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Your guide to successful legal research.

University of Sheffield Library Legal Information Skills Workbook ACE2159 ICT and the law

Your guide to successful legal research.

The aim of this workbook is to help you to develop an understanding of legal information sour es! and legal resear h skills" It ontains information and pra ti al e#er ises that will enable you to$ %ear h the library atalogue &e ipher legal abbreviations Identify and lo ate ases and legislation Identify and lo ate 'ournal arti les (esear h an area of the law that is new to you

)ou will learn to use a variety of ele troni information resour es" The *niversity +ibrary law olle tion is at Crookesmoor +ibrary! and this is where you will find printed legal resour es" A ,uide to +ibrary %ervi es is available from any *niversity +ibrary bran h" -nline legal information tutorials are available in the .ebCT module +ibrary/ Information %kills! a essible through 0*%E! the *niversity portal" )ou an use these to develop your own skills" )ou may find the following books useful$ Clin h! 1 2221 *sing a law library 2nd ed! +ondon! 3la kstone 4olborn! , 2221 3utterworths legal resear h guide 2nd ed! +ondon! 3utterworths Thomas! 1 2221 &ane 5 Thomas$ how to use a law library 6th ed! +ondon! %weet 5 0a#well The following guides are available on the library web site! and an be a the following page$ http$77www"shef"a "uk7library7libdo s7do ssub"html %our es of +aw in England 5 .ales Tra ing the law of England 5 .ales A guide to European *nion +aw - tober 2228 0aria 0awson! A ademi +iaison +ibrarian! +aw! m"b"mawson9sheffield"a "uk essed from

Contents
1age : 1ages 6/5 1age 8 1age < 1age = 1age 9/12 1age 11/12 1age 1:/16 %kills e#er ise 1 / 3asi s Ele troni legal information %kills e#er ise 2 ; +awtel %kills e#er ise : ; Eur/+e# %kills e#er ise 6 ; +e#is %kills e#er ise 5 ; .estlaw +egal referen e works >re?uently asked ?uestions

Skills exercise ! "he basics

#b$ectives &uring this e#er ise you will %ear h the library atalogue for books and 'ournals Identify legal abbreviations " Use the library catalogue %Star& to find the shelf marks for $ Adams! @" A222:B *nderstanding law! :rd edition (eed! C" A222:B Computer law! 5th edition

'" Use the catalogue to find out$ .hen the library started taking opies of the 'ournal Intellectual Property Quarterly .hen the library stopped taking print opies of the 'ournal Computer Law & Security Report

(" Link to a recent electronic issue of Computer Law & Security Report and make a note of the author and title of one article"

)" "he titles of La* re+orts and legal $ournals are often abbreviated. Use the Cardiff Index to Legal ,bbreviations htt+!--***.legalabbrevs.cardiff.ac.uk- to identify the follo*ing$ All E( I1C E4((

