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Guide to Legal Research
Secondary Materials
Secondary sources consist of publications which assist in locating primary
sources, such as indexes and digests, and commentaries on the law, such
as encyclopaedias, books and journals.
When carrying out legal research, it is generally better to start with
the secondary sources. These will lead you to the main goal of your
research, the relevant cases and legislation.
Note: * at the front of a resource name indicates that it is only available
to Murdoch staff and students
Textbooks
Textbooks provide a useful starting point for legal research.
It should be remembered that they can become outdated very quickly, so
make sure you check the date of the book, and that you are using the latest
edition available.
Textbooks are located on Level 4 of the South Wing, and are arranged
in Dewey number order.
The Library's catalogue
can be used to locate textbooks and journals within Murdoch University
Library. You can search by title, author, subject or keywords.
A word search is a particularly useful way to search for books on a subject,
as it searches for the occurrence of the words in the title, subjects,
contents notes and corporate author fields.
Once you have located a useful title, you may search for additional
items with the same subject headings by clicking on that subject heading.
Another useful option is to click on the blue call # (number) which will
display items with the same or similar call numbers, and allow you to
"browse the shelves" on the screen.
It is possible to search other Western Australian library catalogues
by following the links from the home page or through "The
Library Portal".
Legal Dictionaries
Legal dictionaries provide definitions or sources of definitions from
legal sources. A legal definition will usually cite the primary source
of the definition, from a case or statute. Most dictionaries have regular
updates to reflect the dynamic nature of law, in both interpretation and
definition of terms and concepts.
Dictionaries are generally relevant to one country or jurisdiction. You
should be careful to ensure that the definition you are using is relevant
to the jurisdiction you are researching.
Other Types of Legal Dictionaries
- Lists of sources: One of the most extensive dictionaries is
Australian Legal Words and Phrases, (North Ryde : Butterworths,
1993-) which gives reference to primary sources where the definition
can be found, but does not provide the definition. This is available
online at *
LexisNexis AU .
- Words and phrases judicially defined. These dictionaries extract
definitions from case law and ignore definitions in statutes unless
they have been discussed in a case.
A number of legal dictionaries are held in the law reference collection
at R 340.013. Some useful titles include:
- Australian Legal Words and Phrases (North Ryde : Butterworths,
1993-) *
LexisNexis AU
- Butterworths Australian Encyclopaedic Dictionary (North Ryde
: Butterworths) *
LexisNexis AU
- Black's Law Dictionary, 7th ed (St. Paul. Minn : West, 1999)
on * Westlaw
- Butterworths Australian Legal Dictionary, 2nd ed (Sydney :
Butterworths 1998)
- CCH Macquarie Dictionary of Law, rev. ed. (North Ryde : CCH
Australia, 2001)
- Osborn's Concise Law Dictionary, 9th ed (London : Sweet &
Maxwell, 1993)
- Stroud's Judicial Dictionary of Words and Phrases, 5th ed (London
: Sweet & Maxwell 1986-)
- Words and Phrases Legally Defined, 3rd ed (Sydney : Butterworths,1988-
)
Other Dictionaries
Definitions in Other Resources
Most encyclopedias and digests include lists of definitions and their
source. The lists can be in a separate table usually called words and
phrases. Some indexes include the list under the alphabetic entry for
W - words and phrases, and then have sub-headings for the exact terms
being defined.
Encyclopaedias
Legal encyclopaedias provide a narrative account of the law on a particular
topic. They are arranged by broad subject areas and subdivisions
which are further divided into numbered paragraphs. Encyclopaedias
are a good starting point for legal research because they provide a broad
overview of the area being researched, and through the use of extensive
footnoting, lead to the relevant statutes and cases.
There are two Australian legal encyclopaedias currently being published:
- Halsbury's Laws of Australia *
LexisNexis AU
- The Laws of Australia (Law Book Co.) *
Lawbook Online and in print South Wing Level 3 at R 348.94046
AUS
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Legal
Encyclopaedias for Other Jurisdictions
Halsburys Laws of England (South Wing Level 3, R 340 HAL
4)
Several editions have been produced spanning the 20th century, thus forming
an invaluable historical resource. Australian students find Halsburys
useful for both comparative and historical research. Monthly supplements
are published on *
LexisNexis
Between 1974 and 1988, an Australian and New Zealand Commentary
on Halsbury's Laws of England was produced, and forms a snap
shot of the law of Australia at the time of publication. This
commentary has since been superseded by Halsburys Laws of Australia.
