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Library Instruction for Liberal Arts |
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Mass Comm 4333 Law and EthicsSarah Brick ArcherAssistant Professor of Library Services Communication & Art Resource Coordinator Office #L308B ext. 3267 The NSU Library is a selective depository library (NSU Government Information Department Web Site). OSU is the full depository library. Laws are derived from both the court and the legislative systems. For an overview to Communications Law, try Westlaw under the section on Communications & Media under Legal Guides. Try also Communications from Cornell. Finding Court DocumentsLaws are created through state, federal, and supreme courts. The state and federal court systems have courts on the trial, intermediate (appellate), and supreme court levels.Reading a citation for a court case: Hutchinson v. Proxmire 443 U.S. 111
These cases may also be found using Westlaw Campus. For example, to search by number, 443us111 in the "Find a Document by Citation" box. To search by title, type hutchinson and proxmire in the "Find a Document by Title" box. Try also the Legal Information Institute at Cornell and the Oklahoma State Courts Network. Reading a Court OpinionWhen reading an opinion, look for the issues or questions that are raised. The headnotes, listed under the name of the case, usually provide a good summary of the case. Check for a syllabus of the case, also. Next, look for the resolution or holding of the case. The point of law should state the meaning of the opinion. The court case should also list the reasons why the decision was made by listing supporting documents, such as other court cases, statutes, etc. Since five supreme court justices must agree on a case for it to be a legal precedent, there will be majority and minority opinions listed. Also, look at the level of the court. Trial courts carry the least weight. Supreme courts carry the most weight.Finding Legislative DocumentsAll states and the federal government are also involved in creating laws.Public laws (Ref KF 50.A12) list current bills passed by Congress and are arranged by bill number. United States Statutes at Large (Ref KF 50.U5x) is a chronological listing of bills passed by Congress during each legislative session. An example of a citation would be 48 Stat. 1064. It can also be listed as a public law (PL). The United States Code (Ref. KF 50.U53x) is a listing of current federal law, so it includes revisions made to laws. The code is arranged by topic, not chronologically. The annotated version (Ref. KF 62.A3) includes the history of the law and is updated with pocket parts. The Congressional Record (Index x1:1/A...) lists committee hearings and debates. CQ Weekly (Per. JK 1.C15) gives up-to-date information about bills in Congress. Thomas provides information about Congress including updates on bills. For Oklahoma legislative information, use the Oklahoma Session Law Service, Ref. KFO 1231.O474 and Oklahoma Session Laws Ref. KFO 1225.O38 are similar to the federal Statues at Large. Oklahoma Statutes, Ref. KFO 1230.2001.A253 lists the current laws. Oklahoma Statues Annotated, Ref. KFO 1230.A2x provides the history of the law and is updated with pocket parts. Several Web sites to try include: Findlaw: Oklahoma Current Oklahoma Bills Oklahoma Bill Tracking Finding Administrative DocumentsOnce federal laws are passed, rules and regulations are needed to implement the law. These federal regulations defined to enforce the federal law. They first appear in the Federal Register (Index AE 2:106). These are codified in the Code of Federal Regulations (Index AE2.106) which is organized similarly to the United States Code.Many federal agencies publish documents that are distributed through the federal depository system. Many of these are published online (example: Federal Communication Commission). Other ResourcesOne of the best known legal encyclopedias is Corpus Juris Secundum (Ref. KF 105.C648). Black's Law Dictionary (Ref. KF 156.B53) is the standard dictionary in law. The Oxford Guide to United States Supreme Court Decisions (Ref. KF 4548.O97) provides a layman's summary to supreme court decisions. In Westlaw, see . Law reviews or legal journals provide additional sources of information. Wilson's Index to Legal Periodicals, is a useful source for finding legal journals. Example of journals include the following:American Indian Law Review, Per. K1.M437 Oklahoma Bar Journal, Per. KF 200.O5a Oklahoma Law Review, Per. K 15.K5 Web Sites American Civil Liberties Union Coalition of Journalists for Open Government First Amendment Center Informal Methods of Combating Secrecy in Local Government National Freedom of Information Coalition Radio-Television News Directors Association Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press Society of Professional Journalists Student Press Legal Sites Sunshine in Government Initiative |
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