Top 12 Litigation Specialist Skills to Put on Your Resume

In a competitive legal landscape, showcasing your expertise as a litigation specialist on your resume can set you apart from the crowd. Highlight a mix of technical proficiency, sharp analysis, and people skills tuned for litigation. That’s what gets attention at firms and legal departments that move fast and expect precision.

Litigation Specialist Skills

1. LexisNexis
2. Westlaw
3. PACER
4. CaseMap
5. Time Matters
6. eDiscovery
7. Relativity
8. TrialDirector
9. Bluebook
10. Clio
11. Depositions
12. Negotiation

1. LexisNexis

LexisNexis offers an extensive library of case law, statutes, secondary sources, and analytics tools that help litigation specialists research, map strategy, and prepare filings with confidence.

Why It's Important

It centralizes authoritative sources and enhances research speed and accuracy, which directly supports motion practice, brief writing, and case assessment.

How to Improve LexisNexis Skills

1. Leverage analytics: Use tools like Lex Machina and Judicial/Attorney analytics to forecast tendencies and pressure-test strategy.

2. Tune alerts: Set targeted alerts for new cases, statutory updates, and news tied to your matters and jurisdictions.

3. Train with purpose: Work through product trainings and certifications; practice live searches that mirror active matters.

4. Use Practical Guidance: Pull checklists, exemplars, and clauses to speed drafting and reduce rework.

5. Explore Lexis+: Tap into advanced search, brief-analysis, and visualization features to find authority faster.

Refined search craft and smart alerting compound over time—less noise, more signal.

How to Display LexisNexis Skills on Your Resume

2. Westlaw

Westlaw provides deep primary law, KeyCite, editorial enhancements, and research tools (including Quick Check). Many teams now use Westlaw Precision for tighter results.

Why It's Important

It accelerates precedent hunting, validation, and argument development—core fuel for motions and trial prep.

How to Improve Westlaw Skills

1. Master search: Use terms-and-connectors, field restrictors, and Key Number System browsing to narrow surgically.

2. Apply Quick Check: Analyze drafts and opposing filings to uncover missed authority or weak cites.

3. Dial in sources: Build jurisdiction- and practice-specific favorites and start pages for faster entry.

4. Organize: Use folders, annotations, and highlights; keep research tied to matter names and issues.

5. Stay current: Set cite and topic alerts; take periodic trainings to keep pace with new features.

Good habits here mean fewer blind spots and stronger citations.

How to Display Westlaw Skills on Your Resume

3. PACER

PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) gives direct access to federal dockets, filings, and case details across courts nationwide.

Why It's Important

It’s the live pulse of federal litigation—indispensable for tracking activity, pulling filings, and monitoring procedural posture.

How to Improve PACER Skills

1. Use Case Locator smartly: Combine party, nature-of-suit, date, and region filters; save frequent courts as favorites.

2. Control costs: Preview docket text before downloading; pull only needed pages; watch quarterly fee thresholds.

3. Work with CM/ECF: If counsel of record, rely on CM/ECF notices; where available, track court RSS for updates.

4. Standardize naming: Create uniform file names and folder structures so teams find documents instantly.

5. Audit and archive: Keep a retrieval log, store receipts, and maintain a clean local or DMS archive with metadata.

Precision searches and disciplined downloads keep dockets tidy—and budgets sane.

How to Display PACER Skills on Your Resume

4. CaseMap

CaseMap centralizes facts, issues, people, and documents so you can connect dots, spot gaps, and build coherent case theory. Newer deployments include CaseMap Cloud.

Why It's Important

It turns scattered evidence into a structured story, giving teams a shared source of truth.

How to Improve CaseMap Skills

1. Model the case: Define issues, fact types, and relationships early; keep taxonomy stable across matters.

2. Tag rigorously: Use consistent tags and custom fields; enforce data hygiene with required fields.

3. Integrate: Connect with transcript tools (e.g., TextMap) and timelines (e.g., TimeMap) for richer analysis.

4. Report often: Generate fact, issue, and gap reports to pressure-test theories with the team.

5. Train the team: Short, focused sessions on entry standards and review practices keep data clean.

Case clarity emerges when everyone speaks the same data language.

