Legal Encyclopedias

Definition

Legal encyclopedias are comprehensive reference works that provide an overview of legal principles and topics, serving as valuable secondary sources of law. They summarize the law in various areas, helping researchers quickly grasp legal concepts and find citations to relevant primary sources. Legal encyclopedias typically include entries written by experts, often containing footnotes and citations that guide users to case law, statutes, and other authoritative resources.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. Legal encyclopedias can cover a broad range of topics, including constitutional law, criminal law, family law, and more, making them useful across various legal disciplines.
2. Two prominent examples of legal encyclopedias in the United States are 'American Jurisprudence' (AmJur) and 'Corpus Juris Secundum' (CJS), which provide extensive coverage of U.S. law.
3. Entries in legal encyclopedias are often organized alphabetically, allowing users to find information quickly without needing deep knowledge of specific legal terminology.
4. Legal encyclopedias are frequently updated to reflect changes in the law, making them reliable tools for understanding current legal standards and practices.
5. They serve as a starting point for legal research by providing summaries of laws and leading researchers to more detailed sources like statutes and court opinions.

Review Questions

• How do legal encyclopedias assist researchers in navigating complex legal topics?
  • Legal encyclopedias assist researchers by providing concise summaries of various legal principles and topics, which can simplify complex issues into understandable terms. They serve as a reliable starting point for legal research, offering guidance on relevant laws and citing primary sources like statutes and case law. By consolidating information in an organized manner, these encyclopedias enable users to quickly locate pertinent information without needing extensive background knowledge.
• Discuss the importance of citations found in legal encyclopedias for effective legal research.
  • Citations found in legal encyclopedias are crucial for effective legal research as they direct users to authoritative primary sources that back up the information presented. These references allow researchers to verify the accuracy of the summaries and explore the underlying laws in greater detail. Properly utilizing these citations enhances the credibility of legal arguments and ensures that practitioners are informed about relevant case law and statutory provisions.
• Evaluate the role of legal encyclopedias in shaping the understanding of law within different areas of practice.
  • Legal encyclopedias play a significant role in shaping the understanding of law within various practice areas by providing foundational knowledge that practitioners can build upon. By summarizing complex legal concepts and highlighting key cases and statutes, they help lawyers, students, and researchers quickly grasp essential information. Additionally, their ongoing updates ensure that users remain aware of current trends and changes in the law, which is vital for effective representation and informed decision-making in diverse legal fields.

Related terms

Secondary Sources: Materials that explain, analyze, or interpret the law, such as treatises, legal encyclopedias, and law review articles.

Citations: References to legal documents, such as statutes and case law, used to support legal arguments and research.

Legal Research: The process of identifying and retrieving information necessary to support legal decision-making or arguments.