Legal Research 101: Secondary Authority

Legal Research 101: Secondary Authority

Finding the "law" (i.e. cases, statutes, constitutions, regulations) related to your case is one thing.  I mean, anyone can find free statutes online on any state website.  Google Scholar is full of case law from most every jurisdiction in the United States.  The problem that people run into is knowing how to use the law they've found and knowing in what context the law might be applied in their case. 

This is where secondary authorities come in.  Secondary Authorities, are those resources that help people understand the law and how it might be applied.  Secondary Authorities are "secondary" because they are not weighted as heavily as primary authorities (i.e. they are not the law and should not be cited in legal documents).  The reason people even use secondary authorities is to help provide context for the law (i.e. cases, codes, regulations) they've found.  They tell you how the law can be used in your case just by moving the facts around. 

In this program, students will be exposed to a variety of secondary authorities.  Students will also learn how to navigate these secondary authorities, and why they might be useful to you and in what context they might be useful. Designed as a beginning course, it is also helpful for the seasoned litigant as a refresher course to help jiggle latent brain cells offering suggestions on other resources that can be useful.

Providing context in a confusing world

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What you will learn

• Students will learn what is and how to navigate secondary authorities.
• Students will be able to distinguish between primary and secondary authorities.

Rating: 4

Level: Beginner Level

Duration: 1.5 hours

Instructor: Bret Christensen