The Importance of Research in Legal Practice

Dal Pozzo Advogados Law Firm, in an avant-garde and, to what is known, unprecedented attitude, implemented an internal sector named Advanced Research Unit – ARU, responsible for deepening the legal debates held with administrative and judicial courts by the firm and for putting scientific research as a driving force of knowledge for its lawyers, thus achieving an even more differentiated and consistent set of legal services in a world where superficiality unfortunately ends up prevailing.

To such end, it is necessary to know, technically, what research is and how it can help defend the interests of our clients. It can be affirmed that research is the most basic activity of science, because it is through research that the data and information responsible for the impelling and building of knowledge are reached, and thus representing a true generator of knowledge. The search for information derives from a restlessness of which man is affected, which causes him to undertake methods and systems capable of bringing him ever closer to his goal, that is, the solution of his inquiries. In this way, it can be said eloquently that doubt is the true fuel of research.

The research activity, in general, is the relentless search for information, through the collection of material connected with the specific subject, but in an indistinct manner, without the application of any method. Scientific and methodological research, in turn, is translated into an intellectual, rational, objective procedure, surrounded by methods, systems and techniques capable of professionalizing the search for information in such a manner that its result generates an effectiveness capable of making it determinant for legal production.

To help collect data and ensure its efficiency, a number of facilitators have been added to the search activity over time, capable of directing the search, previously organized and sometimes even categorized by computerized system. The greatest examples of these facilitators are on the Internet, which is a true BIG DATA for the most varied and unimaginable themes.

Due to these innovations, we can count on an organized and systematized compilation of settled case-law of the courts by subject, the statutes displayed in an accessible form, practically in the three spheres of government, the agility in the search and disclosure of new information, the increasing access to the acts of government, a large number of legal news websites, as well as a vast array of digital articles, so it is clear that today, professionals looking for information no longer encounter difficulties such as to make their success unfeasible.

In addition, the legal researcher’s work is also crucial for the efficiency of the search for information, since scientific research requires not only the ability to collect material related to the subject demanded, but also know where to look for it, as well as the ability to systematize and categorize the information obtained, so that it can be analyzed efficiently.

Therefore, there is a pressing need to raise awareness in the legal community about the need for research valorization and the awareness of the differential that well-researched investigation of the matter can represent in the development of legal production in general, with effective and persistent applicability in the routine of legal professionals.

The interest in scientific research needs to be widely cultivated, since legal action that is distant from research and analysis of data and information may directly impact the originated production, thus jeopardizing its quality, legal certainty and, ultimately, the relationship with the client, in addition to tarnishing the image of the professional involved.