spring 2004 vol. 9 no. 4                                                                                                                             Return to Contents
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Legal Research 101: Class Twelve

Joan Olson, CLA

LEGAL PERIODICALS

Although legal periodicals are considered secondary materials, they range in quality and persuasiveness. There are numerous periodicals printed by professional groups and publishing companies, but the most reputable are the academic law reviews or law journals.

There are three major types of legal periodicals.
1. Leading articles - those written by law professors, judges or experts from other disciplines. They are heavily footnoted and exhaustive works that reflect the results of intense thinking and deep research.
2. Notes or Comments - those written by law students. They are about broad, often on controversial issues or areas of law.
3. Case Comments or Case Notes - usually student-written articles that present a detailed analysis of a particular case.

RESEARCHING LEGAL PERIODICALS

1. Index to Legal Periodicals (“ILP”) – ILP indexes over 500 legal periodicals by subject and author. They are number volumes which are published on a monthly basis from October to August. Numbers 2, 5, 8 and 11 cumulate the preceding one or two issues. i.e. number 5 cumulates 3 & 4.
a. Research
1. Locate list of subject headings.
2. Then locate the article, which is listed alphabetically under the title of the article.
3. You can also locate the article by author’s name.
4. Tables
a. Table of Cases
b. Table of Statutes commented upon (they are listed alphabetically by name.)

2. Current Law Index (“CLI”) – CLI indexes over 700 legal and law related periodicals. It is published monthly. The March, June and September issues cumulate the preceding two issues. The 12th is the annual edition.
a. Research
1. The index is divided into large subject matter headings, which are divided into hierarchical subheadings.
2. Tables
a. Author/Title Index
b. Table of Cases
c. Table of Statutes

3. Wilson Disc Service – CD-Rom version of the Index to Legal Periodicals.
4. Westlaw or Lexis

COMPONENTS OF LAW REVIEW
CITATION
Full name of author
Designation of type of article (required only of written by a student)
Type of article (underscored or in
italics)
Volume number of the law review
Abbreviated name of law review
(complete list in bluebook)
Page number where article begins
Year of publication

Virginia Koerselman, Comment,

Workmen’s Compensation, 15 Creighton L.

Rev. 415 (1987)

William Benton, Creation of Fetal Rights,

29 Geo. L. J. 356 (1985)

Joan Olson is the Assistant Vice President of Regulatory and Corporate Compliance for Swiss Re Live & Health America, Inc. Joan received a Bachelors of Art in Government from the University of Texas in 1991 and her Certificate of Completion from the
Paralegal Program at University of Texas at Arlington in 1992.  She is a Certified Legal Assistant and the President of Metroplex
Association of Corporate Paralegals.

Texas Paralegal Journal © Copyright 2003 by the Legal Assistants Division, State Bar of Texas.

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