Research Plan tips
Research plan
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Address your issue like you did for
question 1 of Assignment 4: you are
presented with a hypothetical fact
pattern and you need to gather all the
relevant research necessary for either
yourself or someone else to legally
analyze the issue.
• Most important point to remember: This
project requires NO LEGAL ANALYSIS
General outline – public
Are there any bilateral and/or
multilateral treaties on the subject?
 Are there any parts of the UN that
regulate this area?
 Have there been any international court
decisions on your issue?
 What do NGOs/IGOs/supranational
organizations have to say about your
issue?
 What applicable foreign laws are there?
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General outline – private
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Are there any bilateral and/or multilateral treaties
on the subject?
Are there any parts of the UN that regulate this
area?
Have there been any trade decisions issued in this
area?
What do trade organizations and/or other relevant
IGOs have to say about this issue?
What are the procedural issues relevant to this
issue, and is there any guidance for your particular
countries?
What domestic laws are relevant to your issue?
Are there any relevant laws/cases from
supranational organizations?
Annotated bibliography
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Basically a list of all of the sources you
have compiled on your topic.
• Note that it doesn’t have to list
EVERYTHING ever written on the topic; it
is up to you to determine which are the
most ESSENTIAL and IMPORTANT
sources to include.
• Include your reasoning on why you chose
to include each source in the annotation.
• Some people chose to do this as footnotes,
others included it as a separate document
Annotated bibliography examples
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GlobaLex, (http://www.nyulawglobal.org/Globalex/)
• GlobaLex is an electronic legal publication by the Hauser Global Law
School Program at NYU School of Law, which is dedicated to
international and foreign law research. The information and articles
published by GlobaLex are written by scholars well known in their
respective fields (active either in foreign, international, and
comparative law research or those focusing on their own domestic
law). I was able to find country-specific information, including a broad
overview of Uganda’s history, social values and the role of women in
society.
Restatement (Third) of the Foreign Relations Law of the United
States §481, cmt. A. (1987). This recognized the state’s jurisdiction in
enforcement foreign judgments unless the decision raises questions
under the U.S. Const. (i.e. intrusion into foreign affairs of the U.S. or
denial of due process)); cf. Id. § 482 (laying out the grounds for nonrecognition of foreign judgments); id. § 482(d) (stating a judgment may
not be recognized if “the cause of action on which the judgment was
based, or the judgment itself, is repugnant to the public policy of the
United States or of the State where recognition is sought ”). This was a
great resource for foreign relations and from it I was able to ascertain that
a foreign judgment could be denied in the U.S. if it is contrary to our First
Amendment.
Grading rubric
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Total: 30 points
• 10 points: good search strategy, process,
and methods used (thorough research diary)
– Don’t forget to start with secondary sources!
• 10 points: comprehensiveness, variety and
relevance of sources used
– Even if you think there might not be anything in a
database on your topic, you should try searching
anyways just to be sure
• i.e., if you are doing a humanitarian law issue, you
might not assume that the WTO has any relevant
information when in fact they might as trade law and
human rights are often interrelated
Grading rubric cont’d
• 5 points: quality of reflection on your
process and your ability to think critically
about the research you are doing
– Remember, the point of this class is to help you
feel more confident and effective in your
research…this is the only way I have to
evaluate whether or not you have achieved this
• 5 points: Your presentation to the class
and your “Top 5 Resources” handout
Due date
All written projects must be turned in by
2pm on Thursday April 26
 9 people will be scheduled to present on
April 19, and the remaining 8 will present
on April 26
 THEREFORE…you need to have your
project essentially complete by April 19, as
we will be drawing names randomly (in
class April 12) for the presentations and
you might have to present at this time
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