Legal research: legislation

Academic Support Librarian

November 2010

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What are we talking about?Terms used

Primary sources• Statute law• Acts • Legislation• Statutory Instruments• SI• Rules• Regulations• Order

What do you need?

• Current as of today or as close as can get

• In original version ‘as originally enacted’

• History of an act - all amendments to an act since it was passed

• All related legislation – Statutory Instruments under the authority of a single act

• Is it still in force? Sections of acts can remain in force or can come in to force at different times.

What are Statutes?• Statutes/Acts of Parliament originate as Bills

that are passed through various Parliamentary stages.

• Once a Bill has Royal Assent it becomes an Act and is published.

• Most Acts apply nationally

• Local and Personal Acts only relate to certain parts of the country, individuals or organisations.

Bills• Not all Bills are passed and many are amended as they

pass through the Houses of Commons and Lords. • The Library has extensive access to British parliamentary

materials both current and historical in print and online.See British UK government publications for full details.

• House of Commons Parliamentary Papers 1688 - 2004 - full text

• Public Information Online - all parliamentary papers from 2006/07 onwards

• UKOP Online - a catalogue of government publications from 1980 onwards.  

• Current Bills before Parliament http://www.parliament.uk/

Statutes

Human Rights Act 1998 c.42 ; Sale of Goods Act 1979 c.54

Public General Acts, KD125 U51 (original and official)– official series of statutes are published by the Stationery Office, in

annual volumes in number order (each Act is assigned a 'chapter' number).

– Acts in their original form, and not amended. – Largely of historical interest, however this is regarded as the official

and definitive text of an act.

The law changes! Always check you have the up to date/amended version of act.

Legislation research in print

Halsbury's Statutes KD135.H3 G78– subject arrangement. – Acts currently in force and as amended. Acts no longer in force are

omitted. (Updating supplements – check date of each volume)– Subject index, an index of titles of Acts, an annual updating

supplement and monthly updates. – Acts (or their equivalent) applying only to Scotland or Northern

Ireland are not included.

Current Law Statutes Annotated KD135.C8 C97– Reproduces the original Act without amendments, repeals, etc. – Useful to trace the background to and parliamentary history of an

Act, as references to Parliamentary papers - white papers, Standing Committee reports, Hansard debates, in footnotes.

– Now included in Westlaw – look for Statute Annotations on each full text display.

Textbook collections: statute books e.g. Blackstone’s statutes. Maybe recommended on reading lists.

Statutory Instruments

• Secondary legislation• About 4000 a year are implemented• Laid before Parliament as a draft but no

readings or committee stages unlike Bills• Implementing detail of Act or only impact

on a local area• Can be in force for a short time• On web, Westlaw, Lexis, Justis• In Library since 1947 on first floor

Online resources for case law

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Image: Screenshot of the ‘Cases’ search page of online legal service Westlaw UK

Subscription resource: Yes

Edited: No

Date: 2010

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Image: Screenshot of the ‘Cases’ search page of online legal service Justis

Subscription resource: Yes

Edited: No

Date: 2010

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Image: Screenshot of the ‘Cases’ search page of online legal service Lexis Library

Subscription resource: Yes

Edited: No

Date: 2010

LegislationIf rely only on Google searching, you will miss crucial information and could be using inaccurate information.

BAILII and Legislation.gov.uk All original (not amended) versions on the web Acts from 1988; Statutory Instruments from 1987 Selected acts from previous 100 years no indication of what is in force

Online tutorial on law resources on the web

http://www.vts.intute.ac.uk/tutorial/law/

WestlawUK

Select Legislation section for UK All statutes/acts & SIs in force and as amended Section by section display or PDF Use Overview document in Westlaw –

amendments, sections in force Legislation Analysis in Westlaw for section by

section history including key cases Statutes Annotated feature in Westlaw for recent

Acts – notes on act

Lexis Library

Select Legislation section for UK All statutes/acts & SIs in force and as

amended Section by section display or PDF of whole Notes and information links

Justis

• UK Statutes database– full text of all Acts of Parliament in England,

Wales and Scotland as enacted, from 1235 to the present day

– Includes repealed legislation. – Links/tabs to amended and amending

legislation allow you to trace the development of the law.

JustCite Reference tool – section by section information

Lawtel Also useful for latest status of UK legislation –

has it been repealed; is it in force?

European Union

E.g. Council Directive 96/61/EC of 24 September 1996 concerning integrated pollution prevention and control

EUR-Lex http://eur-lex.europa.eu/en/index.htm - legislation, proposals, case law, Official Journal

Lexis Library – select Legislation then International

WestlawUK – select EU CELEX (Justis) – alternative archive of EU law -

legislation, case law, proposals European Sources Online – useful place to start

EU policy research

Starting a new topic

Encycopaedias/reference works can introduce you to a new topic providing an overview of the law – key legislation and case law

Halsbury’s Laws of E & W KD310 H19 Current Law KD296.C8 C97 Reference works e.g. Chitty on Contracts;

Palmer’s Company Law Westlaw Commentary section for online versions

of some key books Specialist subject resources, e.g. British Tax

Library

Law journal articles Example citation: A. Pottage, “Proprietary Strategies: The Legal Framework of Aristocratic Settlements” 61 M.L.R. 162 (1998)

Articles will add to your understanding will offer different opinions/analysis on a case or

topic. will cover recent developments and specific topics

– books take longer to publish A secondary source offering scholarly discussion,

research, commentary and analysis

Electronic resources recap

Electronic Resources via Library website Use the subject guides When know the database that you need, use

the Library Catalogue search by database name

E-Journals webpage – will specify which database to use for a series – search by series title

Use LSE username and password to access

Further readingLegal research books Use if you are researching a new topic or jurisdiction. All will cover both hard copy and electronic methods of

research. Note: some titles are a few years old but the principles of legal research and hard copy materials remain valid although online information resources may change.

Bradney, A. Cownie, F. Masson, J. Neal, A. Newell,D How to study law. Sweet & Maxwell, 5th edition. 2005

Clinch, P. Using a law library OUPress, 2nd edition. 2001 Finch, E., Fafinski, S. Legal Skills OUPress, 2007 Holborn, G. Butterworths’ Legal Research Guide.

Butterworths. 2nd edition, 2001 Knowles, J., Thomas, P Effective Legal Research. Sweet &

Maxwell, 1st edition 2006

Guidance and help Legal research books/guides: use when

covering new jurisdictions/subjects Law Library guide Internet for law tutorial Don’t be afraid to ask for help and don’t

panic!