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Legal Research

Legal materials are located throughout the UTSA Library in both print and electronic formats. This guide includes the most frequently requested legal resources that will help you with your research.

Background Information (Dictionaries, Encyclopedias)

One Volume Legal Dictionaries

American Law Dictionary
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF156 .R46 1991

Black’s Law Dictionary
Location: JPL Reference Stacks and Downtown Library Reference, KF156 .B53 2004
Most authoritative legal dictionary.

Oran's Dictionary of the Law
Location: netLibrary
General legal dictionary written for both lawyers and non-lawyers.

The Oxford Companion to Law
Location: JPL Reference Stacks and Downtown Library Reference, K48 .W34 2002

West’s Legal Thesaurus/Dictionary
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF156 .S7 1986

Wiley’s English-Spanish, Spanish-English Legal Dictionary
Location: JPL Reference Stacks K52.S6 K36 1997

Legal Directories

Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (LexisNexis) (UTSA Subscription)
Choose "Legal " tab > "Sources" tab > "Find Sources" and search "Martindale". Click "continue".
Details on more than 900,000 lawyers & law firms around the world.

State Court Organization
U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF8736 .A15 S7
Free Website: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/sco04.htm
Presents detailed comparative data by State trial and appellate courts in the United States. Diagrams of court structure summarize the key features of each State's court organization.

U.S. Courts
Free Website: http://www.uscourts.gov/courtlinks
Clearinghouse for information from and about the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government.

Want’s Federal State Court Directory
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF8700 .A19 F42

Encyclopedias

The Guide to American Law: Everyone’s Legal Encyclopedia
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF156 .G77 1983 (v. 1-12, Yearbook 1987, 1990-1992 Annual Supplement Volumes)
Multi-volume set designed to provide explanations in “non-legal” language. Includes legal forms and major legal documents.

Corpus Juris Secundum
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF154 .C67 (v. 1-101A, General Index A-Z 1992)
Restates U.S. law in encyclopedic form. Includes a five volume general index, uses pocket part supplements. Copious footnotes containing case references can be used as finding aids for case citations.

CQ Supreme Court Collection (part of CQ Electronic Library) (UTSA Subscription)
Provides access to reference resources on topics in American government, politics, history, public policy, and current affairs. Includes the CQ Congress, Public Affairs, Voting and Elections, and Supreme Court collections, as well as Encyclopedia of American Government. Also includes CQ Political Reference Suite titles: Congress and the Nation, Political Handbook of the World, Historic Documents Series, Washington Information Directory, and Politics in America. Collections may contain dictionary or encyclopedia entries, image galleries, and maps in addition to full text. Full Text/Full Image

Historic U.S. Court Cases 1690-1990: An Encyclopedia
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF385 .A1 J64 1992

The Oxford Companion to American Law
Location: JPL Reference Stacks and Downtown Library Reference, KF154 .O96 2002

U.S. Court Cases
Location: netLibrary
Discussion of where U.S. law comes from, the meaning of justice, and how court system is organized. Second part contains 212 articles on key court cases.

West’s Encyclopedia of American Law
Location: JPL Reference Stacks and Downtown Library Reference, KF154 .W47 2005 (v. 1-13)

Research

Fundamentals of Legal Research
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF240 .J32
Includes glossary of terms used in legal research and table of legal abbreviations.

Legal Information : How to Find it, How to Use it
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF240 .O365 1999

Legal Research Illustrated: an Abridgment of Fundamentals of Legal Research
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF240 .J322 2002

Legal Research in a Nutshell
Location: JPL Reference Desk and Downtown Library Reference, KF240 .J322 2003

Legal Research: How to Find and Understand the Law
Location: netLibrary

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Books

Books and Materials at the UTSA Library

UCAT, UTSA Library Online Catalog
Search UCAT to locate books, journal titles (not articles), government documents, maps and multimedia materials available at the UTSA Library. Read the Search Tips to learn how to conduct a better search.

