Locating the Law - SCALL: Southern California Association ...

1 Southern California Association OF LAW LIBRARIES 2011 Locating the Law A Handbook for Non-Law Librarians Fifth Edition, Revised PUBLIC ACCESS TO LEGAL INFORMATION COMMITTEE 2009, 2011 Southern California Association of Law Libraries Locating the Law A Handbook for Non-Law Librarians Fifth edition, Revised Edited by June Kim Southern California Association of Law Libraries 2011 Public Access to Legal Information (PALI) Committee, Southern California Association of Law Libraries June Kim, Chair 2010-2011 COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Joan Allen-Hart, Judy K. Davis, Catherine Deane, Esther Eastman, Michelle Gorospe, Curtis Jones, Jennifer Lentz, Janine Liebert David McFadden, Patrick Meyer, and Lisa Shultz i Forward The law.

2 Should surely be accessible at all times and to everyone. --Franz Kafka The Southern California Association of Law Libraries (SCALL) Committee on Public Access to Legal Information (PALI) is charged with providing consulting services and related educational programs to public and other non-law libraries offering open access to legal information. Public access to legal information is extremely important in today s rapidly changing legal environment. In recognition of the public s need to know their legal rights and how statutes, administrative regulations, and judicial cases affect their lives, SCALL is pleased to present the fifth edition of Locating the Law: A Handbook for Non-Law Librarians, 2009.

3 This publication, as each of the earlier editions pointed out, is not intended to replace a detailed legal research guide nor is it to be a substitute for the advice of a licensed attorney. Locating the Law is intended to provide basic information about California and federal legal materials: what they are, how they are organized, and how to use them. The full text of the fifth edition of Locating the Law will be available free of charge on the SCALL Web site. For economic and environmental reasons the publication will no longer be produced in print format. Additionally, the electronic only version will make updating more effective and efficient.

4 Web site addresses have been supplied for most of the materials discussed in each chapter. Further, when Locating the Law is viewed over the Internet, readers will be able to find sources of information almost instantly by clicking on the hyperlinked text provided throughout this publication. As used in this handbook, Internet access means electronically available. When commercially available Internet services are described within, they are identified as fee-based services. As a member of SCALL for fifteen years (1992-2007) and former PALI chair, I know that previous editions of this handbook have been used by librarians both within and outside of California and have assisted paralegals, law students, legal administrative assistants, attorneys and others.

5 The editor and authors hope the fifth edition will continue to be an important resource for Locating legal information. Readers with questions, comments and suggestions for revisions may use the Contact Us link on the Locating the Law page at Locating THE LAW, FIFTH EDITION ii With your help, the members of the PALI Committee will strive to keep this new online edition as up-to-date as possible. October 2009 Ruth J. Hill Director of Library Services & Associate Professor of Law Oliver B. Spellman Law Library Southern University Law Center 56 Roosevelt Steptoe Drive Baton Rouge, LA 70813 iii Preface The Southern California Association of Law Libraries (SCALL) Committee on Public Access to Legal Information (PALI) is pleased to present the revised fifth edition of Locating of Law: A Handbook for Non-Law Librarians.

6 The revision of the fifth edition of Locating the Law was completed in November 2011. Because most of the edits involved updating links or deleting obsolete resources, the Committee decided that this version of Locating the Law did not include enough substantive changes to qualify as a new edition. A couple of changes, however, do merit a mention here. New PALI member Janine Liebert suggested several new titles to add to Chapter 10: Bibliography of Self-Help Resources. In addition, the list of common abbreviations in law previously included at the end of Chapter 2: How to Read a Legal Citation is now Appendix B.

7 We hope that providing this handy list in its new location as a separate appendix will make it more accessible to researchers. I would like to thank the PALI members who updated the 2009 versions of their chapters: David McFadden, Joan Allen-Hart, Patrick Meyer, Lisa Schultz, Jennifer Lentz, and Esther Eastman. I would also like to acknowledge the assistance provided by Judy K. Davis and several new members of PALI, Catherine Deane, Michelle Gorospe, Curtis Jones and Janine Liebert. Also, PALI thanks Ramon Barajas for his technical assistance. On behalf of the 2010-2011 Committee on Public Access to Legal Information, I hope that the revised fifth edition of Locating the Law will be a useful resource to public librarians in California and elsewhere.

8 November 2011 June Kim Chair, Public Access to Legal Information Committee (2010-2011) Southern California Association of Law Libraries Locating THE LAW, FIFTH EDITION, 2011 iv v Acknowledgments The 2008-2009 Public Access to Legal Information (PALI) Committee is pleased to present the fifth edition of Locating the Law: A Handbook for Non-Law Librarians. The new edition reflects the hard work, diligence and expertise of over a dozen California law librarians, all of whom volunteered their time to this project. Given that eight years have passed since the last edition, it should not surprise readers to know that the changes to this publication are extensive.

9 The Committee had its work cut out for it and, I believe, rose to the challenge. As editor, I had the privilege of working with all of the members of the Committee. Especially during the last four months,1 when the editing process was most intensive, I became exceedingly familiar with each person s contributions to this publication. I hope to convey my appreciation of the Committee s accomplishments here, as well as in the quality of the final product, which I hope meets the expectations of the Committee members. The chapters and appendices are excellent as separate work, but they are even better together, in what I hope is a cohesive whole.

10 The chapter and appendix authors are Joan Allen-Hart, Laura A. Cadra, Karla Castetter, Esther Eastman, June Kim, Jennifer Lentz, David McFadden, Patrick Meyer, and Lisa Shultz. A detailed list is in the table below. SECTION/CHAPTER AUTHOR TITLE/AFFILIATION PREFACE Rut h Hill Director of Library Services & Assoc. Professor of Law, Southern University Law Center (Baton Rouge, LA) ACKNOWLEDGMENTS June Kim Senior Reference Librarian, UCLA School of Law 1 Mid-May 2009 through September 2009. Locating THE LAW, FIFTH EDITION vi CHAPTER 1: Introduction Karla Castetter Library Director, Thomas Jefferson School of Law CHAPTER 2: How to Read a Legal Citation David McFadden Senior Reference Librarian, South-western Law School CHAPTER 3: Basic Legal Research Techniques Joan Allen-Hart Assistant Director, Retired, San Diego County Public Law Library CHAPTER 4: Legal Reference vs.