Rule 21 - Computerized Legal Research Services RuleThe Supreme Court of Virginia hereby authorizes and directs the Virginia State Bar to contract to provide online computerized legal research services to its members.
A.Purpose-It is the policy and objective of the Commonwealth of Virginia to improve the quality and reduce the costs of legal services available to the citizens of Virginia. It is also the policy of this Commonwealth to enhance the availability of legal services to poor litigants and indigent criminal defendants. The provision of online computerized legal research tools to all Virginia lawyers will further these policies by increasing and improving the available knowledge and information base for attorneys, enhancing the quality of legal research and advice, making legal research more efficient for many attorneys, reducing the costs of legal services to the poor, and providing additional resources to lawyers who are appointed by courts to represent indigent criminal defendants. The provision of online computerized legal research services to all lawyers in Virginia will reduce the time spent and costs incurred in performing legal research, which will decrease the costs of legal services to consumers in Virginia and thereby increase access to attorneys. In addition, the provision of online computerized legal research will enable more lawyers to provide pro bono services since this research tool will lower their costs and reduce the amount of research time required.B.Procedure-For these reasons, the Virginia State Bar, through its governing body, is authorized to contract to provide online computerized legal research services to its members. In connection therewith, the Virginia State Bar is authorized and directed to solicit proposals from providers of online computerized legal research services, enter into contracts for those services, and expend funds for the purchase of online computerized legal research services for its members. The Virginia State Bar shall supervise and periodically review the provision of online computerized legal research services to its members to ensure the continued quality of those services and that the policies and objectives of the Commonwealth are being met. The Virginia State Bar also shall submit to the Supreme Court of Virginia an annual report that describes and analyzes the status of the Bar's contracts for online computerized legal research services, the online computerized legal research services that are being provided, and the utilization of those services.Adopted by order dated June 13, 2005, effective 7/13/2005.