• Need to obtain a book from another UTSA campus?
  Courier Service
  
  
• Want to know how UTSA books are organized?
  Library Of Congress Subject Classification

Books and Materials Elsewhere

• Want to find books and journal holdings in other libraries?
  Check the Catalogs list to search other library catalogs
  
  
• Need to use another library?
  TexShare Cards
  
  
• Want the UTSA Library to obtain materials for you?
  Interlibrary Loan (ILL)

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Databases & Article Searching

The UTSA Library may not always own the items listed in the resources below. Search UCAT to see if the library owns or subscribes to a particular item.

Academic Universe (LexisNexis) (UTSA subscription)
Provides abstracts and/or full text to nearly 6,000 titles relating primarily to news, business, and legal information. Includes U. S. and foreign newspapers, wire services, government and political news, company profiles and financial reports, industry and market news, patents, federal and state case law, law reviews, Shepard's for U.S. Supreme Court, federal and state regulations, accounting and tax information, medical news and abstracts, and state and country profiles. Updated continuously. Source List available online. Full Text

CCH Tax Research Network (UTSA subscription)
Includes full text federal and state tax reporters, explanation and analysis, tax news, and primary source information such as the Internal Revenue Code, federal tax regulations, tax cases, and letter rulings. Full Text

Congressional Universe (LexisNexis) (UTSA subscription)
Provides access to information from and about the U.S. Congress. Includes congressional publications; bill tracking and full text of bills; legislative history; federal regulations; and member affiliations, demographic, financial, and voting records. Dates of coverage vary from 1789 to the present. Significant full text content. Updated daily. Full Text

Criminal Justice Abstracts (UTSA subscription)
Indexes and abstracts journal articles in criminology and related disciplines from 1968 to the present. Includes extensive coverage of books as well as reports from government and non-government agencies. Citations Only

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Legal Composition

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (18th ed.)
Location: JPL Reference Stacks and Downtown Library Reference, KF245 .B58

Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF156 .G367 2001

The Elements of Legal Style
Location: JPL Reference Stacks and Downtown Library Reference, KF250 .G37 2002

Texas Rules of Form
Location: JPL Reference Desk KFT1275 .T4

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Reports of the United States Supreme Court and Federal Courts

United States Supreme Court Opinions

United States Reports: Cases adjudged in the Supreme Court.
Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office
Location: JPL Reference Stacks, KF101 .U58 (v. 387 1966-present)
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Official reports of the United States Supreme Court. Cited: U.S.

U.S. Supreme Court Reports Lawyers’ Edition (1st and 2nd Series)
LexisNexis
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Is the unofficial reporter from LexisNexis that discusses the entire body of case law on issues ruled on by the Supreme Court. Cited: L.Ed

Supreme Court Reporter
St. Paul: West Publishing Company
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF101 .S9 (v. 1 1882-present)
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
West's u nofficial record of the Supreme Court. Cited: S.Ct.

United States Supreme Court Digest
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF101.1 .U55 (v. 1-16 1754-1999)
Encyclopedic arrangement of Supreme Court cases and principles law applied there. Uses West key number digest system.

United States Law Week
Washington, D.C. : Bureau of National Affairs
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF101 .U547 (v. 57 1988-present)
A weekly law journal, the most current source for finding Supreme Court activities (opinions and proceedings), Slip Decisions, and General Law developments including court decisions other than Supreme Court.
Cited: U.S L.W.

Federal Court Opinions

Federal Reporter
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Contains decisions of the U.S. District Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals from 1880-1924. Cited: F.

Federal Reporter, 2d Series
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Contains decisions of the U.S. Court of Appeals from 1924-1993 and the U.S. District Court from 1924-1932. Cited: F.2d

Federal Reporter, 3d Series
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Contains decisions of the U.S. Court of Appeals from 1993 to the present. Cited: F.3d

Federal Supplement
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Contains decisions of the U.S. District Court from 1932 to the present. Cited: F.Supp.

