Legal Research for Everyone
A video legal research class for the public
Did you go to the law library planning to research your legal problem, only to discover that conducting legal research was not what you expected? The books are unfamiliar. The concepts are confusing. And what on earth did the library assistant mean by updating and “Shepardizing”?! If that was your experience, this course is for you.
The following videos are being prepared by a retired academic law librarian/college professor and the law library’s Electronic Services Librarian to introduce you to the legal resources available to you at the Riverside County Law Library, and, most importantly, how to use them successfully.
The following videos are hosted on the library’s YouTube channel. As each video is published, they will be listed and linked here. As always, be sure to ask a law librarian if you need help.
Module 1: Preliminary Matters (things you need to know before you start)
- M0001: Welcome to Legal Research for Everyone
- M0101: Where the Law Comes From
- M0102: The Court System
- M0103: Jurisdiction
- M0104: The Doctrine of Stare Decisis
- M0105: What You Will & Won’t Find in the Law Library
- M0106: The Four Approaches to Legal Research
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Module 2: Print Legal Research
Researching Statutes in print
- M0201: How Print Statutes are Published
- M0202: Internal Organization of Statutes
- M0203: Using the Annotations to Statutes
- M0204: Updating Annotated Codes
- M0205: Using an Index to Find Statutes
- M0206: Using Citations to Find Statutes
Researching Caselaw in Print
- M0207: What is a “Case”?
- M0208: Case Reporters
- M0209: Opinions Published in a West Reporter
- M0210: Opinions Published in Official Reporters
- M0211: Introduction to the West Key Number System
- M0211 PDF handouts: West Digest Topics and Sample West Topic
- M0212: Introduction to Wests Digests
- M0213: Steps to Using a West Digest
- M0214: Demo of a West Digest Search
- M0215: Finding a Key Number
- M0216: Validating Cases
Module 3: Westlaw
- M0301: Introduction to Westlaw
Researching Statutes on Westlaw
- M0302: Reading a Statute Pt. 1
- M0303: Reading a Statute Pt. 2
- M0304: Retrieving a Statute using a Citation
- M0305: Retrieving a Statute using the Table of Contents
- M0306: Retrieving a Statute using the Index
- M0307: Retrieving Statutes by Word Search: Problems
- M0308: Retrieving Statutes by Word Search: Field Restrictors
- M0309: Using Westlaw to Find Statutes: Terms and Connectors
Researching Caselaw on Westlaw
- M0310: Four Approaches Refresher for Westlaw
- M0311: Reading Cases on Westlaw, Pt. 1
- M0312: Reading Cases on Westlaw, Pt. 2
- M0313: Reading Cases on Westlaw, Pt. 3
- M0314: Reading Cases on Westlaw, Pt. 4
- M0315: Reading Cases on Westlaw, Pt.5
- M0316: Validating Cases on Westlaw Using Keycite
- M0317: Finding Cases on WestLaw Pt. 1
- M0318: Finding Cases on WestLaw Pt. 2
Module 4: LexisNexis
- M0401: coming soon
Other RCLL Databases
This module will cover all other legal databases offered at RCLL. Coming Soon!
Free Legal Websites
Additional videos that will cover free legal websites. Coming soon!