Definition of the Law
The body of law consists of four parts.
- The Federal Constitution is the Supreme Law of the Land.
- Legislation is the law passed by Congress.
- Regulations, derived from government agencies, administer the legislation by spelling out procedures and specifications. For example, the law says food packages must list ingredients. Regulations would specify that ingredients must be in English and in legible print.
- Court cases force the courts to interpret the meaning of laws and regulations.
The basic pattern is the same on the state level. For Wisconsin Legal Resources consult the Legal Research - Wisconsin University Library Subject Guide.
General Legal Sites
- Lexis Nexis: Academic
- Lexis Nexis Legal Sources InstructionsFor help navigating in Lexis Nexis.
- ProQuest: Congressional
- American Bar AssociationLook at Topics A-Z at top of page.
- FindLawExcellent subject directory for all aspects of legal research.
- GovEngine.comConsolidation of links to federal, state, and local government sites.
- Guide to Law OnlineFrom the US Law Library of Congress. Includes other nations' laws, and international law as well as US law sites.
- H.G.orgVery comprehensive business legal site.
- Internet Legal Research Group
- Law Library of Congress
- LawGuruSearch more than 500 legal search engines and tools for State, Federal, and International Law.
- Laws and Legal ResearchGeneral guide to doing legal research from Nolo.com.
- Legal Information InstituteFrom Cornell University, comprehensive site to Federal, State and International Law.
- Legal Threats DatabaseFree speech issues on the internet.
- National Immigration Law Center
- Nolo's Legal Articles & FAQsCovers information on a variety of legal topics
- Statutes At LargeFrom the Federal Digital System which replaces GPO Access; this is the permanent collection of all laws and resolutions enacted during each session of Congress. The Statutes at Large is prepared and published by the Office of the Federal Register (OFR), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Every public and private law passed by Congress is published in the Statutes at Large, in order of the date it was enacted into law.
- WashLawFrom Washburn School of Law; Search or browse Federal, State or International Law as well as other legal topics.
- Zimmerman's Research GuideOnline encyclopedia and links for legal researchers.
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Last Revised
09/11/2012
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