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Reports of the State of Texas Courts

Southwestern Reporter Texas Cases, 2d Series
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT 1255 .S7 (v.1 1928-present)
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Unofficial record of appellate courts of Texas.

Southwestern Reporter Texas Cases, 3d Series
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT 1255 .S71 (v. 1 2000-present)
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Unofficial record of appellate courts of Texas.

West’s Texas Digest, 1st Series
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1257 .T4 (v. 2-v. 42, Descriptive Word Index A-Z, Table of Cases A-Z, Words and Phrases A-Z)
Encyclopedic arrangement of Texas Court cases and principles law applied there. Uses West key number digest system.

West’s Texas Digest, 2d Series
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1257 .T42 (v. 1 - v. 66, Descriptive Word Index A-Z, Table of Cases A-Z, Words and Phrases A-Z)
Encyclopedic arrangement of Texas Court cases and principles law applied there. Uses West key number digest system.

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Statutory and Administrative Law (United States): Codes & Statutes

The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF4527 .U54 1996
Supplements the text of the Constitution with annotations for historic Supreme Court cases, along with laws declared unconstitutional.

United States Code (USC)
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF62 (2000 ed.) (Titles 1-50, Tables, General Index, Supplements)
Official version of all general and permanent federal laws in force. Public Laws are arranged under fifty “titles” or subject categories. Does not summarize legislative history but cites Statutes at Large. Older editions available.

United States Code Annotated (USCA)
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF62 .W45 (Title 1-50, USCA Code Guide, General Index A-Z, USCA Tables I-II, USCA Laws)
From West Publishing, unofficial compilation of general and permanent laws in force. Same arrangement as United States Code (U.S.C.) but also lists references to case law, legislative histories, administrative regulations and various secondary sources.

United States Code Service (USCS)
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (LexisNexis) (UTSA Subscription)
Unofficial, annotated version of the United States Code (U.S.C.) but also lists references to case law, legislative histories, administrative regulations and law review articles.

United States Code Congressional and Administrative News (USCCAN)
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF63 .C65 (78th Congress 1944-present)
At the end of each Congressional session, cumulates slip laws from each session. Contains complete text of all public and private laws and concurrent resolutions passed during that session. Gives citations to U.S. Code and brief legislative history. From West Publishing.

United States Statutes at Large
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF50 .U52 (1972-present)
Official publication of all laws exactly as they were passed. Chronological arrangement.

Federal Regulations

Code of Federal Regulations
Location: JPL US Government Documents AE2.106/3:
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Free Website: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr/index.html
Annual subject compilation of administrative federal law.

Federal Register
Location: JPL US Government Documents AE 2.106:
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)
Free Website: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html
Published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents.

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Statutory and Administrative Law (Texas): Codes & Statutes

City Code of San Antonio Texas
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFX2341 .A35 1986 (Chapters 1-34; Chapters 35-End)

Official Texas Administrative Code
Location: JPL Texas Documents S500.4 .Ad65 (1999-2000, General Index)

Texas Register
JPL Texas Documents S500.6.R263 (v. 1, 1976-present)

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Texas State Law

General and Special Laws of the State of Texas
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1225 .A23 (52nd Legislature 1951 - Current Legislature)

Texas Rules of Court Federal
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.5 .V465 (2000)

Texas Rules of Court State
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.5 .V465 (2000)

Vernon’s Annotated Code of Criminal Procedure of the State of Texas
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.5 .V45C74 1977 (v. 1-6)

Vernon’s Annotated Constitution of the State of Texas
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230 .A2 1876a (v.1-3)

Vernon’s Annotated Revised Civil Statutes of the State of Texas
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230 1969 A4x (v. 2-23)

Vernon’s Texas Code Forms Annotated: Uniform Commercial Code Forms
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.57 .V442 1997 Forms (v. 1-2)

Vernon’s Texas Statutes Annotated
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.56 .V42
Entries in each contain brief historical notes, constitutional provisions where applicable, cross references to other Vernon’s and references to West Digest System and Corpus Juris Secundum. Search the catalog by code. Example: Education Code

Vernon’s Texas Statutes and Codes Annotated General Index
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.57 .V44
Use to access Vernon’s editions above.

