SUBJECT GUIDES: Law

RESOURCES FOR LAW SEARCHING FOR ARTICLES The library subscribes to many periodicals in various formats: microforms, print, CD-Rom and online via the Internet. Please check the library's periodical listings (at the reference desk) for date of publication and formats available. The following are periodicals that may be relevant to your research on subjects pertaining to law: Relevant Periodicals in the Library Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report Law and Contemporary Problems Law and Society Review Law Office Computing Law Technology Legal Assistant Today Other Legal Reference Resources in the Library Black's law dictionary Legal Thesaurus A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court California Codes The following reference resources are in multi-volume sets: American Justice Congressional Quarterly's Guide to the U.S. Supreme Court United States Supreme Court Digest West's Annotated California Codes West's California Code Forms West's Encyclopedia of American Law To Search for Articles in General on Legal Subjects To search the magazine/newspaper databases listed LBCC Library homepage (Newsbank, ProQuest, SIRS, Facts On File), use words appropriate to the field and sub-fields, including: Major types of law (i.e., regulatory law, statutory law, case law, etc.) Names of lawyers, members of Congress, Supreme Court justices, case citations, etc. Bill or statute number, popular bill names, e.g. Brady Bill, etc. Popular U.S. Supreme Court decisions case names (e.g., Roe v. Wade, Brown v. Board of Education, etc.) Check in the Library of Congress Subject Headings set (the five big books on the counter), dictionaries, thesauri and subject-related books for the right words to use. SEARCHING FOR BOOKS ON LAW LBCC Library catalog is web-based and searchable via the Internet. From the Library homepage, click on the button "Voyager"; the Library Web site's URL is: http://lib.lbcc.edu Use "Keyword" search or "Subject " search. At the orientation, the librarian will demonstrate on how to do a complex search for more relevant results. The Library of Congress Classification Numbers (or Call Numbers) are not inclusive of all books on the subject in LBCC Library, as variances in the focus of books result in their being cataloged in different sections of the LC classification system. Call numbers for legal subjects are: Federal law: KF California law: KFC SEARCHING FOR LEGAL RESOURCES ON THE INTERNET Use subject directories such as Yahoo - Government: Judicial Branch: Federal Courts (http://www.yahoo.com/Government/Judicial_Branch/Federal_Courts/) or Supreme Court (http://www.yahoo.com/Government/Judicial_Branch/Supreme_Court/) or browsing and for links to lower courts. Indexes lead you from the general subject to the specific sub-topic. Use a Search Engine such as Altavista (http://www.altavista.com) when you know the exact terms or names of your topic: Enter two or more related words, each with a +in front to specify your search. Search for phrases by putting double quotes around two or more words, for example: +abortion +"Supreme Court" +"law schools" +rankings Put an asterisk * after the root word to find plurals or other words beginning with the root. Field search examples: +"flag desecration bill" +url:loc.gov +"affirmative action" +url: ca.gov Great websites relating to Legal Subjects General Law LawCrawler http://www.lawcrawler.com/index.html WashLaw WEB - Washburn University School of Law http://www.washlaw.edu Court TV http://www.courttv.com Martindale-Hubbell Lawyer Directory http://www.martindalehubbell.com Legal Forms http://www.lectlaw.com/form.html Federal Case Law USSCPlus - U.S. Supreme Court http://www.usscplus.com FLITE - Supreme Court Decisions from 1937-75 http://www.fedworld.gov/supcourt/index.htm Federal Courts Home Page http://www.uscourts.gov Legislative Sources GPOGate http://www.gpo.ucop.edu:80 THOMAS: Legislative Information on the Internet (the Best!) http://thomas.loc.gov United States Code http://uscode.house.gov/usc.htm CQ's American Voter http://voter.cq.com States Legislative Sources http://www.prairienet.org/~scruffy/f.htm California USC California Legal Resources http://www.usc.edu/dept/law-lib/legal/ca.html FindLaw California http://california.findlaw.com Cal Law http://www.callaw.com:80 California Courts Home Page http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov California Bills http://www.sen.ca.gov/www/leginfo/SearchText.html California Code http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/calaw.html California Bar Association http://www.calbar.org Santa Clara County Bar Association http://www.sccba.com created by Kim Barclay

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