In this article:
When a user searches in LawVu, they're effectively searching across their own content in LawVu. Search results will not be returned for data they don't have permission to access.
The global search function works in two different ways - Basic search and File content search. The basic search will find values entered in the search field against matter, contract, and file names.
File content search, along with the above-mentioned results, will also search for contents of files, emails and their attachments, and conversations. To read more about File content search, check this article
What's new in Search š
Open the matter or contract in the current tab or in a new one to maintain your search context. Additionally, you can copy a link to the matter or contract, so you can share it with other people as needed.
The search results now provide more detailed information, including the current state of a matter, the assigned matter owner and manager, the contract owner, and the lifecycle stage of the contract.
Sort your search results by Oldest, Most Recent, or Relevance.
New File Type facet, so you can filter based on file type (ie. PDFs only).
Display new icons to identify the document type in the search result.
Global Search results include a count so you can see how many results match the term you are using in each category. That means you can go straight to the place that has the information you are looking for, in less time and fewer clicks.
How LawVu's standard search works
Our standard way of searching is using something called a 'Partial Search'. This means that we search for groups of letters rather than whole words. Let's say you search for: lease. Then our search will return any instances where it finds the letters 'lease' together - here are some examples:
Lease for 123 any-street
Plan for catch and release fishery
But what happens if you search TWO words like this: lease agreement
At this point - LawVu will change its search behavior and look for the words 'lease' OR the word 'agreement'.
The partial search will not work at this time.
Here are some examples of search results:
Lease and agreement for property development
Lease for 123 any-street
Standard Separation agreement
But this result would NOT be returned
Plan for catch and release fishery
Handy search tips to help you search smarter š¤
The system searches not only matter/contract titles or file names but also all the details captured in your matter or contract fields.
The search functionality is not case sensitive so you donāt have to worry about specifying upper or lower case.
Non-alphanumeric characters are not recognizable as valid search tokens. For instance, when searching for words or phrases containing non-alphanumeric characters, only the alphanumeric word is identified.
If you need to find a specific term, use double quotes. For example, typing āhedge fundā will trigger the search for that phrase only. You can also search multiple phrases if need be by adding double quotes for every phrase. For example, āhedge fundā and āFrank Gomezā will search for both terms in a matter or file.
Search suggestions. As soon as you start typing a search term in the search bar, youāll see suggestions from matters, contracts, and matter files. Then select from the list of suggestions.
Did you know that you could export your search results? From a list of search results, you can export either a selection, one page, or the entire search set. How handy. Simply click the checkbox above the search results and click the down-arrow icon next to the checkbox to download.
For more information, check this article: Bulk Export from Search Results
Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT)
You can embed operators in a search query to build a rich set of criteria against which matching documents are found. To use Boolean operators, ensure the operators are entered in capital letters.
AND operator
When using āANDā in capitals, search results will surface records that have both words. For example, if you type ātermination and convenienceā, this searches for either termination or convenience. Whereas, if you type "termination AND convenience", it searches both words, which will reduce the search results and can make search results more relevant.
OR operator
When using āORā, search results will surface results containing either word, thus expanding the search results. This ensures nothing falls through the cracks. For instance, when searching with "dispute OR investigation," documents, matters, or contract records containing either word will be included in the results.
NOT operator
Search results will display records containing the first word, provided the second word is absent. Using NOT in your search helps refine results by excluding unwanted terms. For instance, searching for "dispute NOT investigation" will show records featuring 'dispute' without the term 'investigation'.
Brackets
When incorporating multiple Boolean techniques in your search term, brackets ensure that the commands within are executed first. The output is then processed with the subsequent command. For instance, if you enter (dispute OR investigation) AND Alliance, the system will search for 'dispute' or 'investigation' (or both) and ensure they also include "Alliance."
Quotations
Quotations enable you to group two or more words that must stay together, effectively treating them as a single unit. For example: "Information Technology."
Search Weighting
Search results are scored based on "relevance" and ordered from highest to lowest score.
Scores are based on the similarity of the item with the search terms, the more similar the terms and number of matches, the higher the score.
While the LawVu search function does search the body of your files, it is heavily weighted in favor of the name of the matter or contract. The more exact you have the title of a matter or contract, the higher up the results it will feature.
The following weighting schema is in force:
Matters
- Name + 5, Tags +1
Contracts
- Name + 5
Files
- FileName + 5, Tags +1
Message
- Subject + 5
Article
- Title + 5, Subtitle + 2