Bookmarks for Law on the ‘Net
April 2004
Secondary Sources and Legal Dictionaries
California Courts Self-Help Center
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp
Provided by the CA Judicial Council, this web site is designed to help
people learn about California law, represent themselves in legal matters,
and find legal assistance. A reliable source of California legal information
in Spanish, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese.
Nolo Plain English Law Center
http://www.nolo.com/lawcenter/index.cfm
Plain English Legal Center offers Nolo's legal encyclopedia and legal
dictionary. Provides links to legal resources on the Internet and help on
conducting legal research.
Cornell Legal Information Institute Law About Series
http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/index.html
Cornell's Legal Information Institute has an extensive list of topics. Each
gives an overview of the area of law and links to important primary
sources in that field.
Librarian’s Index to the Internet
http://lii.org/search/file/law
Loads of links to resources (many organizational sites) relevant to a
variety of law topics. No direct links to primary legal resources.
California Legislation and Codes
Legislative Counsel’s Official Legislative Information
http://www.leginfo.ca.gov
Access to the California Constitution, California bills (including legislative
history materials), statutes and the current California Code.
Los Angeles County Law Library, California Ballot Propositions
http://lalaw.lib.ca.us/ballot.html
Lists all California propositions from 1884 to the present including a
summary and whether the proposition passed or failed. Indicates where
passed propositions have been codified
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.
Hastings College of the Law California Ballot Initiatives
http://holmes.uchastings.edu
The California Ballot Propositions Database is a comprehensive,
searchable source of information on California ballot propositions from
1911 to the present. The database contains the full text of the
propositions, accompanying material contained in the voters' pamphlets,
related legal and legislative history, and digital images of the voters'
pamphlets.
California Secretary of State Elections Division
http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/elections_j.htm
Information on currently circulating initiatives as well as the ballot
pamphlets from 1996 forward.
California Cases
California Judicial Council Opinions
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov
Links to all California courts. Offers a searchable database of court
opinions from 1850 to the present
Findlaw California > Case Law
http://www.findlaw.com/cacases/index.html
Provides access to California Supreme Court and Courts of Appeals
cases from 1934 to the present. Must register to view the cases!
CourtTV Online
http://www.courttv.com
Provides information on current newsworthy cases and controversies.
Also includes a Crime Library of famous cases.
California Agency Materials
California Code of Regulations
http://ccr.oal.ca.gov
Provides access to current regulations of California agencies. Searchable
by agency or key word.
California State Web Page Agency List
http://www.ca.gov/state/portal/myca_homepage.jsp
Official California State web page includes a list of all California agencies
with contact information.
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.
California Department of Consumer Affairs
http://www.dca.ca.gov/legal
Various consumer guides including fact sheets on landlord/tenant issues
and identity theft.
Municipal Codes/Ordinances
City and County Lists on the California State Web Page
http://www.ca.gov/state/portal/myca_homepage.jsp
The California State web page has links to all city and county web sites,
many of which include their own municipal codes. A great first place to
look.
U.C. Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies Library
http://www.igs.berkeley.edu/library/calcodes.html
The IGS Library maintains a large collection of California municipal
ordinances and charters. Their web site provides links to those available
on the Internet.
Seattle Public Library Municipal Codes Online
http://www.spl.org/default.asp?pageID=collection_municodes
Extensive collection of municipal codes available via the Internet. Provides
links to the major municipal code publishers.
Federal Legislative Materials
U.S. Constitution
http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.overview.html
Full text of U.S. Constitution and Amendments as well as a list of the
signers.
THOMAS – U.S. Congress on the Internet
http://thomas.loc.gov
Provides access to federal legislative information including the text and
status of bills, some hearings and reports, and the Congressional Record.
GPO Access: Official Federal Government Information
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/index.html
Provides access to federal government information including the U.S.
Code and the Code of Federal Regulations.
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.
United States Code
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/
United States Code as provided by the U.S. House of Representatives.
Includes a list of code sections by their popular titles (Americans with
Disabilities Act, Fair Housing Act, etc.). Be sure to check the currency of
your code section - might be out-of-date!
Federal Cases
Supreme Court of the United States
http://www.supremecourtus.gov
Official U.S. Supreme Court site. Provides docket information on the
current term and the full-text of Supreme Court decisions.
Cornell Legal Information Institute
http://www.law.cornell.edu
Provided by Cornell Law School, LII offers links to the U.S. Constitution,
U.S. Code, Supreme Court opinions and information by legal topic. Of
particular note is its listing of Supreme Court cases from 1990 to the
present by issue.
