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8.4
Interactive Study | Researching Statutes
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INTRODUCTION
Now we turn our attention to researching statutes on:
A. Westlaw
B. Lexis
C. The Law Library
As with the previous section on case law, use the books to help you navigate efficiently to statutes in all three research sources. Of course, you can also use the Audio Companion tools below. They will walk you through all three. For each resource, first start the Audio button (button 1), then open the corresponding Website (button 2).
This section details the three publications that contain the federal statutes, state statutes, and how to research within them.
United States Code;
United States Code Annotated;
United States Code Service; State Statutes
The structure of state statutes may vary, but the method used to research them stays the same. So no matter what jurisdiction you are in, rely on the theory of research: index to main volumes to additional authority, or (for online research) search query to results page to additional authority. You may also use Lexis or Westlaw to research within your state statutes.
Lecture Notes . . .
RESEARCHING FEDERAL STATUTES
These pages will teach you how to utilize the federal statutes.
When researching, use either of the two unofficial publications (U.S.C.A. or U.S.C.S.).
When citing federal statutes, however, always cite to the official (U.S.C.).
Researching State Statutes
These pages will teach you how to utilize state statutes. The answers will vary depending on the state you are in, but in any case, always start in the index!
And when possible, research in an unofficial set of statutes. They will provide research tools probably not available in the official.
Commonly Asked Questions . . .
If the tool below does not function properly in your browser, click here to open in a new window.
Exercises
About Federal Statutes
Federal Statutes (Progress Check)
About State Statutes
State Statutes (Progress Check)
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly Time Sheets
You are required to keep track of your billable hours when working on legal research and writing assignments and to turn them in with your written assignments. Click on the examples of Time Sheets below to zoom in and compare. Yours should look like the Good example.
