[LAW-LIB:57752] Summary of best free legal websites

From: Bryan Carson (bryan.m.carson@vanderbilt.edu)
Date: Mon Jan 12 2009 - 13:55:35 PST

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    Dear colleagues:

    I am very impressed by the number and range of free legal websites that have been suggested. This is really great material, and as always I'm the beneficiary of the collective wisdom of this list.

    The summary of sites is listed below. However, I also want to thank the following people for making suggestions:

    Damien MacRae
    Betty Agin Carol Bredemeyer
    Dave Rodgers
    Mary Lou Wilker
    Rick Buckingham
    Sid Kaskey
    Robb Farmer
    Mary Rice
    Beverly Butula
    Maria Sosnowski
    Brian Raphael
    Brad Small
    LaVern Pritchard
    Paul Bush

    I really appreciate and value your assistance with my project.

    Bryan M. Carson

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    I'm biased because this is my own site, but I thought you might be interested in this new free legal website that is only just starting to
    get some press:
    Fee Fie Foe Firm
    http://www.feefiefoefirm.com

    It's a search engine that searches exclusively across law firm websites allowing you to find articles, newsletters, resumes, media releases - anything that's published on a law firm website.  I won't waste your time with a sales pitch, but if you're interested you can find out more about the site on its About page.  I've also attached an article from the Online Currents law journal about the site.  I thought it might be the sort of thing you were looking for your book.

    Cheers,
    Damien MacRae
    Fee Fie Foe Firm
    www.feefiefoefirm.com
    damien.macrae@feefiefoefirm.com

    ********************************

    Our local chapter has a wonderful collection of such sites on our web page: http://www.njlla.org/

    ********************************

    We were recently asked by our legal writing faculty to come up with a list of the "top 5" free legal research sites.  We explained that there was no objective way to determine the top 5, but since they still wanted something so we came up with the following:

        *  GPO Access (http://www.gpoaccess.gov)
        * LexisOne Free Case Law (http://www.lexisone.com/lx1/caselaw/freecaselaw)
        * Legal Information Institute (http://www.law.cornell.edu)
        * Public Library of Law (http://www.plol.org)
        * Massachusetts Trial Court Law Libraries (http://www.lawlib.state.ma.us)

    The last one is especially useful for our students/alumni because it's an excellent starting point for Massachusetts legal research.  It has numerous research guides on Massachusetts law, links to primary source materials –  including Massachusetts city and town bylaws, and (with free membership) access to HeinOnline from anywhere.  Many of the libraries also have free on-site access to LexisNexis and Westlaw.

    My guess is that non-legal librarians would be helping patrons research state law more than (or at least as much as) federal law, so it will be especially helpful to have state-specific sites like this in your book.

    ********************************

    Bryan - While this may not be strictly legal research, my research class was doing a process problem on Identity Theft. One of the students used these websites
        *  http://www.onguardonline.gov
        *  http://www.idtheftcenter.org
        *  http://identitytheft911.org/

    ********************************

    LawMoose.com -- LaVern Pritchard took the US House Internet Law Library and rebuilt the model from the ground up.

    ********************************

    Zimmerman's Research Guide http://www.lexisnexis.com/infopro/zimmerman/

    ********************************

    One excellent site is http://www.nolo.com/. But for a newbie I would strongly suggest doing a google search for pathfinders on the subject of law they are researching. And, skipping the internet all together, there any number of books geared toward neophytes. For instance [Legal Research: How to find and understand the law -S. Elias].

    ********************************

    As an attorney and a law librarian, the absolute best free legal website I've used is American Law Sources Online, www.lawsource.com. It's a labor of love by a lone ex BNA employee, who believes in the value of free legal resources for the general public. The interface is consistent and easy to use, the site frequently updated, and the information fantastically useful. I've used it daily for almost 10 years, and I sing its praises to all my students.

    ********************************

    I like AALL/LISP's "How to Research a Legal Problem: A Guide for Non-Lawyers,":
    http://www.aallnet.org/sis/lisp/research.htm

    ********************************

    Two of my favorites for the non-legal professional are:
        *  http://www.aallnet.org/chapter/llaw/paliguide/index.htm
        *  http://volokh.com/files/howtoreadv2.pdf

    ********************************

    My favorite site for pro se type materials in WA is www.washingtonlawhelp.org where they have lots of instructions on how to do various forms, sample forms, info about the law on certain topics, etc. They are aimed at pro se, often low income people, so cover government benefits, family law, landlord-tenant issues, POAs, etc. The mother site is www.lawhelp.org and there are links there for the various states, but the WA site is particularly good.

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    I recently completed some research guides for our USC School of Law webpage. I link to a number of free legal sites (as well as some subscription sites we have access to at USC). The link to our guides is: http://law.usc.edu/library/research.cfm

    ********************************

    I'm a relatively new law librarian. Before working as a law librarian, I was a reference librarian at a public library. I think a good piece of advice for non law librarians is to take advantage of legal research tools and legal information produced by law schools, libraries, legal services, state entities and foundations in their home state. For example, here are key New Jersey sites:

        *  Rutgers Law School Internet guides, http://law-library.rutgers.edu/, Internet Law Guide, New Jersey Law Guide
        *  Legal Service of New Jersey, http://www.lsnjlaw.org/
        *  New Jersey State Bar Foundation online publications, http://www.njsbf.org/for-the-public/public-publications.html
        *  New Jersey State Library's legal research guide, http://www.njstatelib.org/Research_Guides/Law/index.php
        *  New Jersey Judiciary, http://www.njcourtsonline.com
        *  New Jersey Law Library Assocation, http://www.njlla.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=2
        *  State of New Jersey website, http://nj.gov/

    ********************************

    Another good tip for no law librarians is to search their state website using Google.  For example, if a patron needs information on lemon laws in New Jersey a good way to start the search it type lemon law site:nj.gov in the Google search box.  Or, if a patron needs information on drunk driving laws in New Jersey type in drunk driving site:nj.gov.  Carrying this over to any state should work well. 

    I'm a big believer in a click and mortar searching strategy.  Not sure if that is the right phrase, but I'm a proponent of not just randomly searching Google but first identifying a real agency that you know should have the information and starting there. Like going to the state's consumer affairs website  for consumer affairs laws.  That way you are starting with a known, legitimate resource.

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    There's LawMoose, though most of what we have is no longer free and is aimed at lawyers. We haven't reduced the public portal. We've just built a subscriber one on top of it. We still leave a lot out for the public compared to a lot of sites. And we have a sort of law brain, actually a legal brain booster, behind the password.

    ********************************

    I'm not sure if this fits what you are looking for, and it is shameless self-promotion, but...
     
    LegalDockets.com, a public record portal I have been running for over 8 years is now 100% free.  It has not been publicly announced yet, but we have just removed all login and fee barriers.  Anyone may access our public record link resources, although now it contains many advertisements.
     
    LegalDocket's successor site, Courtport.com, is a much richer public records portal that requires a paid annual subscription EXCEPT for academic users.  Users like yourself with an EDU email address can access Courtport for free.
    -- 
Bryan M. Carson, J.D., M.I.L.S.
Ed.D. Candidate,
Higher Ed. Leadership & Policy, Vanderbilt University/Peabody College

Associate Professor/Coordinator of Reference & Instructional Services
Western Kentucky University Libraries
Author, "The Law of Libraries and Archives" (Scarecrow Press)

Phone: 270-745-5007 (Office), 270-991-7144 (cell)
Fax: 270-745-2275
bryan.m.carson@vanderbilt.edu  -  bryan.carson@wku.edu

All original content copyright 2009 Bryan M. Carson

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