USA
Other jurisdictions
- * LexisNexis
TRS - browse via Legal (excluding US) - examples below
- *The Laws of New Zealand (LONZ)
- * Halsbury's Laws of Hong Kong
- * Westlaw
- browse International Directory- International materials to country
level.
- * Canadian Abridgment
- * Canadian Encyclopaedic Digest
Multi-jurisdictional
Journal articles
Library catalogues list all books and other items, including journals,
held in a library. Most law journals are on South Wing Level 4 at
J 340 and are then arranged alphabetically. Recent issues are held
in the display area on South Wing Level 3.
Catalogues do not however, list the contents of journals. To find
articles on specific topics in journals, you need to use a journals index.
There are several available at Murdoch University Library which are relevant
to the legal field, including Australian indexes and
International indexes. Many databases now have the
ful text of journal articles contained within the database or linked from
the database.
Indexes are available in both printed and electronic formats. Printed
legal indexes are located at Link Level 3, R 340.016 . Electronic
indexes can be accessed from any computer accessing the internet on or
off campus. Off campus access to our subscription database will require
students and staff to log in verifying that they are members of Murdoch
University.
To access the electronic indexes and databases relevant to law, select
Databases
from the Library’s home page, followed by Law from the list of
subject groupings. Alternatively, if you know the name of the database
you wish to use, click on the appropriate letter from the alphabet and
scroll down until you find the database required.
Access is limited to Murdoch University staff and students. Ask at the
IT help Desk at the front of the library if you are having connection
problems, ask at the Reference Desk if you have problems using the databases.
During the semester there is an online and service Ask
a Librarian which might be of help.
Australian journal indexes and databases
- * Attorney-General's Information Service (AGIS Plus Text) 1975-
an index with some full text articles.
Select Informit
Search (Australian) from the Quicklinks menu then select AGIS
Plus Text from the Law, Crime and Justice Listing.
AGIS Plus Text is an indexing service, with some articles, produced
by the Commonwealth Attorney-General's Department. It indexes
primarily Australian materials, but has some overseas material.
- Casebase - Select *
LexisNexis AU
Casebase updates case law and provides references to articles published
in Australian legal journals. There is also a collection of full text
journals online which can be searched or browsed.
- *
Lawbook Online publishes a collection of journals online.
The journal can be searched or browsed.
- Other Informit
Search (Australian) are useful for the legal researcher.
Scroll down and select either individual titles or collections.
- * Australian Public Affairs Information Service (APAIS)
and *APA-FT - Australian Public Affairs – Full Text
APAIS covers a broad range of materials in Australian journals and
newspapers on Australian economic, social, cultural and political
life. It is available in print at Murdoch University Library
from 1955-1994 and as an electronic database from 1978 onwards.
- * Environment and Natural Resources
- Elixir - conservation of natural resources
- EVA - environmental protection and planning
- Endanger - threatened Australian flora and fauna
- Streamline - natural resource management
- * CINCH - the Australian Criminology Database
Produced by the Australian Institute of Criminology. CINCH
contains references to Australian criminology material. CINCH
covers journal articles, conferences, research reports, government
documents, statistical publications and some unpublished material.
Material dating back to 1928 has been selectively incorporated into
the database.
- * FAMILY - Australian Family and Society Abstracts - select
Family from the Social Sciences and Community Issues List.
Produced by the Australian Institute of Family Studies, this database
provides access to Australian writing and research related to Australian
adults and children.
- Australian Journals
Online - links from the National Library of Australia to full text
journals.
- PANDORA
Australian Digital Archive of Law and Criminology
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International
indexes & journal databases
Many journal subscriptions are now available on line and linked through
the catalogue to the online source via the title of the journal. However
many databases contain many journals which are not yet listed on our catalogue.
- * WestLaw
& *
LexisNexis TRS Full text database of law reviews and legal journals
from many jurisdictions. Often the must current issue is on these databases
and the older issues are on HeinOnline.
- * HeinOnline
a full text archive of many law journals from the first issue of
the journal. Some titlles date back to 1880's.
