Wyoming Legal Research

In Wyoming, there are only limited state-specific treatises. As a low-population state, case law is not extensive, and researchers have expressed surprise at the brevity of the state statutes. This text covers the basic legal research resources for primary and secondary law dealing with Wyoming and federal jurisdictions. It covers print and online free and commercial legal databases and offers useful search tips for the more complicated materials.

The text begins with a brief introduction to the sources of the law and the initial stages of research, including determining the call of the question, identifying keywords, and assessing the most appropriate starting point. Next it explains how to read a legal citation and how to retrieve the content in popular legal databases. Coverage continues in secondary sources and then in official and unofficial primary sources for Wyoming cases, statutes and codes, court rules, and legislative and administrative materials. In each chapter dealing with primary law, explanations of related federal resources in print and online are included.

While the text is intended for the uninitiated legal researcher, tips for electronic searching and database coverage, and discussions of legislative materials, administrative resources, attorney general opinions, slip opinions, and current awareness tools make this a useful book for any legal practitioner using Wyoming resources.

This book is part of the Legal Research Series, edited by Suzanne E. Rowe, Director of Legal Research and Writing, University of Oregon School of Law.