The Researcher’s Law Dictionary potx

A legal dictionary with
emphasis on the tools
and resources of legal
research, of particular
interest to researchers,
students, and librarians,
with definitions more
in-depth than found in
any other dictionary.


Edward B. Sadowski, MLS
The Researcher’s

Law Dictionary
A legal dictionary with
emphasis on the tools
and resources of legal
research, of particular
interest to researchers,
students, and librarians,
with definitions more

in-depth than found in
any other dictionary.


The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 2




Copyright 2010 by Edward B. Sadowski. All rights reserved.



abbreviation

Citations in primary and secondary sources and documents use
abbreviations of case reporters, codes, courts, law reviews, and
other legal resources. Proper forms of abbreviations are required by
courts for all submitted legal documents. Abbreviations of courts
and publications used in legal citation are often completely
inscrutable, akin to trying to decipher hieroglyphics. Before you can
track down a publication in a citation, you need to figure out its
complete title.

There is not a standard set of abbreviations used by all law
reporters and reference guides. Such sources as Shepard’s, Black’s
Law Dictionary, and citation manuals such as The Bluebook may
vary in their forms of abbreviations.

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation has a section in the

back of the book with the most common abbreviations of legal
publications. The blue pages in the middle of The Bluebook has the
proper citations for the various states. The front of the state Digests
has the abbreviations for that state’s courts. Black’s Law Dictionary
is also a helpful resource, with a section on abbreviations.There are
reference books devoted exclusively to legal abbreviations.

There is an excellent British website for legal abbreviations in the
English language (including US): the Cardiff Index to Legal
Abbreviations at www.legalabbrevs.cardiff.ac.uk. Another site:
www.legal-abbreviations.org. An online list of abbreviations and
links to additional abbreviation resources is at


act

Another term for a law. After a bill is sent from the House of
Representatives to the Senate, it may be referred to as an act. After
enactment by the Senate, the act becomes law, and still may be
referred to as an act.

action

A lawsuit, or litigation.

actionable

Grounds for legal action; based on facts in the complaint, sufficient
cause for a lawsuit; a filing of a lawsuit that meets legal
requirements.

adjudication

The final decision, or final judgment, of the court that ends,
terminates the case. A case is adjudicated in favor or against a
plaintiff or defendant.

administrative
agency

A government body, also known as a regulatory agency, or
government agency, may have the name administration, board,
commission, corporation, department, office, service. Agencies are
usually created by statute to implement or enforce the law.
Agencies have regulatory functions and the power to promulgate
rules, issue decisions, opinions, and adjudicate disputes.
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Administrative agencies are generally an independent part of the
executive branch of the government, but may also be part of the
legislative or judicial branch, or not part of any branch. Examples of
agencies are the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, General
Accounting Office, National Labor Relations Board, United States
Postal Service, US Commission on Civil Rights.

Administrative agencies may publish annual reports discussing the
operation and activities and accomplishments of the agency.

Before accepting a company as a client, a law firm may need to
know what administrative agencies affect the company’s operations.

Although a company can be affected by a web of federal, state, and
local agencies, much of this information is found in the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR), which is available in the legal
databases and is free on the Web at gpoaccess.gov/cfr. By
browsing the various titles of the CFR the researcher can locate the
agencies that could affect the client. A research tool, the
Congressional Quarterly’s Federal Regulatory Directory, provides
profiles of agencies, including background information and
responsibilities, legislation administered by the agencies, and where
to locate rules and regulations enforced by the agencies. The
appropriate agencies are located using the index of terms that
identify the different areas of responsibilities or functions of
agencies.

administrative
decision

Administrative rules and regulations are enforced by administrative
judicial tribunals, created by Congress, who issue decisions through
administrative hearings. The Administrative Procedure Act (APA),
enacted by Congress in 1946, sets forth administrative law
procedures to comply with Constitutional due process.

administrative
law

Laws made by administrative agencies, including rules,
regulations and quasi-judicial decisions. Also known as
administrative code. Collectively these can be referred to as
regulations, and are created both on the federal, state, and local

levels.
Statutes cannot cover every detail of every aspect of legally defined
behavior of individuals and entities. These additional rules and
regulations of societal behavior are left to administrative agencies.
Administrative law—the rules, regulations and codes—are issued by
governmental agencies at all levels—municipal, county, state and
federal. These rules and regulations are directed to the general
public, businesses and other agencies. Some of the better known
agencies whose regulations get into the public spotlight are the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) and the Federal Drug Administration (FDA).
Federal government agencies are usually part of the executive
branch, also called executive agencies. Some agencies are part of
the judicial and legislative branches. Sometimes agencies are
referred to as the “fourth branch of the government.” Regulations
have the force of law under the mandate of legislative statutes, in
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other words, statutes establish or limit agency powers. Federal
agencies are authorized by Congress to promulgate rules and
regulations. Administrative regulations are enforceable,
with penalties for violations handed out through decisions by
administrative judicial tribunals.
Federal rules and regulations made by government administrative
agencies are available in print, microfiche and on the Internet. First,
regulations are issued daily, chronologically, in The Federal
Register, then codified topically in the Code of Federal Regulations
(CFR). Some federal regulations and procedural rules are included
in some of the primary sources of federal statutes, such as the US
Code Congressional and Administrative News Service (USCCAN)
and the US Code Service (USCS).

Federal regulations on the Internet are available from the
government websites at GPOAccess.gov and FirstGov.gov, as well
as agency home pages. Also useful are websites such as
FindLaw.com and The Cornell Legal Information Institute at
www.law.cornell.edu.

State regulations may be harder to find. Many states publish
regulations included with statutes, as well as in the form of
“administrative codes” and are available on the Internet by
combining “administrative code” with the name of the state. Many
states publish state versions of the Federal Register and Code of
Federal Regulations. State websites also have links to
administrative codes which may be available centrally or from
individtopual departments and agencies.

administrative
rules and
regulations

The same as administrative law.
advance
sheet

Hard copy reporters and statute collections are kept up to date
with advance sheets. Advance sheets are temporary pamphlet
publications of enacted statutes and case opinions, issued within a
couple of weeks of case opinion or enactment of statute. Advance
sheets are also issued for administrative opinions. Court opinions
may be revised or withdrawn before their reporter is published.

West Regional Reporter advance sheets are published weekly.
Other advance sheets are published biweekly, monthly and semi-
monthly. Advance sheets of statutes are preceded by the
publication of slip laws, while case decisions are first printed as slip
opinions.

Advanced sheets are placed next to the hardcover volumes they
relate to and are discarded when a permanent hardcover volume is
published with the identical information and same volume number
and pagination. Some libraries keep advance sheets behind the
Reference Desk to prevent theft.

