The Goodson Blogson

Spring appellate brief writing assignments mean that dictionaries are in high demand around the library. But what dictionaries are the best to cite in a legal writing project? Which dictionaries are the most commonly consulted by courts? And what are your options for locating the full text in the library or online? Specialized Legal Dictionaries If you need the definition of a legal term, you'll want to begin with a law dictionary , rather than a basic English dictionary. There are three well-known U.S. legal dictionaries, and the current edition of each is electronically available on one of the major legal research services. Black's Law Dictionary is the most-cited legal dictionary in U.S. case law, by a wide margin. Currently in its tenth edition (2014), the latest version of Black's can be consulted in the Reference and Reserve collection on Level 3 of the library; as well as online in Westlaw . Previous editions of Black's can be found in the Superseded R...

In the new issue of ABA Journal , legal writing expert (and Black's Law Dictionary editor) Bryan A. Garner poses a legal vocabulary challenge . Inspired by a 1948 textbook, Garner's multiple-choice quiz offers twenty words which are not commonly found in everyday conversation, but do appear with some frequency in American court opinions (ranging from dozens of cases, to more than a thousand). So far, only four test-takers have managed a perfect score, according to Garner's Twitter feed . How did your vocabulary skills stack up? If your quiz score was disappointing, don't despair – Garner offers his favorite vocabulary-building tip in the article. He recommends jotting down unfamiliar words as you encounter them, and then consulting a dictionary once you have amassed a good-sized list. (He suggests avoiding the temptation to perform an immediate look-up on a mobile device, as his method improves long-term retention of the definitions.) Fortunately, you have a numbe...

Each year, law firms report some dissatisfaction with the research skills of summer associates and new associates. (For the results of a recent survey, see Partnership and Solutions for Preparing Job-Ready Attorneys , July 2008.) In today's economy, top-notch research skills could give you a competitive edge in the job market. But what if you've already forgotten everything you learned in LARW? Research Refreshers to the rescue! This two-week, 10-class workshop series will review the building blocks of legal research and also demystify some advanced topics which are commonly encountered in real-world legal practice. All classes will take place in the Fite Room (Level 2 of the library) from 12:15-1:15 p.m. on the following days: Mon 3/23 : "You Want Me to Research What?! ?": Getting Background & Keeping Current Tues 3/24 : Statutes & Legislative History Wed 3/25 : Cases & Court Documents Thu 3/26 : Regulations & Administrative Law Materials Fri 3/27 ...

As first-year students work diligently on their appellate briefs this semester, they will undoubtedly discover that good legal writing involves more than canny research and sharp analysis. There’s also some technical wizardry involved in crafting the perfect court filing. Court rules (see research guide ) usually provide detailed formatting requirements for court filings, from word limit to margin size to color of the cover sheet. In law practice, failure to conform to these rules can result in the rejection of a filing by the court clerk...but in LARW, failure to conform to the formatting specifications can result in the entirely preventable loss of precious grade points. Perhaps the most difficult formatting issue that 1Ls encounter involves generating tables of contents and tables of authorities, which were most likely not required in undergraduate writing projects. Fortunately, there’s no need to create these tables from scratch—most word-processing programs can generate these tabl...

During the appellate brief writing and cite-checking season, two of our most frequent questions at the Reference Desk are: which year to use when citing to a federal statute, and when it is appropriate to cite to an unofficial code (U.S.C.A. or U.S.C.S.) instead of the official United States Code (U.S.C.). Bluebook Rule 12.3 indicates a preference for the official code “whenever possible.” However, the 6-year gap between U.S.C. compilations can create problems when citing to more recent amendments or enactments, if they do not yet appear in the Code volumes or the annual supplements. In those cases, Rule 12.2.1 advises researchers to cite to an unofficial code until the next edition of the U.S. Code is published. Although the last version of the official Code is the “2000 edition”, the lengthy compilation and publication process meant that the actual volumes did not land in libraries until 2002. The new “2006 edition” has experienced similar delays, but is now beginning to a...