- * Legal Journals Index on WestLaw.
UK index to law journal, linked to full text if available on Westlaw.The
jurisdictional focus is the UK, the audience focus is the legal
profession.
- * Legal Resouces Index on *LexisNexis
TRS in the path Legal > Secondary Legal > Annotations & Indexes.
Indexes over 700 legal resources from common law jurisidictions. The
jurisdictional focus is the UK, the audience focus is the legal
profession. Linked to full text articles if available on LexisNexis
TRS.
- Index to Periodical Articles Related to Law 1958- This
print index expressly includes journals not included in the previous
two indexes, and is slanted towards the social and behavioural sciences.
- * ProQuest
select Proquest from the Quicklinks menu. Multidisciplinary
full text database with some legal materials.
- * Expanded
Academic Index ASAP select Expanded Academic from
the Quicklinks menu.
A multidisciplinary index with links to the full text of many
articles.
- * JStore
a mutidisciplinary full text journals archive.
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Law Reform Materials
Law Reform Commissions are bodies set up to examine the law, with the
aim of highlighting issues of concern and proposing reforms. They
exist in many common law jurisdictions and produce a range of documents,
including issues papers, working papers, discussion papers and reports.
Murdoch University Library holds law reform documents produced by the
Australian Law Reform Commission and the various state law reform commissions.
It also holds materials from the United Kingdom, Papua New Guinea, Canada
and New Zealand. They are located at J 340.3 on South
Wing Level 4 .
Second copies of the final reports of the Australian Law Reform Commission
and the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia are also located in
the general collection, and may be borrowed. Use the Library's catalogue
to locate them by title or author. Australian Law Reform Commission
final reports are also published as Parliamentary Papers. These
are located at South Wing Level 3, GR 328.9401 A938 1.
A number of Law Reform Commissions, including the Australian Law Reform
Commission and the Western Australian Law Reform Commission are now publishing
their documents online.
Indexes
- The Annual Reports of the Australian Law Reform Commission
list publications produced during the year. The 1989 Annual Report
includes a cumulative list of all publications up to and including 1989.
- The Australian Law
Reform Commission web site lists all publications produced, with
links to those available online.
- Law Reform
Commission of Western Australia lists all
works published since 1968.
- The Law Reform Database
from The British Columbia Law Institute indexes law reform materials
from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Britain and other Commonwealth
countries.
- The Law Reform Digest indexes reports of law reform
bodies in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea from 1916-1980.
The second volume updates the material to July 1985, and includes material
from Fiji and the Australian Human Rights Commission.
Looseleaf publications
Many works in the legal field are published in looseleaf form, which
enables rapid updating. Most looseleaf publications cover a specific
branch of law, such as taxation, corporate law, trade practices or family
law. They provide a good introduction to a topic, generally giving historical
as well as current information. Looseleaf publications may also include
the text of relevant legislation, as well as reports of cases.
There are a number of points to remember when using looseleaf publications
in either print or online:
- References in the indexes are generally to paragraph
numbers, not page numbers. The page numbers located at the top
of each page are used only for filing purposes.
- Most looseleaf publications have a main index and a supplementary
index, which is issued each time the service is updated. You should
check both indexes to ensure you have covered any new developments in
a particular field.
Those looseleaf publications which are still in print are held in Murdoch
University Library's Reserve. However most looseleaf publications
are now available on line through the publishers sites.
* CCH
Online - listed in subject areas
*
Lawbook Online - listed on front page
* LexisNexis
AU - commentary or services
* LexisNexis
TRS
- browse to the topic
* Westlaw
- browse through the Table of Contents
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| Bibliographies
Bibliographies bring together in a systematic way references to material
on a subject. They may include references to articles in journals
as well as to books. Bibliographies may be general in nature, or
cover a specific topic.
General bibliographies are among those held in the reference collection
of Murdoch University Library, on Link Level 3. Many other
subject focused bibliographies are available for loan on South Wing
Level 4. To locate bibliographies, search the Library’s
catalogue, using the keywords option, with the terms law and bibliography.
You can then modify your search to limit the results to your specific
subject interest.
Note: * at the front of a resource name indicates that it is only available
to Murdoch staff and students
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This page updated on 25 January 2006
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