West reporter advance sheets feature a subject index, a key
number digest, and a cumulative table of words and phrases
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 5
construed in the cases reported. Lawyers’ Edition, 2d advance
sheets for the US Supreme Court Reports feature a “table of
classifications to the U.S. Supreme Court Digest” and a table of
statutes cited in the cases reported.

advisory
committee

A group set up to study an issue for the government and may issue
special reports or annual reports.
affirm

A higher court’s confirmation, as valid, a lower court’s decision; to
uphold a lower court’s judgment or actions. An appeals court affirms

a lower court’s decision.

agency

See administrative agency.
amendment

A change to a bill, law, or Constitution. Laws get amended over
the years, meaning that parts of statutes or regulations are
changed, added to, or deleted. The amended version of the law is
the most current. Part of a law that has been changed is also known
as a statutory amendment.

American Bar
Association

The American Bar Association (ABA) (www.abanet.org), founded in
1878, is the nation’s major association for lawyers, a voluntary
professional association organized to promote improvements in the
American justice system and to provide guidelines for the
advancement of the legal profession and legal education. Its
membership of over 400,000 consists of practicing and non-
practicing lawyers, judges, law professors, and administrators (but
only half of the nation’s lawyers are members). Other legal
associations are state bar associations as well as organizations
based on specialty and ethnicity.

The ABA publishes books, manuals, and, through its ABA Journal,
articles on legal topics. The ABA has formulated rules of
professional conduct, responsibility, and ethics and has participated

in the development of model acts. The ABA provides accreditation
to law schools and paralegal education. The ABA cannot discipline
lawyers nor can it enforce its rules.

The word “bar” in the association’s name derives from the bar in the
courtroom—the railing that serves as a physical barrier between the
spectators and judge, attorneys, defendants, and court staff.

American Law
Reports

The American Law Reports, or ALR, published by West, contains
selected (that is, significant, leading, but not all) state and federal
appellate cases and comprehensive essays on legal issues, as well
as typical illustrative cases. This differs from the general legal
encyclopedias that cover all legal topics.

ALR is a primary source in that it contains cases, albeit in a
selected, not comprehensive collection of law, although it does
cover a wide range of topics, with a narrow focus. ALR is most
valuable as a secondary source as a finding tool as well as for its
outstanding annotations. ALR also covers practice issues with
cross-references to practice manuals and the American
Jurisprudence Legal Forms books. Supposedly ALR is quoted and
cited more than any other secondary authority.
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ALR is valuable not so much for text of cases (case reports are also
published in a number of other resources) but for in-depth essays
(annotations) of high caliber that follow each case. The annotations

are written by staff lawyers and not by prominent scholars, thus ALR
is not to be used as persuasive authority, but as a help to
understand the law. Its annotations include discussions of a topic in
different jurisdictions, following different rules and approaches,
using key facts, bringing together relevant authorities. Some ALR
annotations are 150 pages long! Most of the latest annotations
cover new topics not covered in previous volumes. Some of the
recent annotations cover topics found in earlier volumes, thus
superseding the earlier annotations.

“Annotation” is a misleading term for ALR content in that its
annotations are very detailed and lengthy articles, unlike the
annotations in digests, which are one-sentence summaries of
cases. The ALR includes scope notes, summaries, practical practice
pointers, outlines of cases, in-depth index, sample terms for
electronic searches, and table of cited statutes and cases. Probably
the best starting point in ALR is the index to locate a topic. If a key
primary authority is known, annotations discussing that authority can
be found in the tables in the ALR Index or ALR Federal Tables
volumes. Pocket parts should always be checked as they may
indicate if annotations have been superseded, also indicated in the
Annotation History Tables.

The American Law Reports, started in 1919, is published in two
separate collections. ALR covers state cases while ALR Federal
covers the federal cases. There are five separate series of ALR.
Each series is a separate collection of material, not cumulative in
other words, each subsequent series does not replace the previous
series, unlike encyclopedias. Six to ten ALR volumes are published
each year for each current series, with each volume containing

about ten annotations.

There are helpful cross-references to other sources that discuss the
specific issues, such as legal encyclopedias, treatises, practice
manuals, law reviews, and digests and indexes. There is a
separate Shepard’s Citations for ALR.

Starting with volume 111 (in the year 1993, which is the first year of
the fifth series) cross-references are made to West’s key number
system and electronic queries for Westlaw online searching. The
complete ALR is only available electronically on Westlaw.

ALR has a telephone hotline for case updates for cases not yet
published: 800-225-7488.

annotated
(codes,
statutes)

The commercially-published collections of laws that contain notes
added by editors to the text of statutes. These notes by the editors
include summaries of cases that interpret or discuss particular
sections of the code. The notes also contain references to other
relevant statutes, cases, law review articles and other resources.
Annotated codes are published for federal and state laws, but
generally not for regulations.
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annotation

A description, explanation, or overview of a topic in the form of a
note, editorial comment or summary that helps explain statutes and
cases is an annotation. Annotations have cross references to
related primary sources and secondary resources. Annotated
statutes contain “case blurbs” explaining sections of statutes.
Annotations in digests summarize case decisions. Digest
annotations in West digests summarize a subtopic (identified by key
number) under a larger topic. The American Law Reports (ALR)
annotations, on the other hand, are lengthy and detailed essays on
points of law.

Annotations in codes delineate statutes within a legal context of how
the statute has been interpreted by the Judicial branch and enforced
by the Executive branch. Code annotations include a “Historical
Note,” providing legislative history of dates when the law was
originally enacted and amended; cross-references to related
Executive branch regulations; “Notes of Decisions” summarizing
court cases interpreting the statute; and references to secondary
resources, such as law review articles, treatises, or encyclopedias
that discuss the particular law.

appeal

A legal proceeding where an appellant, or defendant, requests that
a case decision be reviewed and reversed by a higher court. The
losing party in the court of appeals can attempt to appeal the
decision to the United States Supreme Court through a “writ of
certiorari.” The Supreme Court may decide not to hear the case.
Most court cases are not appealed, especially because they are
time-consuming and costly.

appellant

The party, formerly a plaintiff or defendant in a lower court,
requesting that a higher court review actions of a lower court.

appellate brief

A written legal argument submitted to an appellate court asking
that a trial court decision be upheld or reversed. Appellate briefs
are very helpful in understanding legal issues raised in a case on
behalf of a plaintiff or defendant. Unfortunately, only briefs for the
US Supreme Court are regularly published. Selected full-text briefs
are available in the Landmark Brief series. Summaries of briefs for
all US Supreme Court cases reported are found in the Supreme
Court Reports, Lawyer’s Edition, 2
nd
.

appellate
court

Same as appeals court. Federal or state higher court which hears
appeals from a lower court. An appeals court. See appeal. The
U.S. Court of Appeals is the intermediate federal appellate court,
consisting of 13 circuits.

appellee

The party, formerly a plaintiff or defendant in a lower court,

against whom an appeal is taken to a higher court.

appendix

A supplementary section at the end of a law book or legal
document. The appendix of a law book often includes statutes,
rules, charts and tables. An appendix in an appellate brief often
includes parts of the record, such as the opinion.

