Ensure that you note down all the important facts, statistics, and arguments that will help you build on your legal research paper and that you cite them accordingly. 3. Create an Outline. Using the points that you have gathered, you can now come up with an outline for your legal research paper 1/22/ · Christopher John Date: January 22, Legal research papers often draw from previous cases.. The key elements of writing a legal research paper are: knowing the reader, providing a statement of the facts, defining the question, providing a brief answer, analyzing the law, ensuring proper citations and formulating conclusions 7/2/ · Legislation is often the first primary source to consider as many legal research problems centre on the interpretation of legislation. Statutes, regulations and by-laws are all examples of legislation. Your research plan should include these steps: Write down the names of any potentially relevant legislation you are already aware of
Law Thesis Writing Help, Outline, Format, Examples
To focus both the research and the analysis, it is a good idea to develop a detailed written outline of how you plan to analyze the legal issues presented by the fact situation.
The written outline is a work in progress, legal research paper outline. As you begin to research and analyze the relevant materials, you need to rework the outline.
The outline will indicate where the analysis is strong no further research is required and where the analysis is weak further research is required. The Legal Research Starting Points in this chapter is one approach to researching and analyzing a legal memorandum. The format for the memorandum is suggested by Laurel Currie Oates, Anne Enquist, and Kelly Kunsch, The Legal Writing Handbook Aspen Publishers, A more general approach to research is set out in Wayne C.
Booth, Gregory C. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams, The Craft of Research Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, These are not the only approaches. There are many ways to develop an outline and there are many different formats for a legal memorandum. The key is to continue to develop an outline concurrently with the research and the analysis in order to focus the work.
By the end of the research and analysis process, you will have a fully developed outline of your legal argument from which the memorandum may be written. The legal solution to a problem provided there is one is determinable by the law as expressed in statutes and cases. The most efficient way to research these is often to use print and electronic sources, which include journal articles, textbooks, and encyclopedias, in order to identify relevant statutes and cases. There is no magic to good legal research.
There is no one way to do it effectively. The key is simply being knowledgeable enough about the sources so that that one can use them to retrieve the relevant law efficiently and effectively.
Determining what is "relevant" case law comes with practice. One cannot always retrieve every case on point, but must attempt at the very least to retrieve the leading and precedent setting cases. This chapter outlines the kind of research strategies that may be employed when researching and analyzing a legal problem, and describes which sources to consult and in what order.
It provides a framework and a checklist to guide basic legal research, legal research paper outline. Read the statutes and the cases! No digest, treatise, or case synopsis service can be a foolproof legal research tool. More often than not, the resources described in a digest, book, or article only provide the analytical framework for a legal research paper outline or procedural issue. Without a complete review of the cases, and thorough updating for more recent cases and statutes, a lawyer may find in the courtroom that incomplete research will snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
Goodman, "Essential Research Tools for Criminal Defense Attorneys" 1 Legal Ref. Queen's University Library Research Guides Legal Research Manual Develop an Outline, legal research paper outline. Search this Guide Search.
Legal research paper outline Research Manual This edition of Legal Research Manual builds on many previous editions. While the manual is designed principally for use with the first year legal research classes, upper year law students will also find it a useful reference.
Develop an Outline To focus both the research and the analysis, it is a good idea to develop a detailed written outline of how you plan to analyze the legal issues presented by the fact situation. When researching, it is important to remember the following: As a general rule, try legal research paper outline use Canadian sources first. If that is not possible, note the jurisdictions covered by the secondary source you are using and remember that, although persuasive, it may not be an accurate reflection of the law in your jurisdiction.
Currency in legal research is fundamental. Note the date of the source you are consulting and update the law since that date.
Many secondary sources have current supplements to facilitate finding the latest information. Remember to update beyond the secondary sources to find the most recent statutory amendments and the very latest cases. Full text case law databases are legal research paper outline most current sources. The legal research process is not an orderly process. Exactly which sources are consulted and in what order depends on the researcher's knowledge of the subject area, and the particular area of law covered by the fact situation.
Full text internet products are becoming more common for particular legal research paper outline areas.
These integrate legislation, full text case law, and secondary source legal research paper outline in one searchable product. They may be browsed via a Table of Contents.
Alternatively, legal research paper outline, one may zero in on specific information by performing searches using Custom Templates or search screens. When using print materials, indexes and digests it may prove difficult to ascertain the appropriate subject headings or classifications to use.
Related material can legal research paper outline located under more than one subject heading and between publishers there can be little consistency as to what headings or terms are used for the topic, legal research paper outline. Consult both indexes and tables of contents in print materials. There are several competing online legal research systems such as LexisNexis Quicklaw and WestlawNext Canada.
Which one you use generally depends on the nature of the question or on which interface you prefer. Once in practice, however, the system you use will depend largely on the cost of searching. When using the internet, remember that "one search is not research" "A Search is Not Research" 12 Password [West Publishing] 4 no. Research means just that--re-search and re-search.
To increase your chance of success, you should use a combination of different search tools and strategies each time you approach a legal research problem. There is no such thing as "one perfect search. Begin your research by finding a core of relevant cases, and expand from there.
Spend time planning your search before going online, to include alternate words and truncation i. searching to obtain various endings of the same "word stem"and to use appropriate connectors, legal research paper outline. Do a series of searches, and search in more than one database.
Cross-check your results by narrowing or broadening the search and by searching both by fact as well as by legal concept. It is good practice after consulting a particular secondary source to analyze and apply the information to the particular fact situation presented. You should be able to identify the issues, have relevant statute and legal research paper outline law references, and begin to organize your analysis of the problem.
By doing this at each stage of your research, and before the next research step, legal research paper outline, you will save research time, identify those issues which need more research, and be able to identify what the next logical research source will be.
For example, after consulting an initial secondary source you might want to make sure a particular statute has not been amended, or you might want to "note up" your references prior to continuing with a subject search.
Secondary sources are vital but don't forget primary sources. As the following writer emphasizes, legal analysis must be based on your reading of the relevant statutes and cases: Read the statutes and the cases! Cross-check your research.
Do not rely exclusively on one or two sources. For example, if you do an online search using keywords based on facts, cross-check the results by scanning relevant printed law report indexes to make sure important issues and cases have not been missed, legal research paper outline. Remember to leave enough time. Secondary sources are meant to be used to define legal issues, to gain an understanding of the law and to find relevant citations. It is extremely important to leave enough time to analyze the primary materials in relation to the facts, and to write up your results in a clear and concise manner.
Last Updated: Mar 9, AM Subjects: Law Tags: case lawcommon lawlawlegal researchlegal skillslegislationregulationsstatutes Print Page.
How to create an outline for your research paper
, time: 3:32How do I Write a Legal Research Paper? (with pictures)
Ensure that you note down all the important facts, statistics, and arguments that will help you build on your legal research paper and that you cite them accordingly. 3. Create an Outline. Using the points that you have gathered, you can now come up with an outline for your legal research paper Legal research paper outline sample. Coordinate your daily work in the most easy and complete Business Management solution for small companies 7/2/ · Legislation is often the first primary source to consider as many legal research problems centre on the interpretation of legislation. Statutes, regulations and by-laws are all examples of legislation. Your research plan should include these steps: Write down the names of any potentially relevant legislation you are already aware of
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