.lectronic legal information

There are many ele troni sour es of legal information" %ome are freely available on the Internet ; for e#ample! government sites" -thers have to be paid for! and the *niversity +ibrary pays subs riptions so that you an use them ; for e#ample! ele troni 'ournals and databases" /atabases and electronic $ournals All ele troni library resour es are a essible from the library page in 0*%E" >ollow the links for databases or ele troni 'ournals to see A/D or sub'e t listings" The +ibrary subs ribes to three databases / La*tel0 Lexis 1exis 2utter*orths and Westla* U3. .ur4Lex gives free a ess to European *nion law" %kills e#er ises 2 ; 5 an be used to gain pra ti al e#perien e of using these resour es" *ser guides provided by the database publishers are available from the library" 5ree electronic legal information There are numerous sites on the Internet ontaining authoritative legal information" There are probably even more where the ?uality is less than reliable" A few key sites are listed below! but the best way to ensure you find the good ones is to develop effe tive sear h skills" Try using the following free tutorial$ Internet for La*yers htt+!--***.vts.intute.ac.uk-he-tutorial-la*yers )ou ould also onsult the following books! available in Crookesmoor +ibrary" 4olmes! Ei k 1999 6esearching the legal *eb! 2nd ed! +ondon! 3utterworths Carter! %arah 2222 La*links! +ondon! Cavendish The following sites might be worth bookmarking$ 3ritish and Irish +egal Information Institute htt+!--***.bailii.orgCardiff guide to legal abbreviations htt+!--***.legalabbrevs.cardiff.ac.ukCourt %ervi e htt+!--***.courtservice.gov.ukEuropean *nion -nline htt+!--euro+a.eu.int40%- +egislation htt+!--***.o+si.gov.uk-legislation-index.htm Intute$so ial s ien es gateway htt+!--***.intute.ac.uk-socialsciences>or more links! see ,ccess to La* htt+!--***.accesstola*.com-siteLa* in the Library and on the Internet htt+!--***.shef.ac.uk-library-sub$ects-subla*.html .uro+ean Union in the Library and on the Internet htt+!--***.shef.ac.uk-library-sub$ects-subeu.html

Skills exercises '47 8 Introduction

#b$ectives &uring these e#er ises you will +earn how to sear h ele troni legal databases for ase reports! legislation and 'ournal arti les Suggested +re+aration 0ake sure you know how to log in to the ampus network! open an internet browser! and log into 0*%E" All databases an be a essed from the library page in 0*%E"

Skills exercise ' 8 La*tel

+awtel in ludes ase summaries! an inde# to arti les! full te#t statutes with status tables! statutory instruments! bills and ommand papers" A ess is through 0*%E! and you should li k the F+ogin via AthensG link" The +awtel wel ome s reen displays all the servi es that are available" >or these ?uestions use +awtel *H 1" *se the Case La* database to sear h for Durant v Financial Services Authority. .hat date was the appeal heardI

2" *se the ,rticles Index to sear h for arti les on ele troni surveillan e" 0ake a note of the most re ent referen e"

:" *se the Statutory Instrument database to find the title of %I 222:72628"

6" *se the Statutory La* database to find out when Section 5 of the &ata 1rote tion A t 199= ame into for e"

5" *se the 9arliamentary 2ills database to sear h for the Anti Social ehaviour ill! ill no "#$ .hen did it re eive its first reading in the 4ouse of CommonsI

Skills exercise ( 8 .ur4Lex

Eur/+e# provides dire t free a ess to E* law! and ontains treaties! ase law! legislation and the -ffi ial @ournal" .ur4Lex can be accessed through :US.0 or at htt+!--eur4 lex.euro+a.eu-en-index.htm . .hat year was the Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe signedI

'. >ind the -ffi ial @ournal referen e for &ire tive 199:7126 on erning aspe ts of the organiJation of working time"

(. >ind the full details of a 2222 &ire tive on the pro essing of personal data in the ele troni ommuni ations se tor ; dire tive number! e#a t date and -ffi ial @ournal referen e"

). %ear h for the ase of o%il Lin%&vist" .hat was this ase aboutI

Skills exercise ) 8 Lexis 1exis 2utter*orths

+e#is in ludes *H legislation and ase reports and some full te#t legal 'ournals! as well as sour es from Europe! the *"% and other 'urisdi tions" A user guide is available from the library" *se the links a ross the red banner at the top of the s reen to sear h for spe ifi types of material . %ear h for the ase with the itation K1998L AC 56:" .hat is the name of the aseI

'. %ear h for se tion 26 of the >reedom of Information A t 2222" .hat is the title of this se tionI

(. %ear h for 'ournal arti les with the phrase Fele troni signaturesG in the title" ,ive the author! title and itation for one arti le"

). 3rowse the ontents of the International @ournal of +aw 5 Information Te hnology" .rite down the details of one arti le from 2228"

