1. Introduction to Law Introduction to Legal Research Copyright 2009 Barbara E. Wilson Wanda M. Temm

2. Research begins with a problem Gather facts Solve problem Give advice

3. What is goal of research? To find binding primary authority on point. To find persuasive primary authority on point. To find primary authority to use for analogy.

4. Formulate a research plan Do you know enough about the area of law to determine the issues and analyze them? –If so, then go straight to primary authority in your jurisdiction. –If not, begin with secondary authorities to educate yourself about the area of law at issue.

5. FIND  READ  UPDATE You will find and read the law, update to verify its validity and lead you to additional law, read the new authorities you have found, update those... until you decide you have reached the end of your research.

6. Research is NOT just for Litigators! Wills & Trusts Shareholder Agreements Corporate by-laws Mergers & Acquisitions Lease & Sale of Property Divorce & Child Custody

7. Two ways to teach research Bibliographic = “See this book; see these features” Process = Answer “why.” Not just HOW to find and use a source, but why you would want to look in that source.

8. Choose your research approach: Known authority Known topic OR Descriptive word

9. Known Authority/Known Topic Approach Use when: 1. You already know full or partial citation to the source. 2.You already have information that leads you to other sources.

10. Descriptive Word Approach FOCUS IS ON WORDS: WHO? WHAT? WHEN? WHERE? WHY? and HOW?

11. Look in the appropriate finding tool Usually this means Indexes: 1. Statutes, Administrative Law & Secondary Sources  directly to Index 2. Cases  Descriptive word index to digest volume

12. Descriptive Word Index Gives us potentially relevant KEY NUMBERS. –West Publishing’s index system for case law. –After outlining all the bodies of law, West broke it all down into components of seven divisions with 32 sub-headings and over 450 legal topics under each sub-heading. Then West divided each legal topic into key numbers.

13. Updating Every source has an updating feature  Updating is the way to make sure you have the latest information.  You must update every source to insure your authority is still good law.