1 / 63

Today’s Agenda

“You Want Me To Research WHAT?!?” (Getting Background & Keeping Current) Jennifer L. Behrens Research Madness 2010. Today’s Agenda. Getting Background Basic Strategies Legal Encyclopedia Journals and News Sources Other Background Sources Keeping Current Alert Services in Lexis/Westlaw

bisa
Download Presentation

Today’s Agenda

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. “You Want Me To Research WHAT?!?”(Getting Background & Keeping Current)Jennifer L. BehrensResearch Madness 2010

  2. Today’s Agenda • Getting Background • Basic Strategies • Legal Encyclopedia • Journals and News Sources • Other Background Sources • Keeping Current • Alert Services in Lexis/Westlaw • Looseleaf/Electronic Services • Legal Blogs (“Blawgs”) • RSS feeds

  3. Our Example • A neighborhood homeowners’ association (HOA) policy prohibits children under 16 from accessing the common pool and clubhouse. • Our client feels that this is unfair discrimination based on family status. • Does the Fair Housing Act cover suits related to discrimination claims by existing homeowners or renters?

  4. Getting Background: The Basics • Ask a Librarian! • Make the web work for you • Online research guides • Zimmerman’s on Lexis • Library Research Guides • Research guidebooks • By jurisdiction • By subject

  5. Beyond Google • Overlap between search engines is not as high as you’d think. • Try a variety of search engines to discover unique content. • Google: Do you use expert commands? • Bing: Good “related search” filter option. • Dogpile: Searches across the “Big 4” • Kosmix: results page presents snapshots of information from a multitude of sources.

  6. Online Research Guides Zimmerman’s (LexisNexis) http://www.lexisnexis.com/infopro/zimmerman • “Online encyclopedia for legal researchers.” • Free; no Lexis login required. • Provides tips and tricks for researching a wide variety of topics, with links to many free resources.

  7. Topics include legal as well as non-legal (e.g., researching specific industries). Can browse the alphabet or search by keywords.

  8. Includes a bit of contextual background, links to free (and paid) resources, & suggested search terms.

  9. Law Library Guides

  10. Custom Search • Cornell’s engine uses a Google Custom Search (http://www.google.com/cse/) to look across selected law libraries. • Not all law school’s research guides are included. • If you do a lot of research for a particular state’s laws, create your own custom search for the research guides of all of the law school libraries in that state.

  11. Research Guidebooks • Research guidebooks are published for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. • There are also many guides to research on specific topics (e.g., tax, intellectual property, factual research, etc.). • Search WorldCat (http://www.worldcat.org) for titles, or ask your firm librarian.

  12. Legal Encyclopedia Legal encyclopedias are a great way to quickly find background information on a topic, with references for further reading. • Wex (Cornell LII) • American Jurisprudence / CJS • State-specific encyclopedias

  13. Wex • http://topics.law.cornell.edu/wex/ • The Wikipedia of legal research (for better or for worse) • Free • Collaboratively edited (with more control than Wikipedia) • Some entries are brief definitions; some are more encyclopedic. • Links for further research

  14. General Legal Encyclopedia • American Jurisprudence 2d (AmJur) Published in print by West, and available online in both Lexis and Westlaw. • Corpus Juris Secundum (CJS) Published in print by West, and available online only on Westlaw. • Practice with the print-- it’s cheaper than accessing online! • Organized by alphabetical legal topics and divided into outline sections.

  15. State-Specific Encyclopedia • Many states have their own jurisdiction-specific encyclopedia. • Some are available on Lexis/Westlaw. • A good list is available at the Harvard Law Library: http://www.law.harvard.edu/library/research/guides/united_states/alr_legal_encyclopedias.html

  16. Legal Journals and News • Legal journals and newspapers can be a great source for information on a topic. • Law review articles can also provide good background (e.g., legislative history), but may not be as helpful for newer, cutting-edge legal topics.

  17. There is a difference between searching “keyword” and “entire document” in this database– “keyword” looks only in selected parts of the article (title, subjects, author, etc.). To search for a word in the full text of the article, use the “entire document” field.

  18. Results are sorted by type of publication – let’s look at each more closely.

  19. Academic Journals (Law Reviews) • PUBLISHED BY: Law schools, edited by students. • AUTHORS: Law scholars (articles); law students (notes). • AUDIENCE: More academic/scholarly. • CONTENTS: Can range from examination of a single case to a history of an entire legal doctrine. Give extensive footnote references for further research.

