Researching Canadian Law

Do you have questions about the law of our neighbors to the north? The library's guide to Canadian Legal Research might help you find the answers. The Goodson Law Library offers a variety of print and online sources for locating information about Canadian law, including the specialized database LexisNexis Quicklaw (available to the Law School community) to the multinational research database vLex Global (available campus-wide). The guide also links to excellent free online resources like CanLII and The Canadian Legal Research and Writing Guide.

The book series "Essentials of Canadian Law" is one effective starting place. Titles are available in print within the Goodson Law Library, but the full text of thirteen current titles in the series (including constitutional law, criminal law, and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms) can also be found online in vLex by following the path Browse > North America > Canada > Books and Journals.

The research guide also includes guidance for searching primary law, journal articles, and specialized citation manuals for Canadian materials. For more assistance with locating Canadian legal research materials, consult the research guide or Ask a Librarian.