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attorney
general
opinion

The federal and state government’s chief counsel and highest-
ranking lawyer is the attorney general. State attorneys general issue
advisory opinions when requested by state officials when court
cases are unclear or lacking on a particular issue or problem. In
some states these advisory opinions are binding law, or otherwise
have persuasive authority. Sometimes the only authoritative source
available for a legal researcher on a certain issue may be an
attorney general opinion.

Attorney general opinions usually come out in slip form, then are
bound, and are indexed quarterly, semi-annually or annually.
Attorney general opinions are available on some state attorney
general websites. Attorney general opinions are available online on
Findlaw (www.FindLaw.com) and in the legal subscription
databases.

attorney of
record

Attorney whose name appears in the permanent files or records of a
case.
authority

A legal writing or resource stating the law, such as a judicial
opinion, which also can influence or bind a court. (Generally, a
case that has been reversed on appeal cannot be cited as
authority.) Authorities are citations in primary and secondary
sources of statutes, regulations, decisions, and scholarly writings
(particularly treatises and law review articles) that support a legal
argument. Thus one “cites an authority.” Binding is done by a
mandatory authority, while influencing is rendered by a
persuasive authority.

authorizing
statute

A statute defining the authority and responsibilities of a government
agency.
background
check

Background research on a person—simple contact information or
more detailed data—can be accomplished online through free and
fee-based services. This information may be needed by the
practitioner for debt collection, tracking of beneficiaries in estate
proceedings, locating witnesses, experts, researching potential

clients, adversaries in litigations, corporate officers, and so on.

The extent of legal accessibility to public records varies from state to
state, yet generally a significant amount of public information is
available. One method of obtaining information—“pretexting”—is
uniformly prohibited by federal law: the use of false pretexts to
obtain unlisted phone numbers, financial information, credit history,
medical records, and other types of personal information. Disclosure
of certain personal information is restricted by federal law,
obtainable only under specified conditions with required notification
to the consumer.

Free resources start with online phone directories such as
switchboard.com and AnyWho.com. Reverse phone lookups are
available at sites such as AnyWho.com. Using Google, Yahoo! and
other search engines can yield significant information for some
individuals. News articles from current and archived files can also
be useful. These news sources are available from Google,
newspaper websites, and library subscription databases.
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Fee-based resources containing public records databases, for
contact and background information about individuals and
companies, include Accurint, AutoTrackXp, ChoicePoint, Merlin, as
well as LexisNexis and Westlaw. These database provide
information on asset ownership of real estate property, motor
vehicles, airplanes, and boats. Also available from these services
are criminal and court records, including bankruptcy filings,
judgments and liens. Business information includes UCC filings,
corporate and Ltd. partnerships, and small business ownerships.

Professional license information for various occupational and
business fields are available from individual state agencies.

Vital (birth and death) and marital information are also available free
from government sources such as the various state vital records
departments and the Social Security Death Index
(). Military records are available
free at
www.archives.gov/research_room/obtain_copies/veterans_service_r
ecords.html. Fee-based services for military records include
www.MilitarySearch.org and www.MilitaryUSA.com/us_locator.html.

bad law

When a law’s positive value to support an issue has, through
subsequent history and treatment, becomes undermined and
invalidated. Statutes, regulations, and rules can be modified.
amended, repealed or otherwise treated negatively (criticized) by
courts and other authorities. Cases can be modified and overruled
in the appeal process, as well as invalidated or treated negatively
(criticized) by courts and other authorities. The issue of whether a
law is constitutional can come into play.

A case-in-hand becomes bad law when it is (a) modified or reversed
on appeal; or (b) criticized, distinguished in a decision in a different
later case. In addition, if (c) a case on which the case-in-hand relies
on is over-ruled, criticized, distinguished in a later case. Or (d) if a
case on the topic, which is neither the case-in-hand nor a case on
which the case-in-hand relies, is over-ruled, criticized or
distinguished in a later case. Or if (e) a subsequent statute,

regulation, or rule enacted by a legislature states a rule contrary to
or different from the rule in the case-in-hand (over-turning the rule).

These case history developments can be generally researched
through the use of citators, primary and secondary authorities.

Citators are not foolproof tools to catch all instances of bad law, and
cannot be relied upon solely in all of these situations. Relying on
additional research tools (such as secondary authorities) will
prevent shortcomings of a citatory. For instance, citators will miss
situation d. A citator may miss situation e unless it is indicated in a
citating case. Situation c can be caught by using the citator table-of-
authorities. (A table-of-authorities feature is part of LexisNexis and
Westlaw. This function acts as a reverse citator, citating cases
referred to in a case-in-hand.)


The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 10
bar

The word bar refers to attorneys as a group, or the profession of
law.

As a verb, to bar means to nullify, defeat, prevent a claim or action.

The word “bar” in a bar association’s name derives from the bar in
the courtroom—the railing that serves as a physical barrier between
the spectators and judge, attorneys, defendants, and court staff.

belief

A subjective feeling or conviction about an idea or fact, but not
based on concrete knowledge or verifiable information.

bill

Proposed legislation introduced into the House of Representatives.
A bill must be passed (enacted) by both houses of Congress or the
state legislatures to become law, signed by the President (federal)
or governor (state), or passed over a veto of the President or
governor. Bills may be private or public, and when passed, become
public or private laws.

Bills are designated by HR (House of Representatives) number or S
(Senate) number, depending on the chamber in which they were
first introduced.

Examining bills is part of researching legislative history.

Bills and pending legislation are listed in the US Code and
Administrative News, as well as on the Internet.

binding
authority

Mandatory authority, or mandatory precedent, meaning
decisions of superior courts are usually binding on lower courts in a
common jurisdiction.

black letter

law

Statutes are sometimes referred to as “black letter law,” well-
established legal principles that have withstood the test of time. A
well-known guide to black letter law is the Black Letter Series, a set
of books on legal subjects, from Antitrust to Wills, that identifies and
summarizes the rules of law that apply to various cases.

blawg

Shorthand for blog (weblog). Denise Howell is credited by some for
coining the term blawg.

The most recent news and cutting edge legal analysis, as well as
practical advice and guidance from experts, before it reaches
journals and other publications, can be found in blawgs, and can be
very instructive for practitioners and students alike.

Subject directories of blawgs include abajournal.com/blawgs and
blawgs.com, Blawg subject areas that can be accessed include
those specific to lawyers, paralegals, and librarians, and by practice
area.