Vernon’s Texas Statutes and Codes Annotated: Interim Annotation Service
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1230.56 .V42 (current issues only)

Vernon’s Texas Session Law Service
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1225 .T4x (1975 v.1-3, 1977 No.1-10, Current Legislative Sessions)

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Citators and Finding Aids

Shepard’s for U.S. Supreme Court Cases
Electronic Access: Academic Universe (UTSA Subscription)

Shepard’s Acts and Cases by Popular Names Federal and State
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF90 .S52 1999 (Part 1: Acts A-Z, Part 2: Acts S-Z, Part 3: Cases A-Z)
Compilation of popular names federal and state acts and cases along with their official citations. Updated with paperback supplements.

Shepard’s Texas Case Names Citator: A Compilation of Case Names and Citations of Texas Cases Decided from 1940 to the Present
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1259 .S48 1991 (Part 1-2)
Analyzes Texas cases from 1940 by case name and provides citation to Shepard’s Texas Citations and the Southwestern Reporter. Case volume list cases by citation and underneath each, lists citations to every subsequent case that has cited that case. Statutes volumes refer to Vernon’s Texas Statutes and Codes. Updates are frequently as paperback supplements.

Shepard’s Texas Citations
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1259 .S5 (1993:Cases pt. 1-7, 1993:Statutes pt. 1-3, Supplement, 1993-1999: Cases Analyzed, Current year)

Texas Law Finder
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1261 .T48 (2000)
Master guide to West's publications, both federal and Texas.

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Paralegals

Students in the Paralegal Program within the Center for Professional Excellence at UTSA can use the above legal resources, including print materials and databases, within the library. You cannot, though, access the databases from off-campus (unless registered as a UTSA student).

You can email articles to yourself within Academic Universe (LexisNexis) and other databases, but due to licensing restrictions, you cannot email articles to persons unaffiliated with UTSA.

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Further Research

Law Schools
Legal Directories
Websites
Reference Books

Law Schools

American Bar Association: ABA-Approved Law Schools
Free Website: http://www.abanet.org/legaled/approvedlawschools/approved.html

WashLaw Web: Law Schools
Free Website: http://www.washlaw.edu/

Legal Directories

Martindale-Hubbell Lawyer Locator
Free Website: http://www.martindale.com/

Find a Lawyer
Free Website: http://directory.findlaw.com/
West Legal Directory provides profiles of more than 1,000,000 lawyers and law firms, in addition to profiles of international counsel, corporate counsel, and US government attorneys.

Websites

Oyez: U.S. Supreme Court Multimedia Database
Free Website: http://www.oyez.org/oyez/frontpage

Cornell Law School: Legal Information Institute
Free Website: http://www.law.cornell.edu/

Jurist: The Legal Education Network at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law
Free Website: http://www.jurist.law.pitt.edu/

Washburn University School of Law
Free Website: http://www.washlaw.edu/

FindLaw - LawCrawler
Free Website: http://lawcrawler.findlaw.com/

Internet Law Library - Law Guru.com
Free Website: http://www.lawguru.com/

Reference Books

Great American Court Cases
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF 385 .G68 1999 (v. 1-4)
Volume 1: Individual Liberties
Volume 2: Criminal Justice
Volume 3: Equal Protection and Family Law
Volume 4: Business Government

Landmark Decisions of the United States Supreme Court
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF4549 .F56 2003

Legal Research in a Nutshell
Location: JPL Reference Desk and Downtown Library Reference, KF240 .C54 2003

Legal Information: How to Find It How to Use It
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF240 .O365 1999

The Official Guide to ABA-Approved Law Schools
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KF273 .A86

West’s Texas Forms
Location: JPL Reference Stacks KFT1268 .W47 (v. 1-18A)
Includes a General Index divided by type of law.