Treatment types

For some jurisdictions, cases on vLex will have three numbers in the top-right corner. The total number of documents that cite that case will be grey, the number of positive treatments will be green, and the number of negative treatments will be red.

When you open your document, you will find this information expanded in the Cited in tab, and in the Precedent Map.

Treatment Types

These are the treatment types you will find on vLex:

Positive

This includes subsequent cases that actively follow the reasoning in the instant case and decisions of appellate courts that dismiss the appeals from a first-instance decision. These treatments will appear in green.

• Applied in: means that the case, dicta, or judgment was applied to circumstances in the linked case.

• Affirmed in: links to the document of a higher or appellate court that affirmed the decision.

• Approved in: links to the higher court document that referred to the current document as correct.

• Followed in: leads to a case in a higher court that accepted the current case as an established point of law.

• Relied upon: leads to a case that uses the current to explain or clarify fact in issue before Justices in the present case.

Neutral

The case was referred to in a subsequent case but no explicit or implicit value was ascribed to it in resolving the issue in that case. These treatments will appear in grey on all results pages (including the Cited In tab), and orange on the Precedent Map.

• Cited in: leads to a case that mentions the current document.

• Considered in: leads to a case in which the judgment considered the current case.

• Referred to: leads to a case in which Justices referred to the current one for a relevant issue considered or decided.

Caution

The case was referred to in a subsequent case, but the judge declined to apply it to the instant matter as it was considered not relevant. These treatments will appear in yellow.

• Distinguished in: leads to where the facts of the current one were considered materially different and therefore not applicable.

• Not applied in: leads to a case in which the current case, dicta, or judgment was not applied

• Not followed in: leads to a case of a similar court that was not accepted.

Negative

The case was referred to in a subsequent case, but the judge declined to apply it to the instant matter as it was considered no longer good law. These treatments will appear in red.

• Disapproved in: leads to a case in which the current one was held to be invalid or no longer recognized as good law, or it is doubted.

• Overruled in: leads to a higher court decision that held the current one as incorrect and no longer valid.

• Reversed in: leads to a decision of a higher court that reversed the current case.

Unclassified

This case has been found and recognized by vLex but has not been classified by our editors. These connections can still be valuable and will be displayed on your Precedent Map in grey.

Unclassified Treatments

For most jurisdictions, vLex can automatically find citations and references within documents. These will be linked within the text and shown within the following sections: Cited authorities, Cited in, and the Precedent Map.