Specific blawgs for legal research include Legal Research Plus
legalresearchplus.com, LLRX.com llrx.com, Legal Research Blog
law.onecle.com/archives, Legal Research 101
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 11
albanylawlibrary.wordpress.com/category/legal-research-101.
The Bluebook

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation is the best-known and
most-used guide for proper citation forms and abbreviation rules for
preparing legal documents. The Bluebook has been issued by the
Harvard Law Review Association and other law reviews for over
three-quarters of a century. It was created by the law-student editors
of four Ivy League university law reviews to show how to cite law
review articles.

The Bluebook helps you make sure you use the right legal
abbreviations, capitalization, and that you space it right. For the
correct abbreviations of case reporters, codes, and so on, go to the
shaded pages at the end of The Bluebook. For specific citation
forms for various states, go to the blue pages in The Bluebook.

A LexisNexis online product, Shepard’s Brief Suite, with its
Shepard’s BriefCheck feature, automatically checks for Bluebook
citation formatting errors.

boolean
operators

Using Boolean logic, the same principles used in algebra and
computer programming, searching can be enhanced with databases
and search engines to add precision to searching using the
operators and, or, not (or and not), and proximity operators such as
near, to connect search terms or keywords entered into the search
text box. Other search features included expanders, such as wild
cards, universal characters, where adding a symbol such as a * or !
to the root of a word will find variations of a word based on the root.

Every database and search engine varies in the extent that Boolean
operators are made available as options in searching. Some
databases and search engines use and, or, and not as the
operators, while others may use other wordings and typographical
symbols. The Westlaw database calls the operators connectors and
allows extensive variations of setting parameters for searching using
the various connectors.

bound
volume

A hardbound, or hardcover, book. Advance sheets are temporary
softcover (unbound) copies of case decisions that later are printed
with others in bound volumes, such as bound reporters.

brief

A written argument prepared by counsel for a case, submitted to
the court. A brief contains the history of the proceedings, a
summary of the facts and legal issues of the case, the relevant laws
and authorities that apply to the facts of the case, and relief
sought. A brief is most often used as part of the appeal process and
is called an appellate brief. A lawyer may argue that the lower court
made mistakes on ruling on objections, resulting in prejudicial
error, requiring a new trial. A brief submitted to a trial court is
somewhat less formal, often called a memorandum of law.

A brief is also a summary and analysis of a case used for study in
law school. “Briefing a case” is done by a student, following a
certain form, for discussion in the classroom.

The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 12
calendar

A schedule, or agenda, of judicial or legislative business. A judicial
calendar includes dates set for trial and oral arguments. A
legislative calendar contains legislative business such as action
taken on bills, committee hearings scheduled.

caption

At the beginning of a case opinion, the parties, citation, dates.

case

A lawsuit. Also, the written opinion of a court. Case can also refer
to the evidence in support of a legal position.

case digest

See digest.
case in point

A judicial opinion covering a similar situation being researched,
substantiating a legal argument.

case finder

A resource that is used to locate relevant cases. Digests are a
primary tool to locate cases. Other useful case finders are

Shepard’s, online cite checking, annotated statutes,
encyclopedias and ALR. Indexes in digests and reporters, e.g.,
Words and Phrases, are also useful as case finders.

case law

The body of law consisting of the written opinions of judges
collected in reporters. In contrast to statutory law, which is the
codified law of statutes and regulations.

Case law is created reactively by criminal proceedings and civil
litigation. Case law is established by appellate court interpretations
of statutes, regulations, constitutions and other cases. Case law
is based on judicial precedents, binding or persuasive, sometimes
referred to as “common law.” Case law develops out of
interpretations of clear as well as vague and general constitutional
provisions and from interpretations of clear as well as ambiguous
statutory law.

case name

The names of the parties of a case, e.g., Roe v. Wade. Also called
case title. The case name consists of the names of the plaintiff
(listed first) and defendant, also: appellant v. appellee, petitioner v.
respondent.

Case names are listed in tables of cases found in the various
digests and reporters
case number

A number assigned to individual court cases. The number is useful
for looking up cases on court websites. See also docket number.

case reporter

Case reporters, or court reporters, or reports, are the published
case law, printed in hardbound copies or CD-ROM. The decisions,
rulings, opinions by various courts that are published are “reported.”
Reported Federal and state cases go back to 1789.

Reporters mainly contain state and federal appellate and supreme
court cases, as well as rulings by administrative agencies. One
federal reporter covers some of the district court decisions. Federal
jurisdictions also have their own reporters by area of the law, not by
geographic region.

Most reported state and federal court decisions are published in
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 13
reporters by West. West publishes state appellate and supreme
court cases in its regional reporter system, and also published most
of the Federal reporters. Most trial court decisions are not published.
Not all state and federal appellate decisions are published. Because
not all cases are published, unreported cases do not carry much
persuasive weight.

See also National Reporter System.

casebook

A legal textbook used in law schools with excerpts, reprints of legal

opinions accompanied by comments and questions.

certiorari

A writ (order) issued by an appellate court, typically the US
Supreme Court, ordering that a case be brought before it from a
lower court. Often abbreviated “cert.”

An appeal for review is made by applying to the higher court for a
writ of certiorari, which is either granted or denied, based on the
court’s discretionary certiorari jurisdiction.

Certiorari is granted when at least three members of the US
Supreme Court believe the appealed case has issues sufficiently
significant for the public interest on a federal level warranting a
review. By denying the appeal, the court states that the lower court
decision, or precedent, should stand.

In a few cases, the law provides for a jurisdictional appeal to the
court, rather than by a review of writ or certiorari (for example, for
cases under the Voting Rights Act.) Instead of a writ of certiorari, a
“jurisdictional statement” is submitted by the party seeking the
review, with the opposing party filing a “motion to dismiss or affirm.”
The court then can decide to review the case, entertain a full
briefing and argument, and can affirm or reverse the lower court
judgments. Summary affirmances and reversals have precedential
value; dismissals are like denials of certiorari.

chronological
publication

Chronological publication refers to statutes and cases that are
compiled and published (“reported”) shortly after they become law in
the order that the statutes are enacted or the cases are decided.
Each volume of chronologically-published laws are numbered
consecutively, with the highest volume numbers having the most
recent enacted or decided laws. This contrasts with topical
publications. Advance sheets (softcover publications) are issued
temporarily for the chronologically-arranged laws until the hardcover
volume is printed.

Statutes that are compiled and published in the order that they are
enacted by legislative bodies include state session laws, federal
public laws (statutes at large), and federal administrative rules and
regulations. For instance, US public laws are first published by the
government chronologically as slip laws and advance sheets, as
well as pamphlets in the United States Code Congressional and
Administrative News. These US public laws are published annually
by the government in chronological order in an official series of
books called the Statutes at Large.

