured a good %age of the local market with the made in Australia tag but dithering and minimal investment in tech means they are probably history before they get off the ground. Both will tinker with specific Australian client bases and the revenue generated will probably earn a nice new Audi or an annual holiday (when the government allows Australians to travel again) for the principals but little else.
The problem with Australian legal publishers is that no publishers actually own or are even in a GM position at any of the companies. As well as above this includes the likes of Federation Press (once, one of the planet’s best academic legal publishers) & Benchmark (CPD publishing) amongst others . Lawyers & academics and their inate belief that they know everything is, we believe, providing the final death knell for a home grown legal research and publishing sector in Australia.
The future will belong to the likes of v-Lex, Anylaw & Fastcase
London – September 2020
A new collection of New Zealand case law, including superior court cases and a range of tribunals, is now available to researchers around the world on the AI-powered legal research platform, vLex Justis.
This is the first time an up-to-date and extensive collection of New Zealand case law can be accessed on a global service alongside those from the UK and other key common law jurisdictions, making this an essential resource for legal research in New Zealand, while enhancing the platform’s international and comparative research capabilities.
Authoritative legal information
The new collection of New Zealand case law includes over 40,000 cases from the superior courts, including all decisions of the Supreme Court of New Zealand since it was established in 2004, Court of Appeal cases from 2003, and High Court cases from 2005.
Decisions from a range of tribunals are also included in this new collection, including the Disputes Tribunal, the Immigration Advisers Complaints & Disciplinary Tribunal, the Real Estate Agents Disciplinary Tribunal, and more.
The inclusion of editorially curated cases from The Law Report of New Zealand, with the addition of headnotes and summaries, ensures that more information about the important decisions from the higher courts of New Zealand is available for research.
Masoud Gerami, Managing Director of vLex Global Markets, discussed the importance of this new offering of New Zealand law:
“The importance of the laws of New Zealand for researchers around the world is highlighted by the popularity of The Law Report collection, which we have offered for several years. Following the launch of vLex Justis earlier this year, expanding our coverage of New Zealand law was a high priority for vLex, and we’re excited to make such an extensive collection available.”
Artificial intelligent legal research
Accessing this new collection on vLex Justis will enable researchers to benefit from a range of intuitive and powerful search and analysis tools. Unique visualisation features such as the Precedent Map will help researchers go beyond lists of citing and cited cases and will help to identify the strongest relationships between cases at speed.
Other features now available as part of this update include Key Passages which display the most commonly cited passages from a case so that researchers can quickly determine how it has been subsequently cited, and whether it might need closer attention.
Vincent, an AI-powered legal research assistant which combines human-like searching with machine speed, will also be made available for our New Zealand legal information collections later this year.
Try the New Zealand Core Collection
For more details about the New Zealand Core Collection available from vLex, and to discover the new content sign up for a free 7-day trial of vLex Justis.
About vLex
vLex provides access to a comprehensive collection of legal information from over 130 jurisdictions. Founded over 20 years ago, vLex supports thousands of lawyers, law firms, government departments and law schools around the world. vLex acquired Justis Publishing in March 2019, and have integrated their content and features into the flagship vLex Justis platform.
Their team of over 170 lawyers, engineers and editorial experts continually strive to deliver up-to-date legal information and industry-leading AI-powered legal technology.
Please contact press@vlex.com with any enquiries