Skills exercise 7 8 Westla* U3

.estlaw *H in ludes *H legislation! ase reports and the +egal @ournals Inde#! as well as E* and *% material" 0any items are available in full te#t! in luding legislation! some ase reports and some 'ournal arti les" A user guide is available from the library! and there is an online tutorial in the .ebCT +ibrary Information %kills (esour e" ;eneral search hints$ (eturn to the basi sear h s reen by li king the .estlaw *H tab" 0ove your mouse over the FTipG i on for advi e on ompleting the sear h bo#es )our result list will appear on the left of the s reen! with the highlighted do ument on the right" To view a different do ument! li k on the number ne#t to another item on the result list" ,ns*er the follo*ing <uestions using the search screen on the *elcome +age " . %ear h the +egal @ournals Inde# for arti les on video pira y" 0ake a note of one of the referen es"

'. *se the Case +o ator to find the ase R v Lin%esay. .here has it been reportedI

(. %ear h for the 4uman (ights A t 199=! %e tion 2" .hen did it ome into for eI A*se the (elated Information tab to see an analysis of the do ument historyB

=uick Search Cui k %ear h gives you a sear h template with more options" Cui k %ear h links are listed to the left of the .el ome s reen" ). %ele t +egal @ournals Inde#! and sear h for an arti le on opyright by (oger 3rownsword" Eote the itation"

Legal reference *orks

If you prefer to use printed sour es! the following legal referen e works are available at Crookesmoor +ibrary" 4alsburyMs +aws 4alsburyMs %tatutes Current +aw The &igest

The following notes will give you an idea of what ea h an be used for! and a brief guide to using them" >or further information! please refer to the detailed user guides that are atta hed to the shelf lose to the work" >alsbury?s La*s This work is shelved at +A.% :66"6129574A+" It seeks to provide a omplete statement of English law from all its sour es! and is an ideal starting point for resear h on any legal issue" The work onsists of 52 main te#t volumes! plus Tables of Cases and %tatutes! Inde# volumes! Cumulative %upplement volumes! and loose/leaf urrent servi e binders" It is onstantly updated and any sear h involves these steps$ *se the Inde# Nolumes to begin a sub'e t sear h" )ou ould also use the Table of Cases or Table of %tatutes if you want to resear h a spe ifi ase or pie e of legislation The inde#es will refer you to paragraphs in the main volumes To ensure that your resear h is up to date! you also need to use the umulative supplement to he k if the paragraphs you referred to have been updated As a final he k! use the noter up se tion of the loose/leaf urrent servi e binder

>alsbury?s Statutes This work is shelved at +A.% :66"6122174A+" It provides an up to date version of every A t in for e in England and .ales! in luding amendments" The work onsists of 52 te#t volumes! an annual umulative supplement! loose/leaf urrent servi e binders and a noter up binder" The inde# volume in ludes alphabeti al and hronologi al tables of statutes! and a sub'e t inde#" The work is onstantly updated! and a sear h involves the following steps$ If you are looking for a spe ifi a t! use the Tables of %tatutes in the inde#" If you are looking for A ts on a parti ular sub'e t! use the sub'e t se tion of the inde#" )ou will be referred to the appropriate volume To ensure that your resear h is up to date! you also need to he k the umulative supplement! and the noter up for any amendments to the volume you are using 10

There is also a volume alled FIs it in for eIG! overing statutes from the last 25 years" This is updated in the loose/leaf noter up binder" If you want to he k the urren y of earlier legislation! you will need to use the inde#! the main volumes! the umulative supplement and the noter up as des ribed above"

Current La* This work is shelved at +A.% :66"612957C*(" It onsists of annual yearbooks! monthly digests! ase and legislation itators" It an be used for urrent awareness and to tra k developments in ase law and progress of legislation" It in ludes material from England! .ales! % otland! Eorthern Ireland and the European *nion" %ome of the yearbooks and itators in lude % ottish in the title ; donMt be put off! they do in lude English law" *se the 0onthly &igest sub'e t se tions to tra k the latest developments in a spe ifi area of the law! and the 0onthly &igest Table of Cases to find re ent reports" *se the ase itators to find itations for a ase if you only have the name! and to tra k subse?uent referen es to a ase" The itators often refer to paragraphs in the year books! using the abbreviation C"+")