The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 14
Case reporters (Pacific Reporter, US Supreme Court Reports, etc.)
compile cases chronologically as the decisions are rendered, while
case digests are topically-arranged later.

circuit courts
of appeal

See US Court of Appeals.
citate

To find authorities referring to a source, e.g., to citate American
Law Reports annotations or Restatements in Shepard’s or
KeyCite.

citation

See also parallel citations. (Also shortened as “cite”). A brief
reference, in abbreviated form, in a document or discussion of the
law, to a legal authority and in which publication the authority is
found. The reference identifies a primary or secondary source and
the source location. Citations to primary sources are source
locations of cases, statutes, constitutional provisions, regulations,
and court rules. Citations to secondary sources include law review
articles, treatises, encyclopedias, and the American Law Reports.
The citation follows a consistent format of abbreviations,
capitalization, spacing, according to rules found in a citation
manual such as The Bluebook or ALWD.

Citations for cases are listed in Shepard’s Citations (print and
online) and Westlaw KeyCite (online); and found in primary sources
such as annotated statutes and cases; in various secondary
sources such as Digests, American Law Reports (ALR),
encyclopedias, law review articles, and legal news articles.

Court decisions are usually cited by case name, volume number,
reporter, page number and date. More specifically, these five
elements of a case citation are: (1) the name of the parties involved

(plaintiff, defendant, appellant, respondent, etc.); (2) the case
reporter series in which the case can be found; (3) the volume
number, within the series, in which the case can be found; (4) the
page number on which the case begins; (5) the year of the decision.
An example of a case citation is Roe v. Wade, 410 US 113 (1973).
The case was adjudicated in 1973, published in volume 410 of the
official United States Reports, beginning on page 113.

Federal and state codes are cited by title and section. An example
of a federal statute code, for copyrights, is 17 USCS 101, meaning
Title 17, section 101 in the United States Code Service (an unofficial
series published by LexisNexis). Citations to the federal Statutes at
Large are by volume and page number, as 106 Stat. 3384. (The
Statutes at Large contain the laws arranged by Public Law numbers.
Tables in these resources convert Public Law numbers to code
citations.)

See also parallel citations.

An online citation tutorial: www.law.cornell.edu/citation

citation
manual

Citation manuals are guides for providing precise references to legal
resources. These guides supply proper citation forms and
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 15
abbreviation rules for preparing legal documents. Some courts have
their own citation protocols that have to be followed. Legal citation
style may seem a more chaotic and less logical departure from

citation formats of the other academic fields. The two most widely
used citation manuals are the Bluebook and ALWD.

The Bluebook for the longest time has been the most-used and
best-known citation guide. Alternatives to the Bluebook have been
created to simplify the existing Bluebook rules, and include the
University of Chicago Manual of Legal Citation, ALWD Citation
Manual, and the American Association of Law Libraries AALL
Universal Citation Guide
(www.aallnet.org/committee/citation/ucg/index.html).

A LexisNexis online product, Shepard’s Brief Suite, with its
Shepard’s BriefCheck feature, automatically checks for Bluebook
citation formatting errors.

The University of Chicago Manual of Legal Citation is also referred
to as The Maroon Book and is edited by the University of Chicago
Law Review and the University of Chicago Legal Forum. It is one of
the few widely used legal citation guides besides The Bluebook. It
was created as a practical alternative to The Bluebook setting forth
general guidelines and encouraging people to merely use common
sense when devising citations not explicitly listed.

An alternative citation guide that is gaining popularity for its ease-of-
use, and preferred by some states, is the ALWD Citation Manual: A
Professional System of Citation (ALWD), published by the
Association of Legal Writing Directors (www.alwd.org). The ALWD
Citation Manual closely follows the Bluebook-prescribed format but
provides more examples and requires more complete bibliographic
information for some sources.

citator

A service, print and online, that provides cite checking. Cite
checking through citators tracks the development of a case or
statute, showing other authorities that reference the statute or
case. A citator has a dual function as a finding tool as well as a
validating tool, to examine the history as well as treatment of a case.
A citator also provide parallel citations. The main citators are the
print Shepard’s Citations and the online Shepard’s in LexisNexis,
Keycite in Westlaw, and GlobalCite in Loislaw.

As a finding tool, a citator tracks cases, statutes, or regulations that
are mentioned in other cases, statutes and resources such as ALR
and law review articles. As a validating tool a citator lists the most
current citation of a case, a way of updating your research. Thus
one can see, for instance, if a case has been affirmed, overruled, or
distinguished. A citator identifies a “good law,” a case or statute that
is still valid for a particular issue, meaning that it has not been
superseded or modified (negative history). The positive history of a
case validates a case as a precedent.

Using the electronic citators provided by LexisNexis, Westlaw, and
Loislaw are easier to use and are more current than using the print
Shepard’s—changes to the law are updated online within 24 hours.
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 16

A couple of online services provide Shepardizing and Keyciting of
cites uploaded from a newly-created document: LexisNexis
Shepard’s Brief Suite and Westlaw’s WestCheck.

Despite all the features, citators are not foolproof tools to catch all
instances of bad law, and cannot be relied upon solely in all
situations where a case is subsequently invalidated or undermined.
(For more specific explanation of these failings, see bad law.)

The two major citators—Shepard’s and KeyCite—do not always
completely agree in their cite checks of the law. Often one citator
will include a citing authority not included by the other citator. The
two services also do not always agree on the validity of a case.
Shepard’s, for example, may tag a case with a caution (yellow
triangle), while for the same case KeyCite may indicate a green C
(no direct or indirect negative history). Using both citators, therefore,
can be advantageous.

“Shepardizing” or “cite checking” is often the terminology used for
the process of using Shepard’s Citations or databases to update a
case, or law. (See also cite check).

How do the above citators differ and which one is the best? Each
citator differs in features and may have strengths and weaknesses
in comparison to the other citators. With time the citators may be
modified and redesigned that may make a judgment invalid and
obsolete. Shepard’s is sometimes referred to as “the gold standard,”
reflecting some researchers’ respect and preference for that
citatory. For updating cases, Shepard’s has more positive feedback
signals and might be more up to date. Some researchers prefer
KeyCite for finding secondary sources and for updating statutes and
regulations (KeyCite is supposed to be more up to date). For cases,
KeyCite claims to include more sources than Shepard's. A chart

comparing Shepard’s and KeyCite is at


cite check

Cite-checking is a two-fold process in producing a valid legal brief or
argument:

First, verifying that the laws and cases cited are up-to-date and
“good law.” This process of validation of primary authorities is done
through “Shepardizng”—through the print and online (LexisNexis)
Shepard’s Citations, or online through Westlaw’s KeyCite
(keyciting). Also called citating.

