Internet and Subscription-based Legal Research Margaret Clark, Reference Librarian FSU College of Law Library December 2005

Objectives Identify Web sources of value for conducting legal research Identify subscription databases other than L/W for conducting legal research

Legal Research on the Web GOOD FOR: Current and recent documents Significant or recent cases; SC cases Federal & state codes, statutes and regulations Government publications Foreign and international materials

Legal Research on the Web NOT GOOD FOR: Older cases; historical materials Annotated codes Full-text journal articles Treatises Complete overview of the law In-depth, thorough legal research

Subscription-based databases GREAT FOR: Locating full-text articles, law reviews, some treatises Locating retrospective and current articles and cases Florida case law not in W/L

Secondary Sources Treatises Law reviews and articles Encyclopedias and dictionaries

Locating treatises Aleph, online catalogAleph NetLibrary WorldCat Index Master All are subscription databases.

Locating law reviews LexisNexis Academic Index to Legal Periodicals (ILP), ILP Retrospective, LegalTrac Hein Online JSTOR; Project Muse E-journals page All of these are subscription databases

Locating law reviews Emory’s list of legal journalsEmory’s Findlaw’s listFindlaw’s Google Scholar Law Library of Congress University Law Review Project All of these are free Internet sites

Encyclopedias and Dictionaries Pathfinders/Research Guides –LLRX (Law Library Resource Exchange)LLRX –LexNotes.com PathfindersLexNotes.com Online encyclopedias –Zimmerman’s Online EncyclopediaZimmerman’s Online Encyclopedia –Cornell LII’s WexWex Online dictionaries –Law.com dictionaryLaw.com –‘Lectric Law Lexicon‘Lectric

Case Law Court Web sites –Florida Supreme Court Portal Web sites –Florida State Courts –Findlaw.com –National Law Journal Subscription databases –Lexis-Nexis Academic –Hein Online

Case law – Portal sites Findlaw: Cases and Codes LexisOne.com Cornell LII American Law Sources Online (ALSO)American Law Sources Online National Law Journal Federal Court Locator Florida State Courts Text of Opinions

Case law – US Supreme Court Opinions FREE Supreme Court 1991 to presentSupreme Court Findlaw 1893 to present Lexisone.com 1790 to present SUBSCRIPTION DATABASES Hein Online 1754 to presentHein Online BNA U.S. Law Week, 1997 to present LexisNexis Academic

Case law – US Supreme Court Oral Arguments –Supreme Court site (transcript)Supreme Court –Oyez Project (audio)Oyez Project Records and Briefs –Findlaw 1999 to present

Case law – Federal courts PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) Electronic public access to service that allows users to obtain: –Case information –Docket information –Documents From Federal Courts –Courts of Appeal –District & Bankruptcy courts

Case law – Federal courts Searching PACER –U.S. Party/Case IndexU.S. Party/Case Index –PACER District Look-UpPACER District Look-Up Subscription database: –agencies or individuals must register Very inexpensive –$.08/page (applies to number of pages that results in any search), OR –$.60/minute charge –$2.40 maximum per document

Case law – Federal courts Other sites for federal cases: – free Internetwww.uscourts.gov –LexisNexis Academic subscriptionLexisNexis Academic

Case law – Florida Free, Internet –Florida Law Online portal siteFlorida Law Online –ALSO: Florida (portal site)ALSO: Florida –Florida Supreme Court 1999+Florida Supreme Court –Fla. SC Records and Briefs Apr 1998+Records and Briefs –FSU Briefs and opinions Nov 1989+Briefs and opinions –WFSU Oral Arguments Online 1997+Oral Arguments Online –Opinions from other Florida courtsOpinions Subscription –Florida Law Weekly 1995+Florida Law Weekly –LexisNexis Academic – State searchLexisNexis Academic

Court Rules LLRX’s Court Rules U.S. Supreme Court, Cornell LIIU.S. Supreme CourtCornell LII Federal Judiciary

Constitutions U.S. Constitution (GPO Access)U.S. Constitution U.S. Constitution (Library of Congress)U.S. Constitution Florida Constitution

Statutes - Federal Portal sites –Law Library of CongressLaw Library of Congress Federal –GPOAccess, Cornell LII, US House of Representatives site, ThomasGPOAccessCornell LIIUS House of Representatives siteThomas

Statutes - States Florida –Online Sunshine constitution, statutesOnline Sunshine –Department of State public lawsDepartment of State –Digest of General Laws only electronicDigest of General Laws –Law Library of Congress portal siteLaw Library of Congress Other States –Findlaw, Cornell LII, Law Library of CongressFindlawCornell LIILaw Library of Congress Municipal Codes -- municode.communicode.com

Legislative History Federal –Thomas, GPO Access freeThomasGPO Access –LexisNexis Academic subscriptionLexisNexis Academic Florida –Online Sunshine official online siteOnline Sunshine

Administrative Law Federal –Federal Register GPO Access, Regulations.gov (Internet)GPO AccessRegulations.gov Hein Online (subscription)Hein Online –Code of Federal Regulations GPO Access (official text)GPO Access E-CFR (most up-to-date)E-CFR Cornell LII Florida –FAC: –FAW:

Administrative Decisions Federal –Individual agency web sites (directory)directory –List of federal agency decisionsList of federal agency decisions Florida –Division of Administrative Hearings (free)Division of Administrative Hearings –Florida Administrative Law Reports (sub)Florida Administrative Law Reports

Current Awareness Cornell’s InSite highlights selected law- related Web sitesInSite LLRX Buzz Web journal on Internet legal researchLLRX Buzz The Virtual Chase legal research articlesThe Virtual Chase Abstract Appeal weblog for Florida lawAbstract Appeal Findlaw’s Breaking Legal Documents newsletterBreaking Legal Documents

Citation Guides Cornell’s Basic Legal Citation –

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