
Resources are primary if they form the foundation and grant the authority to act for members of a governing body. In this introductory module, students will be exposed to what primary authority is (and no, it is not just cases and codes). Students will also learn the difference between statutes and codes and what "range" is why it is important for students to know "range" as as a legal concept as they prepare to conduct their own legal research projects.
The legislative branch is the body that creates the codes and statutes. it's these codes and statutes that grant authority to the variety of jurisdiction to govern we the people of the United States. in this module, students will learn how to find state and federal statutes using print resources.
The judicial branch is the governmental body that creates case law. Case law is created through the interpretation of codes and statutes which are handed down by the legislative body of government as well as regulations promulgated by the executive branch. In this module you will learn how to read a case citations, what regional reporters are and how regions are divided, the difference between official and unofficial case reports, what some of the more popular case reporters and their abbreviations are, and how to locate case law in West's Annotated Digest System using Headnotes, Headnote Topics, and Keynumbers.
The executive branch (President of the United States for federal jurisdictions and Governor for the state jurisdictions) gains it's authority to operate by and through the laws handed down by the legislative branch of government. The purpose of this module is to help students understand the techniques of how to locate state and federal regulations using print resources.
Shepardizing ties all resources together. To "Shepardize" a resource is to check its authenticity or reliability. Is this primary resources (i.e. statute, case, or regulation) good law or reliable enough to include in a legal document? This is the question that this module helps students to answer. Students will learn the three steps to shepardize a statute (legislative branch), the four steps to shepardize a case (judicial branch), and the four steps to Shepardize a state or federal regulation (executive branch) using print resources.
Have you ever taken a tour of a cave and had the park ranger turn off the lights? I have and I can tell you that I could actually feel the darkness all around me. I could not even see my hand right in front of my face. Left to myself, I would have fallen down some dark chasm had I tried to find my own way in that dark, dank cave.
I suspect it is that way when people start something new - everything around them is pitch black and terrifying. You don't know what to do first or you are afraid of doing anything for fear of looking foolish. The thought of moving forward can, actually, fill you with dread. What you need is a guiding hand to sustain you for the first little while until you either see the light or have a firm(er) foundation under your feet.
Law and legal research is kind-of like that. Few things terrify people more than having to walk into a law library and start their own legal research project. I know because as a Law Librarian I have worked with countless numbers of people (lawyers and non-lawyer people who are involved in their own lawsuits). Most do not know where to go or how to start a legal research project. One of the reasons they don't know how to start is that they don't have someone they know who can offer a guiding hand to help you know what to look for. Do you want the law (primary authority) or do you want to know about the law (secondary authority)? Do you start with a book or just hop on a computer and start plunking away hoping you'll find something helpful?
The purpose of this class is to offer that proverbial guiding hand and help students become familiar with what primary authorities are and how to find them using print resources.
Wait, what?!? Why start learn how to use "print" resources?! Well, it's important to start with print materials simply because print resources are the basis for online resources (i.e. computerized research). When you understand how print resources are organized in print (and how to find/use them), you are better able to understand how computers are using them online and you'll know what to look for because you know how the computer is thinking.
Concepts covered in this first class include:
How to find state and federal statutes,
How to read a case citation,
How to find case law using headnote topics and key numbers under the American Digest System, and
How to find state and federal regulations
Finally, you will learn (and this one is particularly important) the steps to Shepardize any state or federal statute, case law, or regulation.
Confused? Well, that's how a lot of people feel about the nature of law and legal things when they first start. As you go through this program (and those that follow), you will gain greater understanding of how law and legal things work and are inter-related...and the more you practice, the better you will get.
I Promise.