Second, ensuring that the citations’ format meets Bluebook rules
for citation form (abbreviations, capitalization, spacing, etc.).

cited case

A case that is a type of cited reference.

cited
reference

A document or authority, such as a case, statute, article, that is
cited, meaning it is mentioned, referenced, such as in a reporter,
code book, or in periodical articles or other books. The document to
which a citing reference refers. The citation entered into a citator,
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 17
resulting in a list of citing references referring to the citation.

citing case

A citing reference. A citing case is the case, such as one found in
a reporter, or from results obtained through citating, that refers to
another case (the cited case). Thus if one “Shepardizes” or
“KeyCites” a case one will get a list of cases (citing cases) which
will refer to the case in question.

citing
reference

Citing reference is a document, authority (case, statute,
regulation, law review article, treatise, brief, etc.) that cites, or
refers to, the document, authority, whose citation you have
entered into the citator.

Note that the terms “citing reference” and “cited reference” are
relative terms. A cited reference in one context may be a
citing reference in another, and vice-versa (just as a person
can be one relative’s brother and another relative’s uncle
simultaneously). (reword)
civil action

A case involving civil law, a lawsuit, civil litigation. Civil actions
are claims for debt, for damages arising from motor vehicle
accidents, divorces, adoptions, matrimonial property actions,
foreclosures, and administration of estates following a death. The
persons involved in a civil action are called the parties.

civil case

A case involving civil law.

civil law

The law of private rights and relationships between individuals, and
individuals and entities, such as corporations. Civil law applies to
contracts and breach of contracts, property rights, injuries due to
negligence, and individual freedoms based on constitutional rights.

A civil action, or lawsuit, is brought about by a party (a litigant, or
plaintiff) who has been injured or has suffered a loss, with a claim
for compensation sought as a remedy. A civil case may not go to
trial if the parties involved reach a settlement, because civil actions
are very costly and time-consuming.

Civil law contrasts with criminal law. The standard of proof in a civil
case is a preponderance of evidence, a weaker standard than what
is required in a criminal case, which requires an absence of
reasonable doubt.

Civil law also refers to the legal system used in Louisiana,
continental Europe and many countries outside of the English-
speaking world, which contrasts with the Anglo-American common
law system. The civil law system was developed from the law of the
Roman Empire, based on the code of the Emperor Justinian.

claimant

A party initiating a legal action, asserting a right, making a claim for
money, property, title. A plaintiff in a personal injury suit is also
known as the claimant. A party claiming damages. A plaintiff,
complainant. A claimant can also be a party requesting benefits or
payment, such as regarding insurance.

The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 18
code

A collection of statutes found in sets of books (code books), such
as the United States Code, state statutes, or administrative Code
of Federal Regulations. The overall body of statutes for a
jurisdiction. Generally the terms codes and statutes are used
interchangeably. In some states “code” can also refer to a separate
group of statutes under a subject, such as penal code or probate
code.

These codified laws or regulations are grouped by subject matter,
arranged topically by title or major subdivision and section. Enacted
Congressional bills are first published as Public Laws, arranged in
chronological order, not by subject matter, then published topically
as the US Code after the Congressional session. Bills in the state
legislatures are passed as Session Laws, then topically published
as codes in the state statute books.

Code of
Federal
Regulations

Administrative rules and regulations are created by government
agencies and are chronologically compiled in the Federal Register,
then topically arranged (by subject) in The Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR). Available online: gpoaccess.gov/cfr

The Code of Federal Regulations is the codification of the general
and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the
executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government. It
is divided into 50 titles that represent broad areas subject to Federal
regulation. Each volume of the CFR is updated once each calendar
year and is issued on a quarterly basis.
 Titles 1-16 are updated as of January 1st
 Titles 17-27 are updated as of April 1st
 Titles 28-41 are updated as of July 1st
 Titles 42-50 are updated as of October 1st
Each title is divided into chapters, which usually bear the name of
the issuing agency. Each chapter is further subdivided into parts
that cover specific regulatory areas. Large parts may be subdivided
into subparts. All parts are organized in sections, and most citations
in the CFR are provided at the section level. A list of agencies and
where they appear in the CFR may be found in Appendix C of the
U.S. Government Manual
www.gpoaccess.gov/gmanual/index.html
The state equivalents are called codes of state regulations.

codify

To arrange enacted laws and regulations by topic, published as
codes and statutes. Shortly after enactment, Federal and state laws

are first issued chronologically without topical arrangement, as slip
laws, advance sheets and session laws. Subsequently, a year or
so after, these laws are compiled by subject in the Statutes at
Large (federal) and as statutes and codes (state).

common law

A term used loosely referring to “case law” (“judge-made law”)
rather than statutes. More specifically, the basis of the Anglo-
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 19
American legal system, common law is substantive law originated
in England as unwritten law given judicial interpretation based on
established customs, rather than enacted through legislation.

Developed over hundreds of years, common law is based on prior
judicial decisions and precedent stare decisis (“let the decision
stand”) applied to cases with similar fact situations as opposed to
using legislative definitions, or statutory law. In the twentieth century
much common law, which was conservative in nature, was
displaced by statutes passed by Congress and state legislatures. In
contrast, other countries use the civil law system.

competent
evidence

Legally valid or admissible evidence that gives weight to a dispute
or issue in a case: in a murder case, a weapon with a defendant’s
fingerprints, or a credible eyewitness; in a lawsuit, reliable
information that affirms an argument.

complainant


Plaintiff. In criminal cases, the complaining witness; or in civil
cases, an individual or entity (a party or parties) initiating a lawsuit
or civil action in a court.
computer
aided legal
research

Computer Aided Legal Research (CALR) refers to free and fee-
based online legal research resources.

Traditional print legal research is giving way to the online world of
fee-based services such as LexisNexis (the first such service,
introduced in 1973) and Westlaw, as well as to the free Web.
Subscription services LexisNexis and Westlaw started off clunky
and difficult to use in the 1970s, but have made great strides as
viable alternatives to the print world of information. Other online
legal database services, geared to smaller law firms include
Loislaw, VersusLaw, Casemaker, and FastCase.

Available electronically on the Web, free and for a price, are a vast
array of legal and general resources. General resources such as
Web sites and databases provide information such as statistics,
facts, and news in all disciplines that may relate to legal issues,
including business, medicine, and science.

There are advantages and disadvantages to using online and print
legal resources. Online research can be faster or slower depending

on the type of search and experience of the searcher, but also can
be more expensive when using subscription databases versus the
print approach. Online legal information is for the most part available
in a more timely manner than print (changes in the law are made
available in hours online versus days and weeks). Print legal
resources still shine for their wealth of annotations and background
information, which the free Internet lacks in great part.

