There are several databases on Westlaw for finding state materials depending on the type of document (cases, statutes, rules, etc.) you're trying to obtain and whether you want to search an individual state, a combination of states or all states. If you're not sure what database you need, the best place to start is with the Westlaw Database Directory at http://directory.westlaw.com. Once you're in the directory, select "U.S. State Materials." The list of state materials leads to databases to search individual state documents or databases to search specific materials for all states.

If you select "Other U.S. States," you will retrieve a list of the 50 states. Each state contains a list of materials covered such as cases, statutes, court rules, law reviews, directories, jury instructions and forms, to name a few. If you need more information about the database, click on the green "i" ( information) button. Once you have selected the database, you can click on the database identifier (i.e. AL-CS for Alabama cases) and it will take you to the Westlaw homepage where you can sign in and begin your search.

If you select "Case Law," you will obtain a list of databases that contains state cases. ALLSTATES contains all state cases after 1944. There are other databases for cases before 1945, regional case reporters, combined federal & state case, and a list of all the individual state case databases.

If you select "Statutes & Legislative Services," you will obtain a list of databases that contains state statutes. ST-ANN-ALL or ST-ALL contains all the state statutes. There is also a list of individual state statutes that you can search individually or combine to search more than one state at a time (AL-ST-ANN for Alabama, KY-ST-ANN for Kentucky, etc.). Some states also have official and unofficial versions as well as annotated and unannotated versions.

The same choices of either searching an "all states" database or an individual state database continues for "Legislative Tracking Materials", "Court Rules & Orders" and "Administrative & Executive Materials." There is also a list of databases under "Multistate Public Records Databases" that covers bankruptcy filings, fictitious business names and people finders for all states or you can restrict your search to specific states.