LexisNexis

LexisNexis. It is a leading global provider of legal, regulatory, and business information and analytics, operating as a subsidiary of the multinational corporation RELX. The company's digital platforms and research tools are foundational to the practice of law, risk management, and academic research in many countries. Its services are used extensively by professionals in law firms, corporate legal departments, government agencies, and academic institutions.

History

The origins of the service trace back to the Ohio State Bar Association and a pioneering project initiated by attorney John Horty at the Health Law Center of the University of Pittsburgh. In 1970, the Mead Corporation launched the LEXIS electronic database, marking the first commercial service to offer full-text legal documents online. A major early competitor was West Publishing's WESTLAW system. The company expanded significantly through acquisitions, such as the Nexis news database in 1979, and later merged with the Butterworths legal publishing house. Following a series of corporate transactions, it became a core component of the Anglo-Dutch conglomerate RELX, formed by the merger of Reed International and Elsevier.

Products and services

Its flagship offerings include the Lexis and Nexis platforms, which provide access to a vast repository of case law from courts like the Supreme Court of the United States, statutes, law reviews, and news publications such as The New York Times. Specialized products serve various sectors: LexisNexis Risk Solutions provides data analytics for identity verification and fraud prevention, while tools like Shepard's Citations are used for legal research validation. Other services encompass legislative tracking, docket monitoring for the United States federal courts, and academic research databases widely licensed by universities including Harvard University and Stanford University.

Legal and regulatory information

The company is a primary source for authoritative legal materials, including annotated codes like the United States Code and regulations from agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Internal Revenue Service. Its archives contain comprehensive records of administrative decisions from bodies like the National Labor Relations Board and patent filings from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Internationally, it provides access to the legal systems of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and the European Union, including decisions from the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Corporate structure and operations

As a division of RELX, it operates globally with major offices in Dayton, Ohio, Raleigh, North Carolina, and London. The organization is segmented into units focusing on legal markets, corporate risk, and government solutions. Key executive leadership has historically been drawn from parent company RELX and other major corporations. Its operations involve large-scale data processing centers and significant technology investments in areas like artificial intelligence and machine learning, often developed in collaboration with institutions like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Criticism and controversies

The organization has faced scrutiny over data privacy practices, particularly related to the collection and sale of personal information by its LexisNexis Risk Solutions unit to entities like Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It has been subject to lawsuits and investigations by bodies such as the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general. Critics, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the American Civil Liberties Union, have raised concerns about surveillance and the potential for errors in its vast databases to negatively impact individuals' credit and background checks.

Category:RELX Category:American companies established in 1970 Category:Information companies of the United States