Cecily Zamora
Conduct legal research is the process of identifying and finding the laws, statutes, regulations, and court opinions that apply to a specific case. While libraries are a traditional source of legal research, the internet has made a wealth of information available for free online. There are numerous free online resources for conducting legal research, including Google Scholar, which provides access to state supreme court and appellate decisions, and FindLaw, which offers a database of case law from the U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal. Other resources include the New York Court of Appeals Public Access and Search System, which provides free access to Court of Appeals materials for cases filed after January 1, 2013, and the Free Law Project, which offers a searchable database of decisions from federal and state courts. These resources can be invaluable for attorneys, law students, and individuals seeking legal guidance.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Search engines | Google, Bing |
| Online research services | Westlaw, Bloomberg Law, Lexis, Google Scholar |
| Online encyclopedias | Zimmerman's Research Guide (LexisNexis) |
| Online archives | RECAP, PACER |
| Free legal research sites | FindLaw, Yale Law Library, World Legal Information Institute, ABA Legal Technology Resource Center/Law Technology Today, Article Finder, Law Review Commons, Free Law Project, Justia, LII, National Association of Secretaries of State |
| Free access for members | Illinois State Bar Association (vLex Fastcase legal research platform), Virginia Bar (Antonin Scalia Law School) |
| Free mobile app | Authority Check |
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What You'll Learn
Free online case law databases
There are several free online databases that provide access to case law and legal research tools. These include:
FindLaw
FindLaw offers a free collection of state and federal court opinions, state laws, and the United States Code. It includes decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court, federal courts of appeals, and several state supreme courts. FindLaw also provides informational articles to help users understand their legal options and find an attorney if needed.
CourtListener
CourtListener is a non-profit, free legal research website containing millions of legal opinions from federal and state courts. It is sponsored by the Free Law Project, which seeks to provide free access to primary legal materials. CourtListener allows lawyers, journalists, academics, and the public to research cases, stay up-to-date with developing case law, and perform in-depth analysis using raw data.
RECAP
RECAP is an online archive and free extension for Firefox and Chrome that improves the experience of using PACER, the electronic public access system for U.S. Federal District and Bankruptcy Courts. The archive contains millions of searchable PACER documents, allowing for comprehensive research within a case, topic, or jurisdiction.
New York Court of Appeals Public Access and Search System
This system provides free access to Court of Appeals materials for cases pending on or filed after January 1, 2013. It includes published decisions of the Court of Appeals, Appellate Division, and lower courts, as well as court calendars, rules, forms, and links to legal resources.
Illinois State Bar Association - vLex Fastcase
The Illinois State Bar Association provides its members with free access to the vLex Fastcase legal research platform. This platform includes access to courts and legal resources at the state, federal, and Illinois-specific levels.
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Free case law search tools
There are several free case law search tools available online. Here are some options to consider:
CourtListener
CourtListener is a non-profit initiative of the Free Law Project. It offers free access to case law, PACER documents, oral arguments, and more. The website is updated automatically with the latest court documents, ensuring users have access to current information.
FindLaw
FindLaw provides free access to state and federal court opinions, case summaries, state laws, and the United States Code. It also features thousands of informational articles to help users understand their legal options and find an attorney if needed.
Justia
Justia offers an extensive, free database for researching case law, codes, statutes, regulations, and articles related to federal and state cases. Users can also subscribe to free newsletters to receive daily or weekly summaries of opinions from federal appellate courts and state supreme courts.
Google Scholar Case Law
While not specifically tailored to legal research, Google Scholar allows users to search and access scholarly literature, including legal documents like patents, legal opinions, legal journals, and articles.
GovInfo
GovInfo, as identified by the American Bar Association (ABA), offers free virtual access to congressional reports, official federal government publications, public laws, congressional records, hearings, and more.
These tools can provide valuable resources for legal research and help users access a wealth of case law information without any cost.
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Free case law resources for US law
There are several free case law resources for US law. The Law Library of Congress: Guide to Law Online provides links to resources on US, foreign, and international law. Zimmerman's Research Guide (LexisNexis) is another online encyclopedia and collection of research guides. Google Scholar is also a great resource, providing state supreme court and appellate decisions from 1950 onwards. You can use the "advanced search" feature to restrict your search to specific state courts.
The New York Court of Appeals Public Access and Search System provides free access to Court of Appeals materials for cases pending on or filed after January 1, 2013. This includes published decisions of the Court of Appeals, Appellate Division, and lower courts, as well as court calendars, rules, forms, and links to bar associations.