Love it or hate it, the Bluebook is the preferred system of legal citation both at Duke Law and in most jurisdictions. Before the editors of the Bluebook prepare the 19th edition (due summer 2010) for publication, though, they're seeking input from users. Sound off on improvement ideas in their survey: http://www.legalbluebook.com/survey . Surveys must be received by June 30, 2008. 10 survey responses will be selected at random to receive a free copy of the Nineteenth Edition as well as a one-year subscription to The Bluebook Online ( http://www.legalbluebook.com )!

If you missed any of the seven "Research Refresher" classes which the Law Library offered earlier this month, you can still get up to speed on legal research topics before your summer job begins. The presentation slides from each refresher have been posted to http://www.law.duke.edu/lib/workshops/ . The classes included a review of print and electronic research strategies for the following topics: Cases & court documents Regulations & administrative law materials Statutes & legislative history Getting background and keeping current Free & low-cost legal research Putting it all together (taking an assignment from start to finish) Business law boot camp Presentations are available in PPT and PDF formats.

The Law Library's annual Research Refresher brown-bag series will begin on Monday, March 31! Bring your lunch to Room 4172 from 12:15-1:15 on the following dates to review everything you've forgotten from LARW, and learn new ways to impress your bosses this summer. As an added bonus, dessert and drinks will be provided. Monday 3/31 : Cases & Court Documents (Lauren Collins) Tuesday 4/1: Regulations & Administrative Materials (Melanie Dunshee) Friday 4/4 : Statutes & Legislative History (Jennifer Behrens) Monday 4/7 : “You Want Me to Research WHAT ?!”: Getting Background & Keeping Current (Jennifer Behrens) Tuesday 4/8 : Life After Rewards Points: Free & Cheap Legal Research (Jennifer Behrens) Thursday 4/10 : Putting it All Together: Taking a Work Assignment from Start to Finish (Katherine Topulos) Friday 4/11 : Business Law Boot Camp (Laura Scott; register at http://www.law.duke.edu/edtech/signup/ ) *Note : Business Law Boot Camp is a sp...

Before you head to that summer job, brush up on those research skills at the Law Library's annual Research Refresher brown-bag series! This year's schedule will help you review everything you've forgotten from LARW, and will also introduce some new, practice-oriented research topics in order to help you stand out in the crowd at work. All classes will take place in Room 4172 from 12:15-1:15 p.m .* Dessert and drinks will be provided; attendees are encouraged to bring a lunch. Monday 3/31 : Cases & Court Documents (Lauren Collins) Tuesday 4/1: Regulations & Administrative Materials (Melanie Dunshee) Friday 4/4 : Statutes & Legislative History (Jennifer Behrens) Monday 4/7 : “You Want Me to Research WHAT ?!”: Getting Background & Keeping Current (Jennifer Behrens) Tuesday 4/8 : Life After Rewards Points: Free & Cheap Legal Research (Jennifer Behrens) Thursday 4/10 : Putting it All Together: Taking a Work Assignment from Start to Finish (Kather...

For more than 80 years, The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation has been the leading style manual for law schools. Now, the authors of the Bluebook (which include the law review associations at Columbia, Harvard, Yale, and the University of Pennsylvania) have unveiled The Bluebook Online ( http://www.legalbluebook.com/Public/Tour.aspx ) , a service which allows subscribers to read, search and annotate the current edition of the Bluebook from the Web. Prices start at $25 for a one-year subscription; students can purchase up to a 3-year subscription at http://www.legalbluebook.com/Purchase/Products.aspx . The Law Library is currently investigating ways to incorporate The Bluebook Online into its database subscriptions. If you have tried The Bluebook Online, or have comments after viewing the video tours at http://www.legalbluebook.com/Public/Tour.aspx , please give us your feedback. (Print devotees need not worry - the old-fashioned paper Bluebook isn't going away anytime ...