  20. Academic Journals • Lexis and Westlaw offer full-text of many law reviews and legal journals, generally dating back to early 1980s. • Historical law review and journal articles can be found in PDF in many databases, such as HeinOnline and JSTOR. • Pre-publication articles might be posted free on the journal’s web site, or SSRN (http://www.ssrn.com). • ABA Legal Technology Resource Center offers search engine of open-access law journals (http://www.abanet.org/tech/ltrc/lawreviewsearch.html).

  21. Magazines (Legal Journals) • PUBLISHED BY: National/state bar associations; other legal organizations. • AUTHORS: Practicing lawyers • INTENDED AUDIENCE: Practicing lawyers • CONTENTS:Often discuss current/pending cases, with a focus on what impact cases will have on future practice in that area of law.

  22. Legal News • PUBLISHED BY: National/state bar associations; other legal organizations. • AUTHORS: Practicing lawyers • INTENDED AUDIENCE: Practicing lawyers • CONTENTS:The latest cases, jury verdicts, and settlement information. • Law.com (free registration) is a mega-site from the publishers of several major legal papers.

  23. Not Full-Text? • If you have a citation to an article, but could not find the full text, check the Law Library’s Online Full-Text Journal link, or click the icon in the online catalog or database: • Will lead you to full-text sources for a particular journal or newspaper title, which are available through Duke with a NetID.

  24. Note: This search does not check full-text availability on Law School Lexis or Westlaw.

  25. Not Full-Text Online? • If your firm has a library, they may have a subscription, either in print or with an online password. • Check with your firm’s librarian about obtaining the full-text of specific sources. • You may also be able to obtain a copy through a nearby library.

  26. Other Sources for Background • Nutshells: Concise, pocket-size outlines of the “general rules” on a legal topic. • Hornbooks: larger, one-volume discussions of an area of law. • Treatises: Expansive, multi-volume sets of analysis on a legal topic, written by leading law scholars. • Harvard Legal Treatises List • Georgetown Treatise Finder • Often full-text on Lexis (Matthew Bender) or Westlaw

  27. More Background Sources: ALR • American Law Reports: Lengthier encyclopedia-like entries (called “annotations”). Available in print & on Lexis/Westlaw. • Provide more discussion and analysis of the “general rule” and link to an extensive number of cases, arranged by jurisdiction. • Does not attempt to be comprehensive – there may not be an annotation precisely on point.

  28. In practice, it might be easier and more cost-effective to look in the print index and use print volumes of ALR. If you must search online, a good trick is to restrict at least some of your search terms to the title field/segment.

  29. More Sources: 50-State Surveys • 50-state surveys compile the laws on a particular topic from all jurisdictions; provide researchers with easy access to specific code sections for a topic. • Search “fifty state survey” in WorldCat (www.worldcat.org) to find titles on a particular topic, or use a general overview source. • National Survey of State Laws (Ref KF 386 .N38 2008 & Westlaw: SURVEYS) gives tables of state code sections on various topics.

  30. More Sources: 50-State Surveys • Lexis also offers 50-state legislative and regulatory surveys. • Each survey is priced at $125.00 (which sounds expensive, but is a deal compared to searching in “All 50 State Codes” database!). • Can be saved as spreadsheet with active links to the code sections.

  31. More Sources: PJI • Pattern Jury Instructions (PJI) are delivered by judges to a jury, to explain the causes of action and issues. A.K.A. “model” jury instructions. • Often include case references and clear descriptions of the elements and causes which must be proven. • Occasionally, only published in print, or exclusive online access in Lexis, Westlaw, Loislaw, or Casemaker.

  32. Getting Background • There’s no one “right” way to begin gathering background information. • Keys to success: • Brainstorm possible search words. • Search a variety of sources; some will be more helpful than others. • Begin with free/low-cost resources; then use the terminology or other clues you discover in premium sources like Lexis/Westlaw. • Be brave enough to ask for help!

  33. Keeping Current

  34. Alert Services • It’s critical to track the status of precedent that you cite in a memo or brief, especially if you know an appeal is pending. • Both Lexis and Westlaw offer search alerts, to re-run your search terms at various intervals or to alert you when new items appear in a Shepard’s/KeyCite report.

More Related