Legal Research

a QuickStudy Laminated Reference Guide

Debra Moss Curtis, Vincent Feliu

• Publisher: QuickStudy Reference Guides
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN:
  9781423238744
• eBook ISBN:
  9781423240662
• Topic: Law
• Subtopic: Law Theory & Practice
• Index: Law

Legal research abilities will determine success as a law student, and as a lawyer, to the point it’s been argued the abilities should be tested on the bar exam. This handy tool authored and designed to be a concise pin-pointed reference can support those research abilities. In 6 laminated pages our clearly labeled sections offer answers to your questions at a glance. Our authors and professors Deborah Moss Vollweiler, JD, and Vicenç F. Feliú, JD, LLM, MLIS bring years of experience in teaching and practicing to this inexpensive, must have reference.
6 page laminated guide includes:

• Research Methodology
• Primary Authority Research
• Legislative System/Constitutions & Statutes
• Case Opinions: The Reporting System
• State Court Reporters
• Federal Court Reporters
• Locating Case law
• Secondary Authority Research
• Free Legal Sources Online
• Westlaw®
• Bloomberg Law
• Lexis®
• Heinonline

Secondary Authority Research

All secondary authority is persuasive (non-binding) on a case

ATTORNEY GENERAL’S OPINIONS

• Persuasive advisory opinion

1. Not binding
2. Noted as cited reference in Shepard’s U.S. Citations, U.S. Administrative Citations, federal citations, and state citations
3. Locate
   1. Check index for annual bound volume of opinions
   2. Check digest of opinions
   3. Update any relevant case or statute to determine if Attorney General Opinion is a cited reference using Shepard’s, Key-Cite, or BCite
   4. Check secondary sources to find an opinion cited in a footnote
4. Update
   1. No formal updating; opinions cannot be updated using Shepard’s, KeyCite, or BCite

PERSUASIVE PUBLICATIONS

• Restatements (published by American Law Institute (“ALI”))

1. Written by experts in particular field, setting forth what law is or should be
2. Attempt to codify common law
3. Revised and published in new editions
   1. Restatement: Statement of black letter law, explana­tory comments, and examples of principles
   2. Restatement 2d and 3d: Show new trends in common law and advocate what the rule should be
      1. Provide case authority and cross references to West and ALR
      2. Areas include: Agency, Conflict of Laws, Contracts, Foreign Relations, Judgments, Law Governing Lawyers, Property, Restitution, Security, Suretyship and Guaranty, Torts, Trusts, and Unfair Competition
4. Locate
   1. General Index for the 1st series
   2. Individual Index for both series by individual subjects
   3. Topic Method: Check Table of Contents for each restatement
5. Update
   1. 1st Restatement: See appendix in 2d series
   2. Prior to 1977: See Restatement in the Courts
   3. Post-1976: See pocket parts in 2d series
   4. Shepardize provision in Shepard’s Restatement of the Law Citations

• Legal periodicals

1. Research tool for cites to primary and secondary sources
   1. Analysis of current legal issues, in-depth analysis of a narrow topic, conflict in the law, or an undeveloped area of the law
2. Locate (research each year—not cumulative)
   1. Index to Legal Periodicals (“I.L.P.”) under:
      1. Subject/Author
      2. Table of cases
      3. Table of statutes
      4. Book reviews
      5. Online LegalTrac
   2. Current Law Index (“C.L.I.”): After 1980
      1. Use same method as above
   3. Current Index to Legal Periodicals (“C.I.L.P”)
      1. Use same method as above
      2. Available 4 to 6 weeks before ILP and CLI
      3. All citations are already in Bluebook format
3. Update
   1. Shepard’s Law Review Citations (somewhat limited)
      1. Lists courts and other law reviews that have cited the article

USEFUL SECONDARY SOURCES

• Treatises

1. In-depth discussion of a particular and narrow area (i.e., Collier on Bankruptcy)
2. Written in a narrative style, supported by footnotes, with practical comments
3. Locate
   1. Law library catalogue under title, subject, or author; or other’s recommendation
   2. Find relevant section in treatise
      1. Subject index, table of contents, and table of cases or statutes
4. Update
   1. Pocket parts
   2. Separate bound supplements
   3. New editions
   4. Update relevant cases or statutes using Shepard’s, KeyCite, or BCite

Legal encyclopedias

1. These attempt to cover all of U.S. law. They are used to get an overview of a field or to find general rules of law. They are heavily footnoted and can also be used for finding cases
2. General overview on an area of law
   1. Has an emphasis on case authority
   2. Explains the current general state of law
   3. Is organized alphabetically by topic
3. Corpus Juris Secundum (“CJS”)
   1. Covers state and federal law
   2. Cross-reference to any West digest
4. American Jurisprudence (“Am Jur2d”)
   1. References to American Law Reports (“ALR”)
   2. Am Jur2d: New topic updates with loose-leaf service
5. State encyclopedias
   1. Same type of resource as national, but limited in scope by state EX: Florida Jurisprudence (“Fla Jur”)
6. Special-interest encyclopedias
   1. How-to-do-it books (i.e., Am Jur Trials)
   2. Commentary by expert in the field

• American Law Reports (“ALR”)

1. ALR publishes articles called “annotations” that sum­marize cases from around the U.S. on specific topics
2. Annotated reports
   1. Editorial discussion of a narrow topic
   2. Table of Jurisdictions: Quick reference
   3. Summary: States law regarding subject and relevant background materials
   4. Theories of recovery and defenses
   5. Applicable rules, weight of authority, and trends
   6. Cross-reference to West “key number system” in ALR5th and suggested electronic search queries
3. Published in 5 series chronologically and in federal series
   1. Federal: 1969 to present; prior cases in with states in ALR3d
4. Locate
   1. Quick Index: Use analysis of facts to locate keywords and phrases
   2. Table of Cases: Use relevant case cite to locate annotation
   3. Digest Method: Broad topics with cites to annotations and brief synopses to cases within annotation
   4. Table of Laws and Regulations Method: Only ALR Fed
5. Update
   1. Check the Table of Jurisdiction listed in a particular portion of the annotation
   2. Check the Historical Table in ALR3d and ALR4th quick index and pocket part
   3. Check the Bluebook of Supplemental Decisions, Historical Tables
   4. Update after locating the case using Shepard’s, KeyCite, or BCite

• Practice and procedure books

1. State Continuing Legal Education (CLE) materials
2. Federal and state civil and criminal procedure codes EX: Moore’s Federal Practice, California Practice (West), New York Civil Practice (M. Bender)

• Form books

1. Supplement practice and procedure books
2. Include samples of documents needed to file along with references to appropriate procedural statute(s) and rule(s)

Dictionaries and glossaries

1. Formulate working definitions to continue search
2. Words and Phrases
   1. Multivolume combination dictionary-digest

• Study aids (hornbooks, outlines, and nutshells)

1. Used to ...

Table of contents

• Introduction
• Primary Authority Research
• Legislative System/Constitutions & Statutes
• Case Opinions: The Reporting System
• State Court Reporters
• Federal Court Reporters
• Locating Case Law
• Secondary Authority Research
• Free Legal Sources Online
• Westlaw®
• Bloomberg Law
• Lexis®
• Heinonline