Federal Judiciary Homepage: News and information about the Federal Courts
http://www.uscourts.gov
Provides links to all federal courts and information on the federal judiciary.
Ninth Circuit Homepage
http://www.ce9.uscourts.gov
Official home page for the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Includes a
handbook for pro se litigants. Provides access to 9th Circuit opinions.
Federal Agency Materials
Access GPO
http://www.access.gpo.gov
Includes the Code of Federal Regulations from 1997 to the present.
Code of Federal Regulations
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/cfr/
Current CFR searchable by citation, by keyword or by using the detailed
table of contents.
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.
FirstGov Federal Agencies List
http://www.firstgov.gov/Agencies/Federal/All_Agencies/index.shtml
First Gov offers contact and other information for federal agencies.
Legal Directories
State Bar of California
http://www.calbar.ca.gov
The State Bar's Attorney Search database provides information on all
attorneys licensed to practice in California including disciplinary
information. The site also provides links to legal resources on the Internet
and some helpful consumer guides.
Martindale-Hubbell® Lawyer Locator
http://www.martindale.com/locator/home.html
Martindale-Hubbell provides national and international listings of
attorneys. Can be searched by name, jurisdiction, and/or specialty.
California Legal Specialists
http://www.californiaspecialist.org
Search for legal specialists certified by the California State Bar and by
other accrediting institutions.
Legal Forms
California Judicial Council Court Forms
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov
Forms filed in California Courts. Some are mandatory; some suggested.
Interactive or printable versions.
California Secretary of State Business Portal
http://www.ss.ca.gov/business/business.htm
Provides information for and about California businesses including starting
a business and registering trademarks. Includes many business forms.
U.S. Court Forms
http://www.uscourtforms.com
Provides huge selection of both business and legal forms. Many are free,
but some require payment.
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.
Legal Docs
http://www.legaldocs.com/
Includes many legal forms, including many at no cost, for contracts,
leases, will, estate planning, corporations, living wills, trusts, and living
trusts.
FedForms
http://www.fedforms.gov
Forms for hundreds of Federal agencies including the EPA, the Dept. of
Justice, and the Treasury Department.
Findlaw Forms
http://forms.lp.findlaw.com
As a last resort.
LexisOne Forms
http://www.lexisone.com/store/catalog?action=rootFreeCategory
Some free forms; lots of fee-based forms.
Legal News and Journals
The National Law Journal
http://www.nlj.com
A weekly national legal news publication. Current issue is free.
LLRX.com
http://www.llrx.com
Provides articles on new legal developments on the Internet. Of special
interest to librarians as it publishes articles evaluating new resources and
offering internet legal research tips.
Good Starting Places
California Courts Self-Help Center
http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/
The place to start folks who are trying to handle their own legal problems.
24/7 Reference Project
http://www.247ref.org/portal/access_law3.cfm
Part of the 24/7 Virtual Reference project, your users can conduct a chat
session or email law librarians legal questions.
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.
Locating the Law, 4th ed.
http://www.aallnet.org/chapter/scall
The Southern California Association of Law Libraries (SCALL) handbook
designed for non-law librarians. Offers hyperlinks to legal materials on the
Internet as well as print sources of legal information.
Council of California County Law Librarian
http://www.cccll.org
List of County Law Libraries (which are open to the public) along with links
to their web pages which are great sources of legal info.
Megasites
Findlaw
http://www.findlaw.com
Probably the best know law site but not necessarily the best in quality.
Does provide one-stop shopping for all 50 states and federal law.
Hieros Gamos
http://www.hg.org/index.html
Megasite which provides links to federal and state legal information and a
wide range of foreign countries. Most recommended by law schools and
attorneys.
Internet Legal Resource Guide
http://www.ilrg.com
An index to thousands of legal sites on the Internet. Includes a forms
archive.
Lexis®
http://www.lexis.com
One of the two online legal giants, offers its resources by credit card to
non-subscribers.
Westlaw®
http://www.westlaw.com
One of the two giants of online legal research. Most resources are
available only to subscribers but non-subscribers can access particular
documents and pay via credit card.
Law on the ‘Net Spring 2004 - This material has been created by Laura A. Cadra for the Infopeople Project [infopeople.org],
supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act,
administered in California by the State Librarian. Any use of this material should credit the author and funding source.