FindLaw offers a free collection of state and federal court opinions, state laws, and the United States Code. This includes decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court and federal courts of appeals, as well as several state supreme courts. The Illinois State Bar Association provides its members with free access to the vLex Fastcase legal research platform, which includes the U.S. Supreme Court, Federal Circuit, District, and Bankruptcy Courts, as well as the Supreme and Appellate Courts of Illinois and all other states.
Justia is another useful resource, providing case law, statutes, regulations, articles, opinion summaries, and limited access to Federal District Court dockets. Finally, university law libraries often provide online legal research guides, such as those offered by Emory Law Library, Georgetown Law Library, and Harvard Law Library.
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Free case law resources for state law
There are several free case law resources for state law that can be accessed online. These include:
Free Law Project
The Free Law Project, launched in 2016, offers a searchable database of decisions from federal and state courts. It provides access to all Supreme Court cases, Court of Appeals cases from 1950 onwards, and district court cases from 2004 onwards, as well as some state case law. It also includes a case summaries database with important rulings and decisions for efficient legal research.
FindLaw
FindLaw provides a free collection of state and federal court opinions, state laws, and the United States Code. It covers decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court and federal courts of appeals, as well as several state supreme courts. FindLaw also features thousands of informational articles to help users understand their legal options and find attorneys in their area.
New York Court of Appeals Public Access and Search System
This platform provides free access to Court of Appeals materials for cases pending on or filed after January 1, 2013. It includes published decisions of the Court of Appeals, Appellate Division, and lower courts, as well as court calendars, rules, forms, and links to bar associations and a directory of New York State attorneys.
Illinois State Bar Association
The Illinois State Bar Association offers its members free access to the vLex Fastcase legal research platform. This platform includes access to the U.S. Supreme Court, Federal Circuit, District, and Bankruptcy Courts, as well as the Supreme and Appellate Courts of Illinois and all other states. It also covers statutes, regulations, constitutions, and court rules for Illinois, other states, and the federal government.
Justia: U.S. States
Justia provides access to state constitutions, cases, and links to legislative resources. However, coverage varies by state.
Zimmerman's Research Guide (LexisNexis)
Zimmerman's Research Guide is an online encyclopedia and collection of research guides offering access to federal and state cases, statutes, regulations, and rules with annotated codified law. While it provides enhanced searching for primary legal materials, it has fewer search features than premium legal databases.
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Free case law resources for international law
There are several free case law resources for international law. The World Legal Information Institute (WorldLII) is a free, independent, and non-profit global legal research facility. This database contains judicial decisions from several countries, including Hong Kong, Pacific Islands, Africa, India, and the Middle East. The RefLex citator cross-links material within CanLII, a free database for Canadian legal materials, and provides citations to sources for materials cited but not available in CanLII. The International Judicial Monitor, International Judicial Academy, with the assistance of the American Society of International Law, and the International Tribunals Web Archive, Library of Congress, are other resources that can be used.
The UN's working group website contains conventions, model laws, contractual texts, notes, and recommendations, and secondary resources on the subject area. The United Nations Commission on Trade Law hosts a database of court decisions and arbitral awards relating to the Conventions and Model Laws. Global-Regulation is a database containing over 1.55 million laws from around the world, with over 700,000 translated into English. The website for the International Criminal Court provides access to information about the court's structure and cases heard by the court.
CommonLII provides free access to the legal materials of 59 Commonwealth and common law jurisdictions. The New York Court of Appeals Public Access and Search System provides free access to Court of Appeals materials for cases pending on or filed after January 1, 2013. The Illinois State Bar Association provides its members with free access to the vLex Fastcase legal research platform, which includes the U.S. Supreme Court, Federal Circuit, District, and Bankruptcy Courts, the Supreme and Appellate Courts of Illinois, and all other states.
Westlaw provides access to case law from the United States from 1658 and selected international jurisdictions. HeinOnline contains international law with a focus on the United States.
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Frequently asked questions
Some free online resources for researching case law include Google Scholar, which provides state supreme court and appellate decisions from 1950 onwards, and FindLaw, which 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.
Zimmerman's Research Guide (LexisNexis) is an online encyclopedia and collection of research guides. While it offers fewer search features than premium legal databases, it provides access to federal and state cases, statutes, regulations, and rules with annotated codified law and free customer support. RECAP is another free tool, which is an online archive and Firefox and Chrome extension that improves the experience of using PACER, the electronic public access system for U.S. Federal District and Bankruptcy Courts.
It's important to focus on the relevant jurisdiction, whether federal or state law, and the specific state if it is state law. While free search engines like Google or Bing can be a starting point, more comprehensive online research services designed for legal research, such as Westlaw, are often needed to ensure thoroughness.
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