Legal Bibliography

Some legal researchers emphasize classic bibliographies of the past, while others look at how the legal bibliography is used by the legal information specialists. According to Peairs (in “Legal Bibliography: A Dual Problem”), already in 1949 legal bibliography was a “purely mechanical subject, as are its procedure”.

As a syllabus of a law school, Legal Bibliography is an introduction to the research methods and resources the student of law will be using throughout both law school and the legal career.

This is a well known legal bibliography compiled by Morris Cohen. It includes a supplemental volume. This set covers the period from the beginnings of American history up to and including 1860. It lists the monographic and trial literature on American law and legal development regardless of language or place of publication. The entries are divided into four major sections: Monographs; Civil Trials; Criminal Trials; and Special Proceedings.

In his book “The Future of Legal Bibliography. The Role of Laserdiscs and Computers in Compiling and Distributing Bibliographies”, Blair Kauffmana wrote that the new technology improves the development and use of the legal bibliography, for example including references to materials available in non-traditional formats.

Federico Moreno in the book “Philippine Legal Bibliography” notes that legal bibliography is the study of the tools and materials essential to Legal Research . It is the study of legal authorities. Legal Research on the other hand is concerned with the method or system by which inquiry and investigation into legal queries may be accomplished. Simply put, legal bibliography and legal research involves knowing and finding the best basis for our responses to legal questions or issues.

Legal bibliography principles classify authorities as primary and secondary. Again, using Moreno’s tract:

1. An authority is considered primary when legislation (or statutes) or court decisions are involved. Primary authorities are either mandatory or persuasive.

a. It is mandatory when “legislation is effective in the place where it has been enacted or promulgated or when a decision is rendered with finality by a superior court in the case or in another case with a similar set of facts, or by the same court in another case.”

b. Any other type of legislation or court decision is considered persuasive.

2. An authority is considered secondary, “when primary authority is commented on, criticized, explained or restated.”

• Pagel, Scott B (Editor). The Legal Bibliography: Tradition, Transitions and Trends. The Haworth Press. 1989.
• Winfield, Percy H. “Some Bibliographical Difficulties of English Law”(1914) 30 LQR 190.
• The Western Law Journal. Desilver and Burr. 1848. Volume 5. Pages 140 and 475 to 476.
• Marvin, J G. Legal Bibliography, or a Thesaurus of American, English, Irish and Scotch Law books :together with some continental treatises. T & J W Johnson. 1847.
• British and Irish Association of Law Librarians. The Law Librarian. 1981. Volume 9.
• Michael H. Hoeflich, Annals of Legal Bibliography: J. G. Marvin, Law library Journal (2004) vol. 96.
• The Legal bibliography: tradition, transitions, and trends, Scott B. Pagel – 1989
• The Upper Canada Law Journal and Lower Courts Gazette. 1857. Volume 3. Page 5, col 2.
• Harvard University Library Notes. Harvard University Press. 1941. Issue 4. Page 106.
• The Virginia State Bar Association. Proceedings of the First Annual Meeting. Richmond Press. 1889. Page 57.
• S. Blair Kauffmana, The Future of Legal Bibliography. The Role of Laserdiscs and Computers in Compiling and Distributing Bibliographies, Legal Reference Services Quarterly, Volume 9, Issue 1-2, 1989.
• Harvard Law Review. 1900. Volume 14. Page 558.
• Winfield, Percy H. “The Chief Sources of English Legal History”, Harvard University Press, 1925.
• Legal Bibliography: A Factual Problem; Moreland, Carroll C., 2 J. Legal Educ. 489 (1949-1950)
• Hoffman, David. A Course of Legal Study: Addressed to Students and the Profession Generally. Second Edition. Joseph Neal. Baltimore. 1836. Volume 2.
• British and Irish Association of Law Librarians. The Law Librarian. 1981. Volume 9.2 J. Legal Educ. 61 (1949-1950)
• Legal Bibliography: A Dual Problem; Peairs, C. A. Jr.
• Bookman’s Yearbook. Bookman’s Weekly. 1988.
• Friend, William Lawrence. Anglo-American Legal Bibliographies: An Annotated Guide. United States Government Printing Office. Washington DC. 1944.

Author: international

Mentioned in these Entries

KIA-KIK North America LC Classification, Law books, Law library, Legal Research, Library of Congress Classification Class K, Religious law, The Year Books, Thesaurus.