Online Resources (WSU users only)
Law-related databases: Databases are digitial libraires that WSU students and faculty can access. This is a list of 6.
Print Materials
Massachusetts Decisions (Call number range: Ref KF 135 .N61 M32 Vol. 1-4 to Ref KF 135 .N61 M3251 vol. 197-200)
General Laws Annotated (Call Number range: Ref KFM 2406 .A35 Constit. Pt. 1 to Ref KFM 2406 .A35a Index 2016 P-z)
West’s Massachusetts Decisions (2010-2017)
The Library's Reference shelves also includes law-related materials including encyclopedias and dictionaries. Look in the call number range Ref KF.
These three basic areas of U.S. law will guide much of your research so be familiar with them:
Statutory Law. Laws passed by Legislative bodies such as the U.S. Congress or a state legislature.
Administrative Law. Decisions, rules, and regulations passed by federal or state agencies determining how a law is carried out.
Case Law. Laws established by judicial decisions in court cases.
Blue Book Quick Guide: Quick style guide available by creating a free personal account.
Caselaw Access Project: Harvard Law School's tool featuring over 40 million pages of U.S. court decisions, transforming them into a dataset covering almost 6.5 million individual cases (Beta version with some complicated requirements).
Cornell University Law School Legal Information Institute : Includes a variety of federal and state legal information including the U.S. Code, Federal Rules, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C.), state laws, a legal encyclopedia, as well as analysis of legal topics.
Glossary of Legal Terms: From the United States Courts at U.S. Courts.gov
Google Scholar:Type the citation of case name into the box and click the case law button.
Library of Congress Legal Research Guide: A handy guide for navigating different legal topics.
Office of the Law Revision Counsel United States Code: Consolidated codified version of the United States Code including general and permanent laws of the U.S. searchable by subject.
Oyez: Contains summaries of key U.S. Supreme Court cases.
Washington University Law: Provides information and tools useful for law students.
Links to federal and state courts
Federal Courts: Explore the federal court system here including information about jurisdiction and decisions.
Library of Congress Law Library: Includes online resources about courts and decisions as well as a research guide.
Massachusetts Courts: Explore the state court system including information about jurisdictions and decisions.
Massachusetts Decisions: Connect to recent and cases in Massachusetts.
The United States Code from Cornell Law School.
The United States Code of Federal Regulations from the National Archives.
Massachusetts General Laws from the General Court of the Commonwealth.
Worcester's Ordinaces and Regulations from the City of Worcester.
Worcester Law Library: a public law library that provides free access to databases including Westlaw and Lexis, print materials, and help with legal research. Located at 184 Main St. in downtown Worcester, hours are 8:00 - 4:00 Monday-Friday.
Worcester ARC. Obtain an ARC card to browse materials or borrow from 23 public and University libraries across Worcester County. Use the link to learn more.