For certain kinds of legal research, especially for background
information in unfamiliar territory, print resources are often easier to
use and more “user friendly.” Browsing through unfamiliar areas of
the law is often easier with print materials. Of course, this assumes
one has found the right resources to work with. Different resources
use different terms for the same areas of the law, which can be a
stumbling block both in print and online searching.

The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 20
Computer searches can be slow and difficult, necessitating trial-and-
error search string composition, if one doesn’t use the right
keywords or search terminology, which compounds the cost factor
of using the online services. “Natural language” searching—the use
of plain English rather than a controlled vocabulary of pre-set
terms—can ease the search process.

Many legal professionals miss the traditional print resources, even
though they are increasingly forced to use computer-based
methods, which they do not always find satisfactory.

constitution

The fundamental laws and principles of the nation and states—“the
supreme law of the land”—establishing the form of government, its
powers and limits, and the rights and liberties of its citizens. The US
Constitution is the world’s oldest written constitution still in force.

Two major components of the United States Constitution include the
Bill of Rights (the first ten amendments) and enunciation of the
separation of powers among the three branches of government
(executive, legislative, and judicial).

Constitutional law is different from statutory law in that constitutional
law is higher than statutory law, governing all other laws. District
and appellate courts can rule certain acts and laws as
unconstitutional, being contradictory to the basic principles of the
constitution.

The US Constitution has 27 amendments (additions) and has been
designed to make it difficult to make changes. Each state has its
own constitution, which must harmonize (not contradict or clash)
with the federal constitution. State constitutions are included in the
state codes.

constitutional


controlling
authority

Controlling authority, or controlling law, is precedential law,
mandatory authority, the on point authority, the relevant law, that

answers a legal question. A legal question is ultimately and ideally
answered “yes” or “no” by a controlling authority, a definitive statute
or case.

conversion
table

Code books typically have conversion tables which can locate
different citations of the same law: for instance, the code citation if
you only have a session law citation or public law number for a
statute. Or, for outdated section numbers for statutes that have
been re-numbered, a conversion table will list the up-to-date section
number.

cost factors
of legal
research—
free v. fee-
based

The cost of using online services has added new pressures and
complications to researching the law—whether the charges are flat-
fee subscriptions, or hourly, monthly, or per-view. Most lawyers
cannot afford LexisNexis and Westlaw. Although using both of these
services is advantageous, many law firms have to choose between
the two or choose one as the primary resource. The costs of using
online services can quickly mount uncomfortably high, especially by
an inexperienced user or even an experienced user researching
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 21
information

unfamiliar areas of the law. Questions and conflicts arise over how
much of the costs should the law firm absorb, and how much should
be passed on to the client.

Representing oneself in court without a lawyer (pro se, or also
called pro per), is being increasingly embraced by the public ever
since a Supreme Court decision in 1975 gave litigants and
defendants the right to do so in state courts. This trend of self-
representation is motivated by several factors, including the obvious
impediment of the extremely high cost of legal counsel. The growing
availability of free and low-cost legal resources has become a boon
to pro se litigants and in no small way boosting the spread of self-
representation.

The same free or cheaper legal resources that pro se litigants are
using can also benefit the law firm. With the pressures of escalating
costs of legal services, including the cost of fee-based online legal
research, free and low-cost resources are increasingly becoming
attractive alternatives for practitioners. The key to taking advantage
of alternatives is being familiar with the many free and low-cost
resources and becoming a savvy user who knows the tricks and
techniques of tapping these resources.
There are a number of principles to be understood and strategies
that can be employed to lower the costs of legal research.

(1) Not all legal research requires the heavyweights
LexisNexis or Westlaw: much research can be done using
lower-cost legal databases, community law libraries, and
the free Internet legal resources.

(2) Using LexisNexis or Westlaw when one is not well-versed
on an issue can be inefficient and wasteful (use alternative
resources for preliminary research).
(3) If inexperienced using one of the major legal databases and
do not have a flat-fee subscription, take advantage of the
support desk for assistance in searching; in some instances
a search will be conducted for you.
(4) If you are inexperienced in a particular area, consider using
legal research and document preparation services.

counsel


Legal advice. Also, lawyers in a case or transaction. In-house
counsel is an attorney or legal staff employed within a company.

court of
record

The trial court in a legal proceeding.

When the word “Court” is capitalized in a document, it generally
refers to the United States Supreme Court or a specific court (10
th

Circuit Court of Appeals, United States District Court, etc). Lower
case “court” refers to courts in a general sense.

court order

A writ or court ruling in a case directing a specific course of action.
A court order, for example, may define the payment of child support.
A court order may establish courtroom or administrative procedure.
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 22
The United States Supreme Court may issue orders regarding
pending cases or rehearings, granting or denying writs of certiorari
or mandamus.

court record

A written account of the rulings and proceedings in a case, retained
in court documents. This record includes all pleadings, evidence,
and exhibits submitted in the course of the case. A civil court
record includes bankruptcies, divorces, liens, and judgments.
Criminal court records include filings and rulings.

court rules

Rules and procedures regarding litigants, attorneys and the judiciary
in various jurisdictions for conducting the business of the court.
Some court rules are statutory, created by legislative bodies and
published with the codes or as supplements. Other court rules are
created by the judiciary, and are found in separate publications.

Federal and state rules include civil and criminal procedure,
evidence, and bankruptcy, as well as court cases that interpret the
rules. Federal and state procedure manuals cover civil, criminal,
courts, and procedural law.

criminal law

As opposed to civil law, criminal law violations (felonies and
misdemeanors) are acts against persons, property and society that
violate criminal codes and are prosecuted by the state, punishable
by fines or imprisonment.

cumulative

An index, pamphlet, pocket part, etc., that at stated intervals
combines new items and items in previous issues to form a new
unified compilation. For instance, West’s Digests have cumulative
pamphlets that replace previous pamphlets. This is in contrast to
supplements, which are additions to something previously issued,
and do not replace the previous issue. As an example, West’s
Digest pamphlets supplement the main (bound) volume, and also
supplement the pocket parts.

decision

See judicial decision.

defendant

The party against whom a criminal or civil action is brought in a
court of law, the party accused or being sued, the respondent. An
action against a defendant is brought by a claimant, complainant, or
plaintiff.

