Legal research

Author: Morris L. Cohen et al. (USA)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: Legal Research is a fundamental legal research teaching book widely used in law schools across the United States. However, as the authors of this book point out, simply reading it does not equip one with the actual skills of legal research. Reading must be combined with practice. In legal research courses at U.S. law schools, students typically engage in various exercises in libraries and computer databases to truly master the techniques of retrieving legal materials and cases. Legal Research is specifically written for law students, and thus it strives to reflect the entire curriculum of law schools and the collection structure of law libraries. The book is divided into 15 chapters. The first chapter outlines the structure of legal materials and the steps of legal research. Chapters 2 to 8 introduce primary legal materials and their retrieval methods. Chapter 9 covers secondary legal materials and their retrieval methods. Chapter 10 discusses loose-leaf legal materials and other specialized legal literature. Chapters 12 and 13 cover legal materials and retrieval methods for international and comparative law. Chapter 14 introduces the legal materials and structure of the common law system, while Chapter 15 covers the legal materials and structure of the civil law system. At the end of the book, there is an appendix with major case summaries categorized by state and topic, a case index, a compilation of annotations, and a list of statutes and regulations.