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Thurston County courthouse offers free Westlaw workstations for legal research
Summary
A courthouse staff member said three public workstations at Thurston County locations provide free Westlaw access for attorneys, court visitors and self-represented litigants to research Washington state law.
A courthouse staff member said the Thurston County courthouse provides three public workstations that give free access to Westlaw for legal research, located at the main campus, the family and juvenile courthouse and the county resource hub.
The workstations are free to use by the public, “by attorneys, court visitors, self represented litigants, whoever comes to visit the courthouse,” the staff member said. The staff member added that while many people can find information through general internet searches or public libraries, Westlaw allows users to “really focus in on the law specific to Washington state.”
Court staff described the stations as a resource for people who need targeted, state-specific legal research that may not be organized or easily found through generic internet searches. The staff member said the workstations remove the cost barrier to using Westlaw, a paid legal-research service.
The announcement did not specify operating hours, user registration requirements, or whether there is on-site assistance for users. Availability of the workstations and any usage rules were not provided in the transcript.
Those details would be set by courthouse administration; the staff member did not identify a point of contact during the remarks.
