Legal Research
Research Guide
Contents |
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Supreme Court Cases and Briefs are available on LexisNexis Academic, under the Legal tab.
LexisNexis also publishes Landmark Briefs & Arguments of the Supreme Court of the United States: Constitutional Law, which provides more comprehensive coverage of materials related to selected cases. The most significant difference from the material available on LexisNexis Academic is the inclusion of Oral Arguments.
Related Resources
There are seven years of transcripts on the official Supreme Court site.
Federal Courts
In addition to the Supreme Court, the US Federal Courts system includes U.S. Courts of Appeals, U.S. District Courts, Bankruptcy Courts. They are arranged into 94 judicial districts, grouped into 12 regional circuits. In LexisNexis Academic, you can search for federal cases by circuit. You can also search for state cases within each circuit.
Related Resources
- U.S. Courts website provides explanation and maps of the federal court system.
Briefs from Lower Courts
LexisNexis Academic does not cover the briefs and pleadings of courts other than the U.S. Supreme Court. This type of material is available to law schools in Lexis.com. Some courts provide briefs online. There's a nice summary on LLRX
Federal Codes and Regulations
Did you know you can browse the US Code in LexisNexis Academic? The following is a list of browsable sources related to the USCS that you can access using the links provided or by entering their names (in quotes) in the Find option under the Sources tab.
Related Resources
GPO Access has CFR and USC.
Cornell University has a guide to the US Code Popular Names of Acts
State Codes, Statutes, and Regulations
Use the State Statutes, Codes & Regulations Search Form inside the Legal tab in LexisNexis Academic, or browse under Publication Type in the source directory to select the correct source for your state.
Related Resources
Widner University Legislation Finding Aid
Related Resources
- Widner University Legislation Finding Aid
- Zimmerman's Research Guide is an online encyclopedia for legal researchers, providing an excellent guide to resources for hundreds of legal topics.
Legal Reference
LexisNexis Academic contains several dictionaries and reference sources for US and international law. *Off-campus users should read the article About Subscription Links.
- American Jurisprudence 2d Edition or Browse
- Ballentine's Law Dictionary, 3rd Edition
- Bieber's Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations
- Canadian Legal Words and Phrases or Browse
- Dahl's French-English Law Dictionary
- Dahl's Spanish-English Law Dictionary
- A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage
- Halsbury's Laws of England Monthly Review
- Modern Dictionary for the Legal Profession