Legal Research Flashcards
Primary Authority includes:
Constitution
Statutes
Administration Regulations
Court Decisions (U.S. District, Court of Appeals, Supreme Courts)
Local Ordinances
Secondary Authority includes:
Legal Dictionaries
Legal Encyclopedias
Restatements of the Law
Periodicals
Law Review Articles
Form Books
Treatises
Annotations
Jury Instructions
Practice Guide Series
Attorneys General Opinions
TAM - Tennessee Attorney Memo
Primary Authority is always Mandatory
(True or False)
False:
Primary Authority can be Persuasive in other jurisdictions.
Secondary Authority is never mandatory.
(True/False)
True
Two MAIN Categories of Law:
Statutes/Enacted Law
Case Law/Common Law
Mandatory Authority ______ be followed.
MUST
Persuasive Authority _____ be followed.
MAY
Two Court Systems:
Federal
State
Three levels of Federal Court System:
Trial Courts - U.S. District Court
Court of Appeals
U.S. Supreme Court
What is an earlier Court decision that applies to govern or guide a subsequent court in its determination of an identical or similar issue based on identical or similar facts?
Precedent
What is a basic principle that requires a court to follow a previous decision of that court or a higher court when the court decision involves similar issues and facts?
Stare decisis
What cases are binding on all courts in the United States?
United States Supreme Court Cases.
What is the separation of powers between federal and state governments?
Federalism
Proper names for Courts within our local Federal Court System:
Trial Court - United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Northern Division
Court of Appeals - United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
Supreme Court - United States Supreme Court
Proper names for Courts within our local State Court System (including trial court of general jurisdiction in Knox County with jurisdiction of civil cases over $25
Trial Court - Circuit Court of Tennessee for the Sixth Judicial District at Knoxville
Court of Appeals - Tennessee Court of Appeals
Supreme Court - Supreme Court of Tennessee
What principle means that federal law is supreme?
Supremacy Clause
What is the extent of Court’s authority to hear and resolve specific disputes?
Jurisdiction
What is the court’s jurisdiction over persons by geographical area (i.e. - boundaries of the state or matters that have some connection with the state)?
Personal Jurisdiction
What is the court’s jurisdiction over subject matter by type of case?
Subject Matter Jurisdiction
If more than one Court has the authority to hear cases of the same subject matter, it’s called:
Concurrent Jurisdiction
The process of sending a case from state court to federal court:
Removal
True or False:
A plaintiff can remove a case from state to federal court.
False
If a plaintiff disagrees with a case being removed from state court to federal court, they can ask the court to _________ the case.
Remand
The two types of cases that can be heard in federal court are:
- Federal Question cases
and - Diversity of Citizenship cases
What is a federal question case?
A case based on a violation of federal law (may be the U.S. Constitution or a statute).
Is there a requirement for the amount of damages in a Federal Question case?
No
What are the two requirements of a Diversity of Citizenship case?
- Claims involving two or more citizens of different states
and - Amount in controversy exceeds $75,000
Where is an individual domiciled?
Where they 1) reside and 2) intend to remain there indefinitely
Where is a corporation domiciled?
1) State where incorporated
and
2) State where principal place of business located
What must be filed to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review a case?
Writ of Certiorari
Enacted Law includes:
All bodies of law adopted by the people or legislative bodies:
Constitutions
Statutes
Ordinances
Regulations
Statutes may also be called:
Enacted Law
Codes
Acts
Ordinances (if local)
What sets forth the fundamental law for a nation or a state?
Constitution
What is a law or an act of a legislature?
Statute
Case law is also called:
Common Law
What does IRAC stand for?
Issue
Rule
Analysis
Conclusion
What is an issue?
The legal question.
The process of determining how the law applies to a problem:
Legal Analysis
What are the two main sources for computer assisted legal research?
Westlaw
Lexis/Nexis
What type of legal research method uses terms and connectors?
Boolean searching
How do you validate or update legal research?
Shepard’s
KeyCite
Boolean root expander to find word variations with different endings
!
(exclamation point)
Boolean symbol which finds single character variations
(i.e. - woman/women)
*
(asterisk)
Boolean search command to find multiple words within the same sentence
/s
Boolean search command to find multiple words within the same paragraph
/p
Boolean search command to find a specific phrase
” “
(put specific phrase within quotes)
What does a Constitution do?
Sets forth the fundamental law for a nation or a state.
What is a Statute?
A law or an act of a legislature declaring
What is the official government publication for Federal Statutes?
U.S.C. - United States Code
What does U.S.C.A. state for?
United States Code Annotated
What does U.S.C.S. state for?
United States Code Service
Initial publication of a federal statute.
Slip Law
Federal Statutes published chronologically at the end of a congressional session.
Statutes at Large
Federal statutes (or codes) are printed in what three publications?
U.S.C.
U.S.C.A.
U.S.C.S
How are code books updated?
pocket parts
How can you tell if a statute applies to a situation?
Identify the required elements of the statute
Tennessee statutes are found in:
Tennessee Code Annotated
How is Tennessee Code Annotated cited?
Tenn. Code Ann.
Initial publication of state statutes.
Session Laws
The first official source in which federal regulations appear - as they become final - chronologically.
Federal Register
(Fed. Reg.)
The second official source where federal regulations appear - annual publication - arranged by subject.
Code of Federal Regulations
(C.F.R.)
Are all cases published?
NO.
What is the official reporter for the U.S. Supreme Court?
United States Reports (U.S.)
Where is case law published?
Reporters
What are the two unofficial reporters for the U.S. Supreme Court?
Supreme Court Reporter (S. Ct.)
United States Supreme Court Reports, Lawyer’s Edition (L. Ed.)
Where are cases from the United States Court of Appeals published?
Federal Reporter (F., F.2d, F.3d)
Where are cases from the United States District Courts published?
Federal Supplement (F. Supp, F. Supp. 2d)
Does Tennessee have an official reporter?
NO
Where are Tennessee state cases published?
South Western Reporter (S.W., S.W.2d, S.W.3d)
What are the components of a case opinion?
Facts
Judicial History
Issues
Rules
Analysis
Decision
How many Federal Judicial Circuits are there?
13
How many regional reporters are there in the National Reporter System?
7
Are state trial-level decisions reported in the National Reporter System?
NO
What is the first printing of an opinion?
Slip opinion
What is an index of cases?
Digest
What is an opinion?
Court’s written decision.
Publishes selected appellate court decisions, including objective essays relating to legal issues.
American Law Reports (A.L.R.)
Two main legal encyclopedias?
C.J.S. (Corpus Juris Secundum)
Am. Jur. 2d (American Jurisprudence Second)
Categories of Legal Periodicals:
Law school publications
Bar association publications
Legal newspapers and newsletters
Text written by legal scholars that focuses on one topic of law:
Treatise
Publications of the American Law Institute designed to restate legal doctrine in a clear and simple manner:
Restatements
One-volume legal treatise, written primarily for law students, that summarize and explain the law in specific area.
Hornbook
Where do Administrative Rules and Regulations come from?
They are enacted by federal agencies.
What two functions do administrative agencies perform?
They act as a legislature by implementing rules and regulations
