Legal Research Review

Legal Research
March 2005

Leah Sandwell-Weiss
Reference Librarian
Primary Authority
“The Law” generated by the three
branches of government
Cases
Statutes
Administrative Regulations
Accessing primary authorities is the
ultimate goal of nearly all legal
research
Secondary Authority
NOT “the law”
Provides citations to primary authority
Provides background information that can aid
in understanding primary authority (“the law”)
May present novel theories that later find their
way into primary authority
Often provides the best starting point for
research, especially when legal issues are
unclear
Mandatory Authority
“The law” of your jurisdiction
Your state’s highest court
Your state’s statutes
Your state’s regulations
Your federal district court
Your federal court of appeals
The United States Supreme Court
Have to follow
Persuasive Authority
“The law” from somewhere else
Another state’s supreme court
Another federal court of appeals
Some secondary sources
Don’t “have to” follow, but use to
persuade
Secondary Sources
Provide commentary on law & references
to primary law & other secondary sources
Persuasive Authority
Law Reviews
Treatises (but not hornbooks or nutshells)
Restatements
Not Persuasive Authority
Legal Encyclopedias
American Law Reports (ALRs)
Organization of Federal
& State Courts
Reading a Case
Parallel Citation (editorial enhancement)
Title (editorial enhancement)
Docket # (editorial enhancement)
Case Summary (editorial enhancement)
Headnotes (editorial enhancement)
Opinion (official)
Case Reporters
Organized by jurisdiction
Cases in chronological order
Arizona Cases
Arizona Supreme Court =
• Arizona Reports, P., P.2d
Arizona Court of Appeals =
• Arizona Appellate Reports (1965 – 1976),
Arizona Reports, P., P.2d
Federal Courts & Reporters
Supreme Court =
U.S. Reports (U.S.) (official)
Supreme Court Reporter (S. Ct.)
U.S. Supreme Court Reports, Lawyer’s Edition
(L. Ed., L. Ed. 2d)
Courts of Appeals =
Federal Reporter (F., F.2d, F.3d)
District Courts =
Federal Supplement (F. Supp., F. Supp. 2d)
Finding cases
Annotated Codes
Secondary Sources
Digest Topic Name and Key Number
(subject index to all case law)
If have case name but no citation: Digest
Table of Cases
Database search on Westlaw or Lexis (pick
the most narrow database)
Digests
All cases on a given legal point
collected under the same digest topic
& key number
Digest topics & key numbers
consistent through all West digests
Select the appropriate Digest
Most jurisdictional
Using Digests to Find Cases
From a case on point
Use the headnotes to identify relevant
topics & key numbers
From the Descriptive Word Index
Look up relevant subjects
Check for new entries in pocket part
From a topic entry
Check out the outline of key numbers
Using Digests, cont’d
Find topic & key number in right volume
Check court & dates to target appropriate
cases to read
Read summaries
Update with pocket parts or interim
pamphlets
Finding Cases Online
Use Annotated Codes online
Find known case online & use headnotes
(Westlaw) or core terms/core concepts (Lexis)
If already have a topic & key number, use them
to find more cases on Westlaw
Use Shepard’s/KeyCite
Terms & Connectors/Natural Language
Searches
Pay attention to database selection
Case Law Tips
Look for mandatory authority first
Note: case law always primary
authority
If there is insufficient mandatory
authority, look for primary
persuasive
Read opinions in full and cite only
to the opinion itself
Statutory Publication
Slip laws
Separately issued versions of each law as
passed
Session laws
Chronological arrangement of statutes
• Law as passed by legislature - No amendments
Codes
Organized by subject, often called “Titles”
“Current” version of law, with amendments
Annotated Codes
Can be official or unofficial
Contain references to:
Cases (Notes of Decisions)
Administrative code sections (CFRs)
Legal encyclopedias
Legislative history
Law reviews & Treatises
West Codes – Headnotes & Key Numbers
Finding Statutes
In Print
Subject indexes
Secondary Sources
References in cases
Popular Names Table to find specific act
Online
References in cases
Shepard’s/KeyCite
Terms & Connectors/Natural Language Searches
Updating Primary Law
Pocket Parts in Print
Citators (Shepard’s/KeyCite) Online
Validating - is it still “good law?”
• History of the case – Was your case overruled/revised on
appeal?
• Citing References – Was your case been overruled/
invalidated entirely? Was it chipped away at such that the
validity is questionable? Has your specific issue been
affected by negative treatment?
Expanding Research
• Citing References & secondary sources on the same or
similar points of law
Limiting Citing References
Headnote number (specific Topic/Issue)
Jurisdiction
Type of document (case law, admin law,
secondary sources)
Specific additional terms (Locate on
Westlaw and Focus on Lexis)
Depth of treatment (Westlaw)
Completing Your Research
Did you address the question asked?
Did you research the correct jurisdiction?
Do you understand the area of law you are
researching?
Did you find enough applicable primary,
mandatory authority to answer the question?
If not, did you find relevant primary persuasive
authority?
Do you have the current language of all
statutes?
Completing Research, cont’d
Did you use several methods to locate relevant
case law?
Did you validate statutes & cases using KeyCite/
Shepards?
Did you use KeyCite/Shepards to expand your
research?
Did you check a secondary source near the end
of your research to see if you have found what
there is to find?
Do you keep finding the same materials
everywhere you look?
 Remember,
UPDATE, UPDATE,
UPDATE
Questions?