Press Releases

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Oct. 29, 2002 -- FindLaw, the Web's leading destination for information about the law, and Nolo, the country's leading publisher of self-help legal software and books, today announced a new relationship with Microsoft bCentral, the leading Internet resource for small business. Nolo and FindLaw will provide all law-related small-business content and resources on the new bCentral Legal Center( www.bcentral.com/resources/legal.asp ).

"bCentral offers tools and solutions that help small businesses manage everyday business processes; our new Legal Center is a great addition for our customers," said Jeff Riley, general manager of small-business marketing for Microsoft Business Solutions at Microsoft Corp. "FindLaw and Nolo share the strong commitment bCentral has to small businesses by offering useful tools and services to help them grow and be more successful."

Customers of bCentral expressed a strong desire for a small-business legal center that would provide access to free content, products, forms and a lawyer directory, and the bCentral team responded. The bCentral Legal Center features resources from FindLaw and Nolo, such as user-friendly articles, forms, books, software and West Legal Directory, the Internet's largest searchable nationwide directory of attorneys. FindLaw and Nolo are presenting information on bCentral that includes employment law, starting and running a small business, intellectual property and other legal topics important to small businesses.

"We are excited about this new relationship with Nolo and Microsoft," said Stacy Stern, FindLaw vice president. "The Legal Center on bCentral provides a powerful resource for the legal issues small-business owners encounter every day."

"The Internet is tailor-made for delivering self-help legal information," said Ralph Warner, Nolo's executive publisher and co-founder. "Nolo's 30 years of making the law accessible to everyone helps us provide legal information that is a powerful tool in small-business owners' hands."

The Legal Center on bCentral complements other tools and services on the site that help small businesses become more successful, by allowing them to easily create and manage a Web presence, improve sales and marketing effectiveness, and respond more quickly to customers. bCentral is available online at www.bcentral.com .

FindLaw is a division of West, a Thomson business, the foremost provider of integrated information solutions to the U.S. legal market.

About Nolo

Nolo ( www.nolo.com ) is the nation's leading provider of self-help legal solutions for consumers and small businesses. Since 1971, Nolo has offered affordable, plain-English tools: Books, software, legal forms and Web resources that help individuals and small businesses master a wide range of legal issues, including divorce, estate planning, real estate, personal finance, intellectual property and starting and running a small business. Nolo's Web site offers downloadable forms, software, books, and a free, comprehensive online legal encyclopedia.

About FindLaw

FindLaw ( www.findlaw.com ) is the leading provider of online legal information and solutions for the legal community, businesses and individuals. FindLaw's Internet portal is the highest-trafficked legal Web site, according to leading independent Internet traffic-monitoring services.

The site provides comprehensive, plain-English legal information to businesses and individuals. These resources include West Legal Directory, the Internet's largest directory of lawyers and legal professionals. FindLaw also offers comprehensive information, resources and services for law practice and legal career development, including free case law, an online career center, breaking legal news, newsletters, message boards, service directories, continuing legal education and legal search tools. In addition, FindLaw provides access to tools and services that help connect legal professionals with potential clients. FindLaw is a division of West, a Thomson business, and the foremost provider of integrated information solutions to the U.S. legal market.

About The Thomson Corporation

The Thomson Corporation ( www.thomson.com ), with 2001 revenues of $7.2 billion, is a global leader in providing integrated information solutions to business and professional customers. Thomson provides value-added information, software applications and tools to more than 20 million users in the fields of law, tax, accounting, financial services, higher education, reference information, corporate training and assessment, scientific research and healthcare. The Corporation's common shares are listed on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges.