‘All in One’ Legal Research ClassMay 2014 Session

University of Sydney Herbert Smith Freehills Law LibraryPatrick O'Mara – LPAB Librarian

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Session Aims

›Interpret all types of citations from your reading lists

›Find cases, legislation and journal articles

›Locate additional resources for legal research

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Types of Material

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Supplementary Materials

• Via LEC Web Campus site or Law Library’s ‘LPAB Students’ link

• If source is available via a free web site you will be linked directly to that site

• If source is available via a subscription database you will need to enter your Unikey

• Select ‘Documents and Markups’ setting to maintain highlighting of extracts.

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Interpreting a case citation

› Two main types of case citation- Law report citation- Medium neutral citation (court)

Swain v Waverley Municipal Council(2005) 220 CLR 517 – law report[2005] HCA 4 – medium neutral

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Steps for finding cases

›What is the abbreviation?? (see Law Library – Free Web Law – Legal Abbreviations)

›Australian or UK or other??

›Law report or medium neutral citation

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Steps for finding cases (cont)

›Law Report: Law Databases – Cases – Law Reports A to Z

›Medium Neutral Citation Law Databases – Cases - AustLII

›UK case - Law Databases – Cases – ICLR Online

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Case Citators

CaseBase and FirstPoint

- To obtain extra information about a case

- To find cases by subject

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Basic Boolean Connectors

AND – combining concepts Eg. murder and defences

OR – for similar concepts and synonymsEg. murder OR manslaughter

NOT (sometimes AND NOT) – leaving out concepts

Eg. Murder NOT provocation

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Legislation

• Bills• Statutes• Delegated Legislation• Related Parliamentary materials

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Bills

Bills are a draft of a proposed statute.

Example:

›Civil Liability Bill 2002 (NSW) cl 16

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Steps for finding cases (cont)

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Acts / Statutes

Terms are interchangeable – referto enactments of Parliament

Example:

›Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) s 5L(1)

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Types of Acts

Two main types:

Principal Act:

An Act that deals comprehensivelywith a given area of law.

Example:

› Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW)

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Types of Acts (cont)

Amending Act:

An Act that alters the operation ofan earlier Act by:- substituting or inserting words-omitting or repealing provisions

Example:

› Civil Liability Amendment Act 2006 (NSW)

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Delegated Legislation

Examples include: regulations, rules, ordinances, by-laws

Laws made by a person or body towhom Parliament has delegated law-making authority.

Example:

› Civil Liability Regulation 2009 (NSW)

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Finding Acts and Delegated Legislation

Commonwealth Legislation›AustLII›ComLaw

NSW Legislation›AustLII›NSW Parliamentary Counsel’s Office

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Books

Different legal citation guides use differentmodes of citation….

› Aitken & Orr (eds.), The Australian Constitution, 3rd ed. Australian Government Solicitor, 2002

› Patrick Parkinson, Tradition and Change in Australian Law, (4th ed, 2005)

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Books: Dewey for Law

An example:

340 Law (generally)340.072 Legal research

340.072094 Legal research in Australia

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Finding a book on the shelf

Remember to deal with each part of the number separately then move on to the next

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Journal articles

Different legal citation guides use differentmodes of citation….

• P. W. Young, Dismissal of Judges (1993) 67 ALJ 83.

• Anita Stuhmcke, ‘Privatisation and cooperation : what now for the Commonwealth Ombudsman?’ (2004) 11(2) Australian Journal of Administrative Law 101.

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Finding Journal articles

• When you already have a citation

‘Journal’ search on Library Catalogue.

Search title of journal NOT title of article

• Searching for journal articles by subject

Law Databases – Journal Databases and News Services

– eg. AGIS Plus Text (Australia) and LegalTrac (innternational)

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Basic Boolean Connectors

AND – combining concepts Eg. murder and defences

OR – for similar concepts and synonymsEg. murder OR manslaughter

NOT (sometimes AND NOT) – leaving out concepts

Eg. Murder NOT provocation

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Legal Encyclopaedias

• Go to:

Law Databases – Comprehensive Legal Research

• Two major legal encyclopaedias

-Laws of Australia-Halsbury’s Laws of Australia

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Interpreting a case

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

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Case citations: the parties

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

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Case citations: year of the judgement

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

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Case citations: year of the publication

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

For law report citations with square brackets

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Case citations: report details

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

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Case citations: square and round brackets

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

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Case citations: pinpoint citations

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

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Case citations: medium neutral citations

›Merritt v Merritt [1970] 2 All ER 760

›Grey v Pearson (1857) 6 HL Cas 61

›R v Young (1999) 46 NSWLR 681 at 682

›Ayles v The Queen [2008] HCA 6

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Medium Neutral Citation

Ugle v The Queen [2002] HCA 25 at [53]

PartiesCourt

Year

Decision No.

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More Law Report Citations

Waterhouse v Hickie (1995) Aust Torts Reports ¶ 81-347

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Criminal Cases

R v Milat (1996) 87 A Crim R 446

OR:

Milat (1996) 87 A Crim R 446

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Popular Names

Commonwealth v Tasmania (The Tasmanian Dam Case) (1983) 158 CLR 1