How to Display CaseMap Skills on Your Resume

5. Time Matters

Time Matters is legal practice management software for calendaring, matter management, document handling, intake, and communications—geared to keep litigation deadlines and deliverables on track.

Why It's Important

It reduces dropped balls. Centralized tasks, deadlines, and documents mean fewer surprises and better client updates.

How to Improve Time Matters Skills

1. Customize workflows: Build matter types, forms, and checklists that mirror your litigation lifecycle.

2. Integrate tools: Connect email, calendaring, and Microsoft 365; sync with document repositories.

3. Automate documents: Use templates and merge fields for recurring pleadings, letters, and discovery shells.

4. Track communications: Log emails and calls to matters; schedule follow-ups so threads don’t vanish.

5. Report and review: Use dashboards and custom reports to monitor deadlines, WIP, and throughput.

6. Harden security: Apply role-based access and routine audits; back up frequently.

7. Invest in training: Refresh skills with vendor tutorials; appoint a power user to champion standards.

A tuned system becomes a quiet engine for the whole team.

How to Display Time Matters Skills on Your Resume

6. eDiscovery

eDiscovery covers identifying, preserving, collecting, processing, reviewing, and producing electronically stored information—email, chats, docs, databases, mobiles, and more.

Why It's Important

Modern disputes live in data. Robust eDiscovery practice cuts cost, reduces risk, and surfaces the facts that decide cases.

How to Improve eDiscovery Skills

1. Follow a model: Use frameworks like the EDRM to standardize processes from hold to production.

2. Adopt modern tools: Deploy platforms with analytics, threading, deduplication, and TAR for speed and quality.

3. Document protocols: Memorialize scope, custodians, formats, and QC; negotiate ESI agreements early.

4. Secure by default: Enforce least-privilege access, encryption, and audit trails; test incident response.

5. Upskill relentlessly: Cross-train legal, IT, and review teams; pursue relevant certifications.

6. Measure and iterate: Track precision/recall, review rates, and error trends; refine culling strategies.

Good process plus the right tech beats brute force review every time.

How to Display eDiscovery Skills on Your Resume

7. Relativity

Relativity (including RelativityOne) is a leading review platform for hosting, analyzing, and producing large data sets securely.

Why It's Important

It streamlines review at scale—search, coding, analytics, and productions—so your team finds the signal in terabytes of noise.

How to Improve Relativity Skills

1. Pursue training: Work through Relativity Academy paths; aim for certifications aligned to your role.

2. Practice builds speed: Create sandboxes; rehearse workflows for processing, batching, and productions.

3. Use analytics: Email threading, near-dup, concept search, and active learning lift review quality.

4. Standardize QC: Build saved searches for privilege checks, coding conflicts, and completeness audits.

5. Engage the community: Swap workflows, macros, and troubleshooting tips with experienced users.

Knowing when to lean on analytics versus brute review is where expertise shines.

How to Display Relativity Skills on Your Resume

8. TrialDirector

TrialDirector helps organize, manage, and present exhibits, video, and demonstratives in hearings and trials with speed and control.

Why It's Important

In the courtroom, seconds matter. Smooth exhibit call-ups and clean presentations bolster credibility and persuasion.

How to Improve TrialDirector Skills

1. Train, then drill: Work through vendor tutorials; run mock hearings with hot-seat practice.

2. Template setups: Build standard project structures for exhibits, witness sets, and issue tags.

3. Annotate fast: Master callouts, highlights, and side-by-side displays; preload key sequences.

4. Redundancy plans: Test equipment, keep backups, and map fallbacks; label cables and media clearly.

5. Integrate sources: Coordinate with case teams so exhibit lists, video cuts, and transcripts stay in sync.

Calm, confident hot-seat work makes the whole team look sharp.

