# How to Navigate and Filter the Search Results Page

### Summary

The **Search Results Page** is where you can analyze your findings and use powerful filters to narrow down to the most relevant documents. Understanding this page is key to an efficient **vlex legal research** workflow.

### Why This is Important

Effectively using the results page saves critical research time. By applying filters and understanding the document previews, you can quickly discard irrelevant information and pinpoint the exact case law or legislation you need.

### Understanding the Results Page Layout

The results page is organized into three main columns:

* **Left Column (Filters):** This is your primary tool for refining results.
* **Center Column (Document List):** This shows the list of documents matching your query.
* **Right Column (Additional Information):** This may display relevant news articles or other contextual information depending on your search.

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="English Interface" %}

<figure><img src="/files/Aa94DWnyupV5xEmBoZbh" alt=""><figcaption><p>The results page is organized into three columns for easy navigation and filtering.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Interfaz en Español" %}

<figure><img src="/files/f6reOTO5YXix9ptMPP3e" alt=""><figcaption><p>La página de resultados está organizada en tres columnas para facilitar la navegación y el filtrado.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

### How to Filter Your Search Results

Use the filters in the left column to narrow your results.

1. **Search in results:** Enter new keywords here to search *only within* your current result set.
2. **Content type:** Select a document type (e.g., **Case Law**, **Legislation**) to see only that type of content.
3. **Jurisdiction:** Click **Select more jurisdictions** to add or remove countries from your search.
4. **Date:** Use the timeline slider or enter a specific date range to filter by publication date.
5. **Content-specific filters:** Depending on your search, you may see other filters like **Court**, **Cited authorities**, or **Category**.

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="English Interface" %}

<figure><img src="/files/tGb2jwRtM2pD1BLP94sE" alt=""><figcaption><p>Refine your results with filters -by keywords, content type, jurisdiction, date, and more.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Interfaz en Español" %}

<figure><img src="/files/liOuWgiy4h3puysZjale" alt=""><figcaption><p>Refina tus resultados con filtros: por palabras clave, tipo de contenido, jurisdicción, fecha y más.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

{% hint style="success" %}
Pro Tip: Use Search in results for Multi-Step Queries
\
Start with a broad search, then use the Search in results field to add more specific terms. This is often faster than building a complex Advanced Search from scratch.
{% endhint %}

### Understanding Document Previews

Each result in the list provides a rich preview to help you assess its relevance quickly.

* **Title and Metadata:** You will see the document title, court, publication date, and any parallel citations.
* **Treatment Indicators:** For case law from the **UK, Ireland, and the US**, you may see colored indicators (e.g., green/red treatments or Cert™ flags) that show the case's citation status at a glance.
* **Snippet of Text**: A **snippet of text** is a short excerpt from the document that shows your search terms in context. This allows you to quickly understand how your keywords are used in the document without having to open it.

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="English Interface" %}

<figure><img src="/files/o6Kej3xcymfHoK6AKunH" alt=""><figcaption><p>Quickly assess relevance with document previews showing key details and text snippets.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Interfaz en Español" %}

<figure><img src="/files/JNilBkzO03kW6bVmPuJH" alt=""><figcaption><p>Evalúa rápidamente la relevancia con vistas previas de los documentos que muestran detalles clave y fragmentos de texto.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}
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### Understanding Document Previews

At the top of the document list, a toolbar provides several actions:

* **Visualize top results:** Click **the statistics diagram icon** to open a visual map of the top results. This diagram displays each document as a circle, showing its relevance, publication date, and relationships to other key cases, helping you spot important precedents at a glance.
* **Add to folder:** Organize selected documents into a research folder.
* **Create an alert:** Get notified when new documents match your current search query.
* **Share:** Send a link to selected documents to a colleague.
* **Download:** Save selected documents to your computer.

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="English Interface" %}

<figure><img src="/files/KkxKFLDHQS49U35UWouA" alt=""><figcaption><p>Use the action icons to manage your results or visualize them.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Interfaz en Español" %}

<figure><img src="/files/xkt1bvtGieitTfLiW1Fy" alt=""><figcaption><p>Usa los iconos de acción para gestionar tus resultados o visualizarlos.</p></figcaption></figure>
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

### Best Practices & Pro Tips

* **Change Sort Order:** By default, results are sorted by **Relevance**. Use the dropdown menu at the top right of the document list to sort by **Most cited**, **Most recent**, or **Most visited**.

### Relevant Video Content

{% embed url="<https://vimeo.com/917906028?share=copy>" %}

### Related Articles

* [How vLex Library Ranks Search Results](/vlex-library/vlex-library-home/getting-started/how-vlex-library-ranks-search-results.md)
* [Using Boolean Operators to Refine Your Search](/vlex-library/vlex-library-home/getting-started/using-boolean-operators-to-refine-your-search.md)

**What's Your Next Step?**

| **New to** vLex Library **?**                                                                                                                                                                                   | **Already a** vLex Library **Customer?**                                                                                                                   |
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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```

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