How can Keycite be used as a research tool? What type of information is useful in using KeyCite to conduct legal research? Illustrate your answers to the questions above by providing an example of what you could research using KeyCite.
Hypothetical Scenario to Complete Tasks
You work for a law firm in St. Paul Minnesota. Your client, Dayton Ranger, sustained injuries to his left eye after being hit by a puck that flew into the stands while Dayton was watching the local semi-pro team, the Eagan Timberwolves, play. The puck came over the top of a hard plastic screen that had been erected around the rink. The arena claims that the right height of the screen meets the league standards. You have been assigned to research whether Dayton Ranger is likely to succeed if he sues the hockey arena for damages. We know that a relevant Minnesota case is Modec v.City of Eveleth, 29 N.W.2d 453 (Minn. 1947).
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Using KeyCite for validation (1) Retrieve Modec v.City of Eveleth, 29 N.W. 453 (Minn.1947), on WestlawNext by typing the citation into the default search box at the top of the screen. (2) Before looking at the Key Cite information, quickly read over the Westlaw case summary and headnotes. (3) Which of the Erst Headnotes seems more specific in terms of similarity to the Dayton Ranger facts? (Ignore the 4th headnote that is specific to Minnesota for this particular exercise). Write down the headnote number of the most specific Westlaw headnote (we’ll come back to this in Task 2.(4) Now, use the KeyCite information displayed to answer the questions below. (1) Does the Medoc case have any subsequent appellate history? If so, what is it? Now look at the indications of negative treatment of the Modec case. (2) What symbol or signal is used to indicate negative history or treatment of the Modec case? (3) How many cases treated it negatively? (4) Provide the Bluebook citation for a case that treats the Modec case negatively?(5) What court decided the case? (6) How did you quickly find the spot in the citing case where Modec is discussed or mentioned? Summarise the negative treatment of Modec by citing case.(7). How many cases overall cited Modec? What other types of sources have cited it and how often? (8) How many of thes cases were decided in Minnesota state courts? how did you determine this? (9) Click on Hanson v.Bailey in the list of citing cases. Read the relevant text of the Hanson case in which Modec is cited. Is Hanson a case that is relevant to the facts and issue in the Dayton Ranger matter? Would you cite it in a memo on the topic? Why or why not?
Return to the opinion in the Modec case, once you are back at the Modec case, scroll down to headnote 1 Restrict your key Cite search to headnote 1. In your results how many Minnesota state court cases appear? Explain why there are fewer cases displayed here than in the full search display we looked at previously. Refer back to the headnote that you think is most specific to your facts and issue. Explain why that headnote is most relevant. How do you find cases that have cited Modec for that point of law? Retrieve one of those cases and explain its treatment of Modec.
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