Lexis^® uses the following order of operations for connector searches:

1. ( ) have the highest priority. If parentheses are present in a search, things enclosed in parentheses are dealt with first.
2. or
3. proximity connectors¹, such as near/n, onear/n, /seg,  w/n,  pre/n,  NOT/n,  NOT/seg, /s, /p, w/sent, w/para
4. and
5. not / and not

Example:     bankrupt! w/25 discharg! and not student or college or education! w/5 (loan and scholarship)

This search query is processed in the following way:

1. ( ) has the highest priority, so the terms and connectors within the parentheses operate first. In this example, (loan and scholarship) are processed as a unit before any other connectors apply.
2. or has the next highest priority, so it operates next. In this example, student or college or education! is processed as a unit, which is created by the or connector.
3. w/5 ties together the term loan and the student or college or education! unit.
4. w/25 operates next and creates a unit of the bankrupt! w/25 discharg! terms.
5. and not, with the lowest priority, operates last and links the units formed in the second and third items above.