Full Description
Legal Research: A Practitioner's Handbook provides practical advice on every aspect of effective legal research: problem analysis, selecting and finding the best sources; and presenting results effectively. This third edition has been thoroughly updated, taking into account the increasing popularity of commercial databases aimed at UK law practitioners; the overhaul of a number of government and other official sites (national and international); and significant changes to directions by UK courts relating to the conduct and presentation of legal research. New material on the use of social media in legal research, business information and making use of a law firm's internal precedents has also been added.
Part A covers problem identification and analysis, followed by advice on how to select the best sources and formats (paper or electronic) for research. Part B deals with the information most frequently sought by practitioners, listing sources with analytical comments and, for a selection of the most complex, 'how to use' instructions developed to a standard template. Jurisdictional coverage includes England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the European Union, with the addition of information on key sources in European human rights and international law. Part C details sources on how to make the presentation of the results of legal research more effective. These three parts are supplemented by Part D, which describes in non-technical language how a practitioner might get the best value for money when buying information, whether print or online, from commercial law publishers. Extensive appendices provide indexes to abbreviations for Acts, journals and law reports; a glossary of technical terms used in legal research; a summary of the practice directions, statements and decisions of the UK courts relating to legal research; a table of guidance on how to devise more effective searches on the four most popular commercial databases; and a popular names index for legislation and cases relating to the UK and the EU
Contents
Contents
List of Figures and Tables
Introduction
Acknowledgements
PART A - BEFORE TOUCHING A KEYBOARD OR OPENING A BOOK ...
1 WHERE TO START THE RESEARCH
Preparing to undertake research
Analysing the problem
Deriving keywords
2 WHICH SOURCES TO USE
Classifying the types of information needed
Choosing the best source: print or electronic?
Which sources should I search first?
3 HOW TO CHOOSE THE SOURCES
Asking fundamental questions about a source
Be 'streetwise' about using the internet
PART B -SELECTING THE RIGHT SOURCE AND USING IT EFFECTIVELY
4 GENERAL LAW ENCYCLOPEDIAS
Introduction
United Kingdom
England and Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
European Union
International
5 LEGISLATION
Introduction
United Kingdom
Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
European Union
International - bilateral treaties
International - multilateral treaties (including Council of Europe)
UK Treaties and agreements
6 CASE LAW
Introduction
England and Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
European Union
European Court of Human Rights
International
7 PROCEDURAL LAW
Criminal procedure
Civil procedure
8 STANDARD FORMS AND PRECEDENTS
External
Internal
9 WORDS AND PHRASES
Introduction
England and Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
European Union
International
10 UPDATING KNOWN LAW
Introduction
United Kingdom
England and Wales
Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
European Union
Council of Europe
International
11 COMMENTARY ON THE LAW
Introduction
Cross-jurisdictional
United Kingdom
European Union
European human rights
International
How to cite books and journal articles
Commentary via blogs and twitter
12 PRE-LEGISLATIVE PROPOSALS
United Kingdom
European Union
European human rights
International
13 OTHER OFFICIAL INFORMATION
United Kingdom
European Union
International
14 WHERE TO FIND LEGAL INFORMATION NOT AVAILABLE WITHIN YOUR FIRM OR CHAMBERS
England and Wales
Scotland
Northern Ireland
Other, free sources
Three charged-for services
15 BUSINESS INFORMATION
Company confirmation statements and accounts
Company annual reports
Filings by listed companies: offer documents, prospectuses and shareholders' circulars
Company news, market news and deals
Credit worthiness
Analyst reports and research
Share prices
Interest rates
Business news
Company directories
Information on individuals
16 INFORMATION ABOUT PEOPLE AND PERSONALITIES CONNNECTED WITH THE LAW
Central government
Public bodies
Courts
Law firms
Law libraries
Legal professionals and their societies
Expert witnesses
17 PORTALS, GATEWAYS AND MORE
Portal websites
Searchable subject gateway
Overseas domestic law
International and comparative law
PART C - PRESENTING THE RESULTS EFFECTIVELY
18 WRITING TO IMPRESS
What this chapter is about
Advice on good writing skills
Style manuals
Style manuals for legal citations
PART D - HOW TO GET THE BEST DEAL FROM COMMERCIAL LAW PUBLISHERS
19 BUYING LEGAL INFORMATION
Introduction
Which are the main commercial publishers?
How to buy information in print format
Challenges and pitfalls of buying online information
Hints and tips when negotiating with online law information providers
APPENDICES
1 Lists of Abbreviations
2 What Does this Technical Term Mean?
3 Court Directions Relating to Legal Research
4 Using Databases Better
5 Popular Names Index to UK Cases and EU Legislation and Cases
Subject Index
Index of Published Materials
Index to Databases and Organisations