How to Display TrialDirector Skills on Your Resume

9. Bluebook

The Bluebook standardizes legal citation in the U.S., governing how cases, statutes, and secondary sources are cited across filings and publications. The 21st edition is current.

Why It's Important

Clear, correct citations build credibility, speed review, and avoid court pushback or redo work.

How to Improve Bluebook Skills

1. Daily reps: Cite from live briefs and motions; keep a running checklist of rules you miss.

2. Know the tables: Internalize abbreviations, jurisdictions, and signals; keep quick references handy.

3. Peer review: Trade cite-checks; build a style guide for your team to reduce drift.

4. Track updates: Monitor errata and rule clarifications; revise templates promptly.

5. Automate carefully: Use citation tools to draft, then verify every result against the rule text.

Speed is nice. Accuracy wins.

How to Display Bluebook Skills on Your Resume

10. Clio

Clio is a cloud-based platform for case management, billing, intake, tasks, and document management—well-suited to litigation teams that need visibility and mobility.

Why It's Important

It synchronizes calendars, deadlines, time, and files while keeping clients informed and bills accurate.

How to Improve Clio Skills

1. Customize matters: Build custom fields and matter templates that mirror your litigation stages.

2. Automate docs: Create document templates for pleadings, discovery requests, and letters.

3. Task lists: Use cascading task lists for filing deadlines, discovery schedules, and pretrial checklists.

4. Track time everywhere: Use desktop and mobile timers; convert tasks and calls to time entries.

5. Secure sharing: Use the client portal for documents and messaging instead of email when possible.

6. Payments and trust: Configure online payments, trust accounting, and automated reminders.

7. Integrations: Connect to document storage (e.g., Dropbox, OneDrive), video meetings, and email.

8. Train and audit: Attend webinars, review release notes, and run periodic data-quality checks.

Small setup investments yield outsized daily savings.

How to Display Clio Skills on Your Resume

11. Depositions

Depositions are sworn, out-of-court testimony captured for discovery and trial. They shape strategy, expose weaknesses, and preserve evidence.

Why It's Important

They test themes, lock in narratives, and surface documents and facts you’ll later wield in motion practice and at trial.

How to Improve Depositions Skills

1. Prepare ruthlessly: Build an outline keyed to exhibits and elements; plan funnels from broad to surgical.

2. Listen like a hawk: Follow up on hedges, absolutes, and inconsistencies; loop back to confirm.

3. Control pace: Short questions, one fact at a time; use silence; mark exhibits with clear foundations.

4. Handle difficult witnesses: Keep tone even; re-ask; box in evasions; use prior statements precisely.

5. Use tech smoothly: Organize electronic exhibits and video; practice screen-sharing and mark-ups.

6. Debrief immediately: Summarize admissions, follow-ups, and impeachment clips while it’s fresh.

Good depositions are built before they start—and sharpened minute by minute.

How to Display Depositions Skills on Your Resume

12. Negotiation

Negotiation is the structured back-and-forth that closes gaps, resolves disputes, and narrows issues—before, during, or after litigation.

Why It's Important

It can save clients time, money, and risk exposure while delivering outcomes aligned with real-world interests.

How to Improve Negotiation Skills

1. Prep your map: Clarify interests, constraints, leverage, and BATNAs for both sides.

2. Communicate with intent: Ask calibrated questions; listen actively; frame proposals in terms of interests.

3. Build rapport: Professional tone and small concessions lubricate hard moves later.

4. Use structure: Agenda, decision rules, and timelines keep talks moving and focused.

5. Manage emotion: Name it, normalize it, and return to criteria; don’t negotiate angry.

6. Document precisely: Memorialize terms, milestones, and contingencies; verify authority to bind.

7. Keep learning: Role-play, debrief outcomes, study styles; refine your playbook with each deal.

Clarity plus curiosity beats bluster. Every time.

How to Display Negotiation Skills on Your Resume