Legal Writing
Steps in the Legal Research Process
- Identify legal terminology and factual words describing your issue.
- Search secondary research materials such as legal news, encyclopedias, books (treatises and hornbooks) and law reviews (scholarly legal articles)
- Use secondary sources to discover primary sources of law, such as constitutions, cases, statutes, and regulations.
- Identify the jurisdiction and source of law to find the full text of primary sources.
- Research is an iterative process. Use what you've learned to improve your search!
PREZI on Legal Research Process
Reading Legal Citations
Introduction to Basic Legal Citations (LII 2007 ed) by Peter Martin is an exellent guide to how to read and write legal citations. It provides guidance on how to reference legal materials using both the two most commonly used standards the Blue Book and ALWD.
Illustrative Case Citation
Distict of Columbia v. Heller, 128 S.Ct. 2783 (2008)
Parties to the case: District of Columbia and Heller
Reporter abbreviation: S.Ct.
Volume number: 128
1st page of case: 2783
Year case decided: 2008
Illustrative Statute Citation
D.C. Code sec. 7-2501 (LexisNexis 2008)
Abbreviation for statute codification: D.C. Code
Section of codification: 7-2501
Source and date: (LexisNexis 2008)
Illustrative Law Journal Article
Allen Rosten, Incrementalism, Comprehensive Rationality and the Future of Gun Control, 67 Md. Law Rev. 511 (2008)
Author: Allen Rosten
Article Title: Incrementalism...
Abbreviation of journal: Md. Law Rev
Volume number 67
1st page of article: 511
Year article published: 2008
Secondary Sources: Encyclopedias
- West's Encyclopedia of American Law
- Encyclopedia of the American Constitution
- Oxford Guide to United Supreme Court Decisions
- Oxford Companion to Supreme Court Decisions
- Supreme Court Yearbook
- WEX
- American Jurisprudence 2nd via Lexis-Nexis
Secondary Sources: Books, Treatises, Hornbooks
Falvey Memorial Library Catalog Include words such as legal or law or regulation or legislation in your search. Alternately narrow your search to the K "Call Number.
Villanova University School of Law Library Catalog Avoid using the words law or legal or legislation in this catalog. The entire collection is legal in nature. Books available for in library use only.
Secondary Sources: Law Reviews and Legal News
- LexisNexis Offers both law reviews and legal news
- HeinOnline Search interface less flexible than LexisNexis All law reviews are pdf.
- ABI/Inform General index and abstract database with good coverage of legal news. Very few law reviews included.
Primary Sources
Primary sources are the law. Only bodies with lawmaking power can create primary sources. Examples of primary sources include constitutions, legislation, regulations, ordinances, executive orders, cases and treaties.
Law Library of Congress Guide to Law Online This is a selective guide to authritative free online sources for state, national, foreign and international law.
LexisNexis This database provides access to state and federal constitutions, statutues, and cases.
Google Legal Opinions and Journals
