Searching by Style of Cause
In the Decision Summary Search function, Style of Cause is a search criteria used only in "right to sue" cases. If you know the name of a party involved in a right to sue decision, you may search by the party's name.
To perform a search, you need to make sure that the title Style of Cause is visible in the dropdown box (if you have just opened the Decision Summary Search page, the dropdown box will be showing the title References). If it is not visible, click on the arrow beside the dropdown box and click on the title Style of Cause.
Enter the name of a party in the Style of Cause box. Using the dropdown box beside the Style of Cause box, choose one of the following search options (click on a search option to learn more about it):
All words - (Note: this is the default)
Any words
Exact phrase.
Then, click on the Search button to start your search.
Search Options
The search option that you choose will determine how the search will be performed.
Selecting this option will cause the search to display decisions that contain all the words which you typed in the Style of Cause box.
---> For example:
A search for Smith v. Smith will display only decisions where the terms Smith AND v. all appear in the syle of cause. These terms do not need to be in any specific order and may be separated by other words or characters.
---> Note:
If the word you typed in the Style of Cause box is part of a longer word, that longer word will also be included in the search result. For example, a search for the word ear will cause the search to also display decisions with words such as early, earnings and hearing.
Selecting this option will cause the search to display decisions that contain any of the words which you typed in the Style of Cause box.
---> For example:
A search for Smith v. Smith will display decisions where the terms Smith OR v. appear in the style of cause. The result would therefore be broader than the "All Words" search.
---> Note:
If the word you typed in the Style of Cause box is part of a longer word, that longer word will also be included in the search result. For example, a search for the word ear will cause the search to also display decisions with words such as early, earnings and hearing.
Selecting this option causes the search to display only decisions that contain the exact phrase which you typed in the Style of Cause box.
---> For example:
A search for Smith v. Smith will display decisions where the exact phrase Smith v. Smith appears together in the style of cause.
