Law enforcement

1. CHAPTER 7
Legal Research and Analysis
7-1

2. Introduction
• For many paralegals, legal research is a
central and fascinating part of their jobs
• The ability to conduct research thoroughly
yet efficiently enhances a paralegal’s value
• As a paralegal, you may be asked to perform
a variety of research tasks
• Many paralegals conduct research without
entering a law library
• It is essential to know what sources to
consult
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3. Researching Case Law—
The Preliminary Steps
• Defining the Issue
– Background research
– Focus on the legal issues
– Checklist for defining research issues
• Parties
• Places and things
• Basis of action or issue
• Defenses
• Relief sought
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4. Researching Case Law—
The Preliminary Steps
• Determining Your Research Goals
– Cases on point
• Previous case with similar fact patterns and legal
issues
• Case on “all fours”: all four elements are similar
– Binding authorities
• Court must follow this in deciding an issue
• Be on point
• Source of precedent
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5. Researching Case Law—
The Preliminary Steps
• Determining Your Research Goals
– Published and unpublished opinions
• Unpublished opinions can sometimes be cited
• Look for statements by the court
– Persuasive authorities
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6. Finding Relevant Cases
• Two Basic Categories of Legal Sources
– Primary sources of law
– Secondary sources of law
• Use Secondary Sources to Find Primary
Sources
– Secondary sources are called finding tools
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7. Finding Relevant Cases
• Legal Encyclopedias
– Major legal encyclopedias
• American Jurisprudence (Am. Jur. 2d)
• Corpus Juris Secundum (C.J.S.)
• Cross-references
• Pocket parts
• Other Sources
– Words and Phrases
– Reporters
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8. Finding Relevant Cases
• Case Digests
– Provide indexes to case law
– Annotations included in case digests
– The West key-number system
• Using key numbers
• Finding what you need
– Types of digests
• Supreme Court Digest
7-8

9. Finding Relevant Cases
• Annotations: American Law Reports
– American Law Reports (A.L.R.)
– American Law Reports Federal (A.L.R.
Federal)
– Full text of selected cases
– Six different series cover case law since
1919
7-9

10. Finding Relevant Cases
• Annotations: American Law Reports
(continued)
– Quick Index
– A.L.R. Blue Book of Supplemental
Decisions
– A.L.R. Later Case Service
– Most are available online
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11. Finding Relevant Cases
• Other Secondary Sources
– Treatises
• Treatises
• Hornbooks
– Restatements of the Law
• Statements of principles of law, followed by
discussions
– Legal Periodicals
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12. The Case Reporting System
• Tips for Effective Legal Research
– Know the exact legal issue you will be
researching
– Understand the language of the issue
– Be aware of the circular nature of legal
research
– Always assume there are additional
materials to find
– Keep a list of what sources you have found
and where they have led you
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13. The Case Reporting System
• Tips for Effective Legal Research
– Become familiar with the sources you are
using
– Be aware of the jurisdiction and the time
frame you are researching
– Always refer to Shepard’s to make sure the
cases you are using are up to date
– Use computerized legal research services
to update your research results
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14. The Case Reporting System
• State Court Decisions and Reporters
– Written decisions are published
chronologically
– Regional reporters
– Citation format
• Five parts to a standard citation
• Parallel citation
• Proper form
– The Bluebook
– ALWD Citation Manual
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15. The Case Reporting System
• Federal Court Decisions
– U.S. district court decisions
• Published in West’s Federal Supplement
– Opinions from the court of appeals
• Reported in West’s Federal Reporter
– Both are unofficial reporters
– Bankruptcy Reporter
– All published online
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16. The Case Reporting System
• United States Supreme Court Decisions
– The United States Reports
• Slip opinion, official version
– The Supreme Court Reporter
• Syllabus, headnotes, case report
– The Lawyers’ Edition of the Supreme Court
Reports
• Unofficial edition of entire series of Supreme
Court reports
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17. Analyzing Case Law
• The Components of a Case
– Case title
– Case citation
– Docket number
– Dates argued and decided
– Syllabus
–
Cont.
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18. Analyzing Case Law
• The Components of a Case
– Headnotes
– Names of counsel
– Name of judge or justice authoring the
opinion
– Opinion
– The court’s conclusion
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19. Analyzing Case Law
7-19

20. Analyzing Case Law
• Analyzing cases
– Main focus should be on the opinion
– Look for guideposts in the opinion
• Sections and subsections
• Identify components
• Understand the facts and procedural history
– Distinguish the court’s holding from dicta
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21. Analyzing Case Law
• Summarizing and Briefing Cases
– Citation
– Facts
– Procedure
– Issue
– Decision
– Reasoning
– Holding
7-21

22. Analyzing Case Law
• IRAC: A Method for Briefing Cases
– A standard format for briefing cases
• Issue
• Rule
• Application
• Conclusion
– Different lawyers and different offices have
different preferences
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23. Researching Constitutional
and Statutory Law
• Finding Constitutional Law
– State constitutions available online
– Federal constitutional law
• The Constitution of the United States of America
• United States Code Annotated
• United States Code Service
• Finding Statutory Law
– Statutes supplement or replace the common
law
7-23

24. Researching Constitutional
and Statutory Law
• Finding Statutory Law (continued)
– Published in compilations referred to as
codes
– Federal statutes
• Contained in the United States Code (U.S.C.)
• Names of statutes
• Unofficial versions of U.S. code
– West’s United States Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.)
– West’s United States Code Service (U.S.D.S.)
– State statutes
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25. Analyzing Statutory Law
• Two Steps in Statutory Analysis
– Read the language of the statute
• Reasons for its enactment
• Date on which it became effective
• Class of parties to which it applies
• Conduct regulated by the statute
• Circumstances in which conduct is prohibited,
required, or permitted
– Interpret the meaning
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26. Analyzing Statutory Law
• Reading Statutory Law
– The plain meaning rule
– Read a statute as a whole
– Statutory definitions govern
– Distinguish between “and” and “or”
– “Shall” does not mean “may”
– “May” does not mean “shall”
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27. Analyzing Statutory Law
• Previous Judicial Interpretation
– Courts are obligated to follow precedents
• Higher court
• Same jurisdiction
– Statutory interpretation binds lower courts
– Annotated versions
• State or federal statutory codes such as the
U.S.C.A.
• Available in print and online
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28. Analyzing Statutory Law
• Legislative Intent
– Learning the intent of the legislature
– Committee reports
• Most important source of legislative history
• Published and accessible online
– Other sources of legislative history
• United States Code Congressional and
Administrative News (U.S.C.C.A.N.)
• The www.congress.gov website
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29. Researching
Administrative Law
• Administrative rules and regulations
constitute a growing source of American law
• Congress frequently delegates authority to
administrative agencies through enabling
legislation
• Orders, regulations, and decisions of these
agencies
• Legally binding
• Primary sources of law
• Published in Code of Federal Regulations
(C.F.R.)
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30. Summary
• The first step in research is to identify the
legal question, or issue, to be researched
• In researching case law, the goal is to find
cases that are on point and are binding
authorities
• Primary sources of law include all documents
that establish the law
• Secondary sources of law are publications
written about the law
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31. Summary
• The primary sources of case law are the
cases themselves
• Statutory and constitutional law are primary
sources of law
• Statutory law is often difficult to understand,
so careful reading and rereading are often
required to understand the meaning
• Regulations issued by federal administrative
agencies are primary sources of law
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