LEGAL RESEARCH

By
RUFUS B. RODRIGUEZ
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION TO LEGAL RESEARCH
A. Legal Research, Defined
It is the process of finding the laws, rules and regulations that govern activities in human
society.

B. The Need for Legal Research

A lawyer is required to provide competent representation to a client. Competent
representation requires the legal knowledge, skill, thoroughness and preparation
reasonably necessary for the representation. Clearly, a lawyer must be able to research
the law to provide competent representation.

C. Sources of Legal Research

Legal research involves the use of a variety of printed and electronic sources.
Printed sources:
Constitution
Statutes
Court decisions
Administrative rules
Scholarly commentaries
Computer databases containing these and other materials have dramatically changed the
nature of legal research and improved its effectiveness.

Sources of Law
Three broad categories:
1. Primary Sources
Those recorded laws and rules which will be enforced by the State:

Major primary sources: legislative actions, codes and statutes

Second major category: judicial decisions
Third primary source: administrative law, or the regulations and decisions of
government agencies

2. Secondary Materials
Publications which are not primary authority but which discuss or analyze legal doctrine
are considered secondary materials:
Treatises
Commentaries
Encyclopedias
3. Finding Tools
Our legislative, executive and judicial branches of government have been enacting and
promulgating codes, statutes, rules, regulations and court decisions and these have grown
into a large body of law. The researcher therefore needs search materials or finding tools
in order to locate these legal sources. Among the finding tools are:
SCRA Quick Index-Digests
PHILJURIS
LEX LIBRIS

Chapter 2
THE LEGAL RESEARCH PROCESS
A. Systematic Approach to Legal Research
Four basic steps are recommended:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Identify and analyze the significant facts

Formulate the legal Issues to be researched
Research the issues presented
Update

1. Identify and Analyze the Significant Facts

The TARP Rule is a useful technique to analyze your fcts according to the following
factors:
T Thing or subject matter
A Cause of Action or group of defense
R Relief sought
P Persons or parties involved
2. Formulate the Legal Issues to be Researched
This is the initial intellectual activity that presumes some knowledge of the substantive
law. The goal is to classify or categorize the problem into general, and increasingly
specific, subject areas and to begin to hypothesize legal issues.
3. Research the Issues Presented
After the facts have been analyzed and the issues have been framed, it is time to begin
researching the first issue:
a. Organize and plan
b. Identify, read, and update all relevant constitutional provisions, statutes, and
administrative regulations
c. Identify, read, and update all relevant case law
d. Refine the search
4. Update
Law changes constantly. Our Congress passes new statutes and modify old ones. Our
Supreme Court either refines the law or reaffirms the law or even changes the
interpretation of the law.

Chapter 3
FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH SKILL: CASE BRIEFING
AND SYTHESIS OF CASES

A. Case Briefing
A law school case brief is a students digest or condensation of a reported case.
There is no one correct form for a case brief since it is a document that is created to
meet the students needs.
The typical components of a case brief are:
1. Facts they describe the events between the parties leading to the litigation and tell
how the case before the court that is now deciding it. Include those facts that are relevant
to the issue the court must decide and to the reasons for it decision. You will not know
which facts are relevant until you know what the issue or issues are.
2. Issue(s) it is the question that the court must decide to resolve the dispute between
the parties in the case before it.
3. Ruling it is the courts decision on the question that is actually before it, but if they
do not relate to the question actually before it, they are dicta.

B. Synthesizing Cases
More likely, your research for a problem will turn up many cases relevant to the problem.
In order to use the principles that those cases offer to resolve your problem, you must
relate the cases to each other, that is, synthesize them. In that way, you can understand
the applicable area of law and then use the synthesis to analyze your problem.