Cecily Zamora
Case law, also known as precedent or common law, is the body of prior judicial decisions that guide judges in their decision-making. There are several ways to find case law for free. For example, FindLaw offers a database of case law from the U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, as well as several state supreme courts. Other sources include Google Scholar, which provides a How Cited feature to find related cases, and Justia, which includes state constitutions, cases, and links to legislative resources.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Websites | FindLaw, Justia, Google Scholar, LII Supreme Court Bulletin Journal, Oyez, SCOTUSBlog, CourtListener, RECAP The Law, Library of Congress Catalog, Antonin Scalia Law School |
| Features | U.S. Supreme Court Opinions, U.S. Federal Appellate Court Opinions, U.S. State Supreme, Appellate and Trial Court Opinions, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, U.S. Tax Court, U.S. Court of International Trade, U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, U.S. District Court Case Records, U.S. Patents, European Patent Office and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Patents, "How Cited" feature, U.S. State Constitutions, Cases, and Links to Legislative Resources, Collection of State Legal Materials, Links to State Administrative Registers, Codes, and Manuals, Links for State Legislative Materials, Links to State Legislative Sites, Links to Primary Legal Materials, Databases, Statistics, and International Organisations, U.S. Court of Appeals Oral Arguments, Scanned Briefs, Oral Argument Audio, Links to Agency-Specific Rules, Regulations, Decisions, and Other Resources |
| Subscription Options | Free, Monthly, Annual, One-Time App Purchase, In-app Purchases |
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What You'll Learn
Using Google Scholar
Google Scholar is a free online research database tool that can be used to find case law from every state appellate court and every federal court in the US. It includes US Supreme Court opinions since 1791, US federal district, appellate, tax, and bankruptcy courts since 1923, and state appellate and supreme court cases since the 1950s.
To get started, go to https://scholar.google.com/ and select the "Case law" radio button. You can then choose to search by jurisdiction by clicking "Select courts" and then placing a checkmark next to the courts you wish to search. You can also search for a specific case by entering a citation or case name in the search box. Alternatively, you can conduct a keyword search of the full text of case opinions.
Google Scholar also includes a How Cited feature, which lists other cases in the Google Scholar database that either cite your chosen case. This feature can be useful for understanding how your chosen case has been treated by other courts, but it is not considered as authoritative as citators produced by other publishers or subscription resources.
It is important to note that Google Scholar is limited to case law and does not include statutes or regulations. While it can be a useful tool for finding case law for free, it may not be as comprehensive as other paid legal research databases.
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FindLaw
In addition to its comprehensive legal database, FindLaw offers various other services. It provides a directory of lawyers and law firms, marketing solutions for attorneys, and website design and content services. FindLaw also debuted do-it-yourself estate planning and business formation services in 2022, allowing users to create simple estate plans and form simple business entities.
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Justia
In addition to case law, Justia provides a blawg search feature, allowing users to find blogs on numerous legal topics. Justia's website is protected by reCAPTCHA, and users are subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
To find case law on Justia, users can browse by volume or year. For example, to access U.S. Supreme Court cases from 1959 to the present, one would select "Laws: Cases & Codes" and then browse within the specified volume or year range. Alternatively, users can search by keyword, topic, author, or party.
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LII Supreme Court Bulletin Journal
The LII Supreme Court Bulletin, an online journal by the Cornell Legal Information Institute, covers cases currently before the US Supreme Court. The Bulletin includes case opinions and a blog covering recent Supreme Court events. It also provides concise, timely analyses of significant decisions by the New York Court of Appeals.
The Bulletin is written by student editors who prepare decision summaries that are disseminated via email. These summaries are also added to the indexed hypertext material on the LII website. Each summary links to the full text of the underlying decision and, where possible, to cited material.
To subscribe to the LII Bulletin, you can use the LII web interface or send an email to join-liibulletin [at] liibulletin.law.cornell.edu. A confirmation email must be returned before the subscription takes effect. Subscribers receive an email bulletin containing summaries of all decisions of the United States Supreme Court.
The LII Supreme Court Bulletin is a free resource that provides valuable insights into the work of the US Supreme Court and its ongoing cases. It is a useful tool for anyone interested in staying informed about the Court's activities and the legal concepts addressed by its cases.
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Free legal research sites
There are several free legal research sites that provide access to case law, regulations, and statutes. These sites can be used to find information on US laws, international laws, and foreign laws. While some sites provide free access to case law, others offer additional resources such as legal blogs, webinars, and legal news. Here are some notable free legal research sites:
- FindLaw: This site offers free access to state and federal court opinions, case law, case summaries, statutes, and legal news. It also provides a wealth of resources for both state and federal courts, including decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court and federal courts of appeals.
- Legal Information Institute (LII): LII is a global resource with over 46 associations worldwide. It offers open access to case laws, regulations, and statutes specific to different countries. The LII at Cornell Law School provides access to most US laws for free, along with legal materials like Wex, a community-built legal dictionary and encyclopedia.
- Justia: Justia provides free law and legal information for lawyers, students, businesses, and the public. It covers US laws, cases, codes, state laws, and US courts. It also offers free webinars and virtual CLE courses for lawyers.
- CourtListener: Sponsored by the Non-Profit Free Law Project, CourtListener features millions of legal opinions from federal and state courts. The data is free to access, updated daily, and can be searched by case name, topic, or citation.
- Fastcase: As one of the largest online law libraries, Fastcase provides access to case law, statutes, regulations, constitutions, court rules, and law review articles. While Fastcase offers paid desktop plans, its mobile app is free and allows users to access its comprehensive legal research database on the go.
- Casetext: Casetext provides AI assistance for legal research and enables sophisticated queries, including term proximity and keyword boosting. It is now part of Thomson Reuters' CoCounsel.
- Law Library of Congress: This site offers a Guide to Law Online, which includes links to resources on U.S., foreign, and international law. It also provides access to court websites.
While these free legal research sites provide valuable information, it is important to note that they may have limitations compared to premium legal databases. Some of these sites may not offer editorial enhancements or finding aids that legal researchers are accustomed to. Therefore, it is recommended to understand the scope and limitations of each site before relying solely on them for legal research.
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Frequently asked questions
There are several online resources that provide access to case law for free. These include:
- FindLaw
- Google Scholar
- Justia
- Library of Congress
- LII
- Oyez
- SCOTUSBlog
FindLaw offers a free database of case law from the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, and several state supreme courts. This includes U.S. Supreme Court opinions, U.S. Federal Appellate Court opinions, and U.S. State Supreme, Appellate, and Trial Court opinions.
Case law, also known as precedent or common law, is the body of prior judicial decisions used by judges to decide on similar issues in the future.
Google Scholar provides access to U.S. Supreme Court opinions, U.S. Federal District, Appellate, Tax, and Bankruptcy Court opinions, and U.S. State Appellate and Supreme Court opinions. Google Scholar also features a "How Cited" tool, which lists other cases that are related to your case.
Justia offers U.S. State constitutions, cases, and links to legislative resources.
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