Legal Research and Writing - Law Journals

Legal Research and Writing: Ted Tjaden

Law-Related Journals

Law journals are also an excellent resource for legal research. Journal articles often deal with current legal issues and usually provide detailed analysis.

The best way to find journals is to use journal indexes, found in print at major law libraries and also available by subscription on the following databases:

Index to Canadian Legal Literature (LexisNexis Quicklaw)

Index to Canadian Legal Literature (Westlaw Canada)

For a list of journals indexed in the Index to Canadian Legal Literature, click here.

As of June 2010, the Centre d'accès à l'information juridique (CAIJ) has made the Scott Index to Canadian Legal Periodicals freely available online (1998 to date).

There are also online journal indexes available for other regions, by subscription:

Index to Legal Periodicals (Westlaw Canada) (USA and other countries)

LegalTrac (USA and other countries)

Legal Resource Index (Westlaw Canada) (USA and other countries)

Current Index to Legal Periodicals (Westlaw Canada) (USA and other countries)

Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals (Westlaw Canada)

Index to Periodicals Related to Law (HeinOnline) (USA)

For free searches that partially "imitate" searches in the foregoing subscription-based online journal indexes, try:

Google Scholar Advanced which will search, among other things, law-related articles indexed on HeinOnline and JSTOR (although when you click on a search result, you are then given an option to purchase the article if you don't otherwise have a subscription)

My Custom Google search of Canadian Law Firms, Law Blogs and Journal Articles (and click on the "Journals" filter on the search results screen). Unfortunately, there is limited free law journal content available online and this search will not be very thorough.

The following subscription databases are best for full-text law journal articles:

Hein Online

LexisNexis Quicklaw

Westlaw Canada

Canada Law Book

Tip: If you do not have access to HeinOnline, LexisNexis Quicklaw, Westlaw Canada or Canada Law Book, many public libraries provide online access to digital databases using the barcode on your library code. Some of these databases may include law-related journals.

Legal Research and Writing:
Third Edition

by Ted Tjaden

Softcover 422 pgs.
Published: June 2010
ISBN-13: 9781552211762

Purchase here

Last updated: January 21, 2012 | Legal / Terms of Use | Ted Tjaden © 2010-2012