While USF Poly does not have a law school, it is sometimes necessary to perform legal research. It can be a complex field though but thankfully, there are resources to help.
The USFP Library has some books, like classic Wren and Wren’s The Legal Research Manual: A Game Plan for Legal Research and Analysis and e-book Legal research how to find & understand the law by Elias and Levinkind.
We also have access to the Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe and Westlaw Campus databases (don’t forget to go through Blackboard to authenticate first.)
Finally, there are excellent free sources of information on the Web:
- the Global Legal Information Network (GLIN), a depository library for foreign and international law
- Online Sunshine, the official Internet site of the Florida Legislature
- ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law, which lists, with descriptions and overviews, resources on a broad range of important areas of international law. This site is published by the American Society of International Law.
- THOMAS, the US Congress website and the Supreme Court Database.
- to learn how to perform legal research, the American Association of Law Libraries offers How to Research a Legal Problem: A Guide for Non-Lawyers. From the American Law Institute and American Bar Association, Bacal’s Internet Legal Research Guide, is also useful.