In a case name (indicating parties in a case), the defendant is listed
second, as Wade in Roe v. Wade.

deference

A judicial court’s acceptance of a government agency’s
interpretations of its own regulations and authorizing statute.

delegated
authority

The power to act given to a government agency by an authorizing
statute.
descriptive
words

Words that describe a legal situation—parties involved, issues
involved or basis of action, remedy, relief sought, location where
facts arose, defenses, places and things. These words are found in
indexes of statutes, case digests, and regulatory codes to access
relevant West topics and key numbers, statutes, and cases.
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 23

digest

Court decisions are published in case reporters in chronological
order, as they are released by the courts. The reporters do not have
overall indexes to find the cases by topic. Digests allow you to find a
case by topic. The majority of digests are published by West
Publishing. The foremost case-finding tool, a summary index with
annotations and citations to cases published in reporters, digests
cover Federal jurisdictions as well as state cases. There are also

digests for decisions by administrative agency tribunals.

Digests are organized alphabetically by topic similar to
encyclopedias, and may be subdivided by jurisdiction and court.
Digests contain brief paragraphs, or abstracts (summaries) of court
rulings on points of law, which are identical to the headnotes in the
reporters, and provide topics and key numbers. Given points of law
on the same issues have exactly the same topic and key numbers
for different cases in every state and federal jurisdiction. A case
cannot be argued based on a digest abstract—the researcher must
go to the text of the case found in the reporters.


Selecting the right digest

 When using a digest to locate a case, first determine in what
jurisdiction the case was adjudicated: state, federal, or special
court, and use the specific digest for that jurisdiction. If you do not
know the jurisdiction, or a case is elusive, you can use the more
general digests that cover a wide range of jurisdictions.

 State court: Use a West’s state digest or regional digests for
group of states (Atlantic, Northwestern, Pacific, or Southeastern.
There are no digests for the Northeastern, Southern, or
Southwestern regions).

 US Supreme Court: Use the US Supreme Court Digest (West) or
the Digest of United States Supreme Court Reports (Lawyers Co-
op).

 Federal court (includes Supreme Court): Use the appropriate
federal digest for the date of your case (if known): West’s
Bankruptcy Digest; West’s Education Law Digest; West’s Federal
Case News; West’s Military Justice Digest; US Merit System
Protection Board Digest; US Claims Court Digest (formerly US
Court of Claims Digest).

 Federal court (when jurisdiction not clear or you want to use a
single all-inclusive digest): Use the Federal Practice Digest, which
covers the U.S. Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, district courts,
Claims Court, bankruptcy courts, Court of Military Appeals, the
Courts of Military Review, and other federal courts.

 When you do not know the jurisdiction, or for hard-to-find case,
search all state and federal cases using the all-inclusive American
Digest System (usually search the most recent cases first, in
reverse chronological order): General Digest for the latest cases in
the Decennial Digests (the General Digest serves as a pocket part);
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 24
the Decennial Digests grouped into 10-year periods, going back to
1897; Century Digest, 1658-1896.


Search strategies for accessing the digests:

Searching digests can be done through a number of approaches: by
name of case; by subject/topic; by word or phrase; or by popular
name. Do not forget the pocket parts and supplements for the latest
cases and updates.

 Search by name of case: Go to Table of Cases volumes, at end
of digest set. Search alphabetically by plaintiff or defendant.
Looking under plaintiff name in table of cases (rather than
defendant-plaintiff table) provides all the topics and key numbers
for that case. Case name listing provides the citation and subject
key words and key numbers in West digests to access similar
cases.

 Search by “popular name”: If you know the popular name, go to
Popular Name Table volumes at end of set, for alphabetical popular
name listing of case.

 Search by descriptive word: Go to Descriptive Word Index
volumes at end of set and search by words likely to be relevant to
your case. Index words will refer you to the key word and key
number sections for the relevant cases.

 Search by “words and phrases”: If a definition of a word or phrase
is important to your research, go to the Words and Phrases
volumes at the end of the set. The alphabetical listing of words and
phrases will identify cases that have defined these terms.

 Search by topic outline: If you are familiar with the topic, or are
having difficulty finding a case, check the topic outlines at the front
of each topic chapter in the main digest. An appropriate topic
chapter identifies relevant cases.

Online searching
An online legal database, loosely speaking, is in a sense an overall
digest. The above-described print searches can be more or less

rendered online through keyword searches that will yield relevant
cases.

Westlaw
More specifically, the West digest system is available on Westlaw.
Relevant cases by topic and key number can be retrieved from
Westlaw. This can be done by starting with a known case through a
keyword search or entering a citation, or by browsing through the
Westlaw West Key Number Digest Outline (each digest topic is
translated by Westlaw into a number for online searching).

Accessing from a known case. After locating a case by doing a Find
This Document by Citation search, click on the topics and key
numbers in any relevant headnote. The resulting search screen will
allow you to find other cases with the same topics and key numbers.
The Researcher’s Law Dictionary Page 25

Topic/key numbers. entering a headnote topic and key number into
a database search box. Example: 115k101.

Use field searches to find specified information classified according
to specific fields, which can also be combined with search terms, as
shown below:

Topic field. Cases classified under headnote topics—use a topic
field (to) restriction to combine topics. Example: to(162 /p 409).

Topic field/terms. Combine topic field and terms. Example: to(81 /p
residen! /p tuition fee)

Headnote field/terms. Combine headnote and terms. He(right free!
/5 travel)

Digest field. Use the Digest field (di) to restrict information found in
the topic plus all the headnotes in a case. This helps prevent
retrieving cases with irrelevant terms with multiple meanings.

direct history

A term used by Westlaw to indicate the prior and subsequent history
of a case through trial and appellate court proceedings—the
appellate line of a case. Direct history can be used loosely as the
same as history. In contrast to full history, which includes cases
outside of the direct history line, which may have a positive or
negative impact on a case in the direct history line. Direct and full
history are viewable in online legal databases such as Westlaw.
(What is termed as direct history in Westlaw, is termed as history by
Shepard’s Citations. Westlaw’s term indirect history is called
treatment by Shepard’s.)

dissenting
opinion

A judge’s disagreement with the majority opinion of a court,
provided in writing with the other opinions, explaining the reasons
for the disagreement.

distinguished

When a court singles out another case in its opinion for significant

points of law relevant to the case being decided, the case being
brought into the discussion is said to be distinguished. The print
version of Shepard’s, when listing cases citated, places a small “d”
in front of a citation that so distinguishes the citated case.

Earlier cases may be distinguished from a current case by a court
on the basis of a small difference in a factual or legal issue. This
way a court can in a sense ignore a precedent without outwardly
overruling a previous case. The more differences in facts and issues
that can be brought to light between cases, the less precedential
weight an older case will carry, and the more exceptions to a
previous ruling can be carved out.

docket
number

A unique number assigned sequentially by the court clerk to every
case when the petition, jurisdictional statement, or other initial
pleading is filed. Lacking a citation, which is yet unpublished, the
docket number is used by a court and others to track a pending
case as it travels through the legal system. Not to be confused with
another number assigned to cases, the case number.