Fastcase
Quickly access legal materials, search by jurisdiction, keyword, or topic, and generate analytics for legal trends.
What is Fastcase?
Fastcase is a legal research platform that helps lawyers, paralegals, and law students find case law, statutes, and legal materials quickly. You can search by jurisdiction, keyword, or legal topic, then analyse the results to spot trends across cases and regulations. The platform offers both free and paid access, making it accessible whether you're a solo practitioner or part of a larger firm. It's designed to save time on legal research by consolidating materials from multiple sources and providing analytics on how the law is changing in your areas of practice.
Key Features
Jurisdiction-based search
filter legal materials by state, federal, or specific court systems
Keyword and topic search
find relevant cases and statutes using natural language queries
Legal trend analytics
analyse patterns across cases to understand how the law is developing
Case law access
browse court decisions and opinions across multiple jurisdictions
Free tier availability
basic research capabilities without a subscription
Pros & Cons
Advantages
- Free option makes legal research accessible to students and small practices
- Analytics features help identify emerging legal trends before they become widespread
- Search by jurisdiction reduces time spent narrowing down irrelevant materials
- Consolidates legal materials from multiple sources in one platform
Limitations
- Free tier likely has limitations on search volume or material depth compared to premium competitors
- Smaller legal research platforms may have less thorough coverage than established alternatives like Westlaw or LexisNexis
Use Cases
Solo practitioners researching case law on specific topics without large research budgets
Law students preparing for classes or assignments involving case analysis
Paralegals tracking how recent court decisions affect ongoing cases
Legal professionals monitoring regulatory trends in their practice areas
Firms analysing sentencing patterns or judicial behaviour by court