"he /igest This worked is shelved at +A.% :66"612957&I," It ontains annotated information on 3ritish! Commonwealth and European ases" There are 52 volumes Asome in several partsB a umulative supplement! inde# volumes! and a onsolidated table of ases in three volumes" )ou an sear h by ase name or sub'e t" (emember to use the umulative supplement as well as the main volumes to ensure that you are up to date"

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5re<uently asked <uestions

%helf marks refer to Crookesmoor +ibrary Cases I only kno* the name of this case. >o* do I find a case re+ort@ *se one of the legal databases to find a itation" Alternatively! use the Inde# to the +aw (eports A+A.% :66"612957+A.B the Current +aw Case Citators or The &igest" >o* can I find cases relevant to a s+ecific area of the la*@ 0ost te#tbooks in lude tables of signifi ant ases" Alternatively! try The &igest! 4alsburyMs +aws or one of the legal databases" Where *ill I find cases from the .uro+ean Court of Austice@ The European Court (eports are at E(C :69"62:17C-*" )ou an also find 'udgments on Eurolaw! or on the CourtMs web site http$77www" uria"eu"int7en7 ontent7'uris7inde#"htm Legislation Where do I find 9arliamentary 2ills@ There are links from +awtel! or you an get them from the web site of the *H 1arliament http$77www"parliament"uk7bills7bills" fm" 1rint opies are kept at the *niversity 0ain +ibrary on %ta k :" Where do I find ,cts of 9arliament@ 4alsburyMs %tatutes or the legal databases are the best sour es to use if you want to be sure you have all subse?uent amendments" Alternatively! 1ubli ,eneral A ts sin e 19== are on the 40%- web site http$77www"opsi"gov"uk7a ts"htm " 1ubli ,eneral A ts are in the library at +A.% :66"6122271*3" Current +aw %tatutes Awhi h in lude useful notesB are at +A.% :66"612227C*(" Where can I find .uro+ean 6egulations and /irectives@ They are published in the -ffi ial @ournal of the European *nion! + series! at E(C :69"622217->>" Alternatively! use Eurolaw! or the European *nion web site http$77europa"eu"int7eur/le#7le#7en7inde#"htm Where are B"he rules of the air %amendment& regulations 'CC(D@ Things with regulations! rules or order in the title are likely to be %tatutory Instruments A%IMsB" There is a new numeri al se?uen e every year" >ind them in 4alsburyMs %tatutory Instruments A+A.% :66"612: 4A+B or on the legal databases" %in e 19=<! %IMs are also available on the 40%- website http$77www"opsi"gov"uk7stat"htm Aournals >o* can I find $ournal articles on a +articular sub$ect@

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The best sour e is the +egal @ournals Inde#! whi h is part of .estlaw *H" Alternatively! use the arti les inde# on +awtel! or the Inde# to +egal 1eriodi als! at A3% :62"2197IE&! also available as a database on +e#is" #ther stuff What does this abbreviation mean@ *se the Crookesmoor abbreviations guide! (aistri ks Inde# to +egal Citations and Abbreviations (E> :6<"2:A(B or visit http$77www"legalabbrevs" ardiff"a "uk7 >o* do I find a Command 9a+er@ %ome individual ommand papers are atalogued on Star ; try sear hing by title or keyword" %ome are available on the Internet" +awtel has links! or try the 40%- web site http$77www"opsi"gov"uk7offi ial/publi ations7 ommand/papers7inde#"htm Where are the La* Commission 6e+orts@ 1rint opies are at :6<A+B! or he k the +aw Commission web site http$77www"law om"gov"uk7publi ations"htm

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