How-To Guides for Legal Research
- Free Legal Resources on the Web (Loyola University, Chicago) Includes a First Year Legal Research Guide with instructions for using Reporters and the West Key Number System; how to read a case, using citators, how to cite cases. Sections on statues and codes, administrative laws, secondary sources. A paralegal resource guide lists books, journals, databases, Web resources.
- Legal Research Guides, Library of Congress Guides are intended to "help you begin a legal research project by offering quick techniques and a selection of legal resources and tools." Guides include: Administrative Law Guide, Beginner's Guide to Legal Research, Federal Legislative History: Initial Steps, Foreign and International Law Guides, Researching Federal Statutes, Guide to Secondary Legal Resources, Researching Judicial Decisions.
- Introduction to Westlaw Training video from Thomson Reuters Legal. Topics: Global Search, All Content, Practice Areas, Citation Search, Document Delivery.
- Getting Started on Westlaw Downloadable free user guides including "Westlaw Guide for Paralegals," "Cost-Effective Research Tips," Westlaw Basics: Ten Quick Tips for Using Westlaw."
Case Law Citators from Westlaw and Nexis Uni to Verify the Status of Cases
- Researching Case Law (University of Cincinnati) Explains how to use the two main case law citators to verify the status of a case--"Keycite" (Westlaw) and " Shepards" (Nexis Uni). Includes training videos, guides to symbols used in each system, and information about the B-Cite citation analysis tool.
Writing Guides for Paralegals
The Elements of Legal Writing by ISBN: 9780028608396Publication Date: 1996-05-01Limited User Access (1 copy)
Legal Analysis and Writing for Paralegals by ISBN: 9780314128300Publication Date: 1997-08-01Limited User Access (1 copy)
- Exercises from Legal Writing in Plain English Garner provides legal professionals sound advice and practical tools for improving their written work. He teaches legal writers how to organize ideas, create and refine prose, and improve editing skills.
- Introduction to Basic Legal Citation (Cornell University) From the Cornell University School of Law, a website that lists and provides links to short video tutorials on citing judicial opinions, constitutional and statutory provisions, agency material. Examples of citations for judicial opinions, court rules, agency and executive materials, law journals, and much more.
- Legal Research and Writing (Paralegal Today website) Legal Writing for Personal Injury Cases, Guidelines for Drafting Stipulations of Settlement, Important Legal Writing Tools for Paralegals, Drafting Straight-Forward Jury Instructions, Drafting Contracts.
- Online Legal Writing Center (Pennsylvania State University) A website with links to sites that help you achieve excellence in legal writing.
- Paralegal Writing Skills The National Association of Legal Assistants sponsors this podcast of a discussion with a lawyer and bestselling author who teaches legal professionals how to write precisely, vividly, and concisely. Explains the basics of the Plain Writing Act of 2010.
- Writing Resources on the Web (CUNY School of Law) Web resources on legal writing are listed and linked. Resources are arranged under these headings: Legal Writing and Reference, General Writing and Reference, For Fun, and Writing Podcasts. An excellent website for students.
Legal Dictionaries and Encyclopedias
- Justia.com Dictionary Justia offers a legal dictionary that is both searchable and browsable by major legal topics such as family law, estate planning, intellectual property, military law, real estate, child support, and business operations.
- law.com This site offers a free legal dictionary that defines important legal terms. It is a good resource to use when you're getting started with a new legal topic.
- WEX (from Cornell University) "Wex is a free legal dictionary and encyclopedia sponsored and hosted by the Legal Information Institute at the Cornell Law School. Wex entries are collaboratively created and edited by legal experts." (From the Web site.)
State, National, and International Resources
- American Bar Association Links of Interest A list of links to informational resources on criminal justice includes: Corrections, Courts, Defense, Juvenile Justice, Legislative and Governmental, Military Law, Prosecution, Research (National Criminal Justice Research Center), Victims.
- Brennan Center for Justice "The Brennan Center for Justice is an independent, nonpartisan law and policy organization that works to reform, revitalize, and when necessary, defend our country’s systems of democracy and justice."--From the Center's website.
- FindLaw This browseable and searchable database from FindLaw offers U.S. Supreme Court opinions since 1893. FindLaw also maintains a database of case summaries for lower court opinions since 2000.
- Free Legal Research Resources (Harvard Law School Library) "This guide contains selected free online legal research resources. These resources can be a great way to get started with your research when you don't have access to paid databases or if you want to get an overview of a topic..." An annotated list of online sources for Federal law, State law, government documents, foreign and International law, treaties, citators, data sources, secondary sources, and more.
- HG.org Legal Resources Founded in 1995, HG.org is a massive Web site with links to resources on every aspect of the law in the U.S. and abroad. Entries are organized in nine categories--Lawyers, Legal Support, the Law, Articles, Employment, Students, Associations, Publications, Events.
- Justia.com Justia.com includes an extensive, free database of federal and state cases. It also has a dictionary of legal terminology at https://www.justia.com/dictionary/
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell U. Law School According to its Web site, the Institute is a "not-for-profit group that believes everyone should be able to read and understand the laws that govern them, without cost. We carry out this vision by: Publishing law online, for free. Creating materials that help people understand law. Exploring new technologies that make it easier for people to find the law." Legal Resources links include: Federal law, Constitution, U.S. Code, C.F.R., Supreme Court, Federal Rules, State law resources, State statutes by topic, U.C.C., Uniform laws, World law, Wex Legal Encyclopedia, CRS Annotated Constitution, LII Supreme Court Bulletin, Table of Popular Names, Parallel Table of Authorities.
- Library of Congress Databases and eResources The Law Library at the Library of Congress provides access to a broad range of legal databases and eResources. A chart outlining and describing these databases and open access Internet resources is arranged by topics. Some databases are restricted to on-site access only. Topics include: Constitutions and Treaty; Finding Legal Periodicals; Foreign, Comparative and International; General; Historical Legal Documents; Legislative and Statutory Resources; Reference; Regulatory Information.
- FindLaw Free Resources for Legal Research and Legal Careers A free resource for legal research and information on legal careers. A research feature allows you to search for state and federal cases, search for a contract, and search for articles. This database also offers tips on career management and assessment; and assists students in making pre-law decisions, survive law school, and take the bar exam. It also provides a link to a newsletter that includes job listings for legal internships and summer associate positions. Other helpful articles and blog posts for law students are provided in the FindLaw free newsletter linked in the site.
