Legal Research Guide

The ninth edition incorporates modern approaches to legal research through electronic and AI sources while continuing the rich tradition of previous editions as a practical guide to the research process and the checklist approach. The book provides a unique step-by-step guide to the basic electronic, Internet, hard copy, and AI research processes and advises which would be the most efficient method for resolving a given legal research issue. While this was the first book to use the checklist and step-by-step approach to legal research, it is also the first to incorporate a new stand-alone overview chapter on AI research and to integrate AI applications throughout every chapter. While AI is still in its infancy as a legal research tool, its accuracy and utility are expected to improve rapidly. For now, the text highlights appropriate uses of AI and cautions readers about existing limitations.

To underscore the common patterns in legal research, as well as to simplify each research process, checklists appear throughout the text and are separately indexed to allow the reader instant access to particular research procedures. Sample problems are in each chapter to illustrate each process, and the appendix has additional sample problems. Some sample problems are used in more than one chapter to demonstrate the interrelationships between research procedures.

Legal Research Guide: Patterns and Practice is popular with both law students, attorneys, and other researchers. Its content is appropriate for both the first-year legal research course and advanced research courses.