| 1. Where does law come from?
Law actually has several sources. In the U.S. the primary
sourcess are Legislation and Court-created, or Precedents.
Legislation includes the actual laws passed by Congress,
State Legislatures, County and City Governments; and the Regulations created
by various agencies who have been delgated the job of creating specific rules.
Legislation is contained in "Codes," (U.S. Code, Revised Code of Washington)
which are organized by numbers representing volumes, chapters and
subsections. These are usually referred to by abbreviations (e.g., 42
U.S.C. A. 1021, meaning title 42 section 1021, United States Code Annotated).
Regulations are generally referred to as "Administrative " or "Regulatory
Codes" (e.g. C.F.R. meaning Code of Federal Regulations).
2. What Law Applies?
Law applies jurisdictionally and
hierarchially. That means that law from one jurisdition doesn't
necessarily apply to another jurisdiction; and the higher law controls
the lower law.
Federal Law applies everywhere, but only to
those issues the Congress has elected to legislate. State and local
law apply geographically.
Priority within a jurisdiction is the Legislature
on top, then the Supreme Court, then the lower courts. Sometimes courts
rule that legislation is unconstitutional or improper.
3. How does Legal Reasoning work?
Legal decisions are driven by facts and by
authority. Facts differ in each case. Authority is written law. Mandatory
authority is law from your jurisdiction, from a higher court (or the
legislature). Persuasive authority is any authority that is not mandatory.
Now the art of law is arguing why the authority applies
to the unique facts of your case. You have to pay attention to
the logic of the cases. Remember that the court will be interested both in
procedure and substance. Often procedure -- the rules
for how and when issues may be presented to the court -- will be more
important than substantive law. Remember, there is no truth: there is only
evidence. So pay attention not only to what the law is, but also how
you get the facts and tthe legal issues in front of a court. That may be
a daunting task.
One final point: law is dynamic, and may change
dramatically in a short time. Be sure to follow up the most recent authority
possible.
4. How do I actually find law?
Law books are organized and indexed using a long-developed
system that makes no sense at all. Net legal research uses key words. The
easiest way for a layman to research law is to start with general sources
(law reviews, legal encyclopedias) to determine keywords, then pursue
searches limited to your specific jurisdiction.
This is a tremendously condensed view of legal research.
If you try it, take your time, ask your law librarian for help, and goood
luck.
How do you actually do legal research? Computerized or manual, legal research
proceeds from the identification of key words that describe your legal issue.
Figuring out the key words is half the battle; but if you are not experienced
in law, it could be really tough. Different courts and legislatures tend
to use different terms for the same things -- or different things for the
same terms! I recommend starting with a Legal Encyclopedia like Am Jur or
CJS. These will give a generaldiscussion of the law, and help you narrow
your search terms. However, these sources do not give you accurate, up to
date law for your jurisdiction.
The next step you have to follow is to go to the local statute source --
the Code for your area --and to the local Court Decisions (called Reporters).
Statutes have key word indexes, and case law is indexed via a set of books
called digests. These organize the law by keywords, but the actual cases
and statutes will be organized by volume and page number, or by section and
paragraph number.
Example: Smith v. Jones, 42 Wn.2d 345, 650 P.2d 390 (1985) means the 1985
decision of Smith, plaintiff, vs. Jones, defendant, is located in volume
42 p. 345 of the Washington (2nd series) Reporter; and at volume 650 p. 390
of the Pacific (2nd series) Reporter. These are the State and Regional Reporters.
A statute might look like RCW 6.42.010: that meanstitle 6, section 42, subsection
10.
Example: can they build a steel plant in my neighborhood? Start with the
encylopedias. Look under the obvious (Steel; plants) and anything that seems
related (land, neighborhoods, building regulation). Hopefully this will key
you to the term "Zoning," which is where you must then narrow your search
when you get into your local law.
The final step after finding law on your subject is to make sure it is up
to date: ask a law librarian to show you how to use "Shepards" and the pocket
parts of the various books. |
Van Camp & Deissner Law Offices,
1707 W. Broadway Ave., Spokane, WA 99201