Legal History Seminar: Leading Maryland Cases: 20th Century Baltimore

You may contact Bill Sleeman, the course liaison, for research-related questions.

Getting Started Historical Research Legal Research

Getting Started

As in all projects, unless you are already knowledgeable about the topic area, it is best to start with introductory resources and then to consult more focused works; moving from secondary to primary resources.

Articles and books can provide you with an overview of your topic and help you think of search terms that you might not have thought of otherwise. They will also cite primary authorities such as statutes and case law. You can then use the primary sources cited in the secondary sources as a jumping off point to find other primary sources.

  • Shepardize or KeyCite them to see what other sources have cited them;
  • Read cases to see what other sources they cite;
  • On Westlaw or in West Digests, look up the topics and key numbers in the cases you've already read to find other cases that address the same issues;
  • On Lexis, use "More Like This" to find other sources with wording or citation patterns similar to the document you started with;
  • Read annotations to statutes to find cross references to cases that have analyzed them or regulations that have been issued under their authority.

Journals and Law Reviews

The two main indexes to law journals are LegalTrac and Index to Legal Periodicals & Books (which includes books as well). These indexes include references to many journals not included in Westlaw or Lexis databases and in some cases provide access to the full text electronically. Each of these two online indexes has a parallel print version: the Current Law Index (K33 .C87), and the Index to Legal Periodicals (K9 .N32) are shelved near the print journals on level 1. The Index to Legal Periodicals is particularly helpful if you need to find articles published prior to 1980.

Additionally, many journals not subscribed to directly in a print version are available in electronic form via one of the library's databases. The list below of subscription databases should help you get started in locating these resources.

Most print journals are shelved on level 1 of the library, in alphabetical order by journal title. Many of these titles also have an electronic version. To find out if the library has a particular journal title in electronic format, first check the Full Text Citation Linker (be aware that the Linker does not offer full coverage of all online full text at the library, and requires a Blackboard login, journal title, and year), or ask a librarian for help.

Journals

History Journals

Law Reviews

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Subscription Databases

The databases below will provide access to a variety of primary and secondary sources made available in electronic form.

  • Academic Search Premier. A general academic tool offering indexing and abstracts for more than 4,500 journals, including access to the full text of more than 3,600 journals.
  • BNA's Environment Reporter. Access to one of the leading sources of environmental law and analysis.
  • HeinOnline. Full-text, image-based collection of more than 700 legal periodical titles. Coverage for each journal starts at its inception and continues to the most current volume allowed under contract between Hein and the journal. Hein-On-Line also includes coverage of the Federal Register from 1936 to 1980.
  • LexisNexis. Database of legal and nonlegal information. Requires valid Lexis password.
  • LLMC Digital (Law Library Microform Consortium). This is the digital version of the LLMC microfilm collection, which consists primarily of historic government documents. An excellent resource for federal laws, administrative regulations and administrative decisions.
  • Making of Modern Law. Full-text online archive of historical legal treatises from the United States and Great Britain. The collection covers nearly every aspect of law, encompassing a range of analytical, theoretical, and practical
  • U.S. Law Week/Supreme Court Today (Tracks every Supreme Court petition and case on the docket, from filing to final disposition and highlights important federal and state legal developments, non-decisional and pre-decisional, across specialized fields).
  • Westlaw. Database of legal and nonlegal information. Requires valid Westlaw password.

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Institutional Repository

The E-scholarship Repository provides a stable, perpetual archive for the intellectual output of the faculty of the School of Law. Since its launch in March 2006, over 100 full-text papers by faculty and students have been posted. Use this source for examples of the paper style expected for this course.

See also: Institutional Repositories Offer New Avenues for Publishing Student Scholarship.

Historical and Archival Resources

Historiography

Historiography is the discipline associated with the principals and practice of writing history and conducting historical research using primary resources. The resources below provide an introduction to the process of conducting historical research.

Print

  • Harvard Guide to American History (E178 .F77 1974 )
  • The Modern Researcher (D13 .B334 1977)
  • Not by Facts Alone: Essays on Reading and Writing History (D13 .C585 1989)

Internet

Primary Resources on the Internet

It is impossible to list in one location all of the unique and potentially relevant Internet resources devoted to history. The list below represents only a small selection of the many resources available. If you need additional assistance please contact the library liaison assigned to the course.

Maryland

General

Microforms

Often overlooked microforms provide a valuable body of research material that can help facilitate the historical legal research process. The library holds a number of microform collections that can be used to research legal issues in Maryland. This includes several collections from the archives of the NAACP. All of the NAACP microfilm may be searched by subject in the library catalog. Additional microfilm material includes a complete run of the Baltimore Afro American newspaper, the papers of William Hastie, the Baltimore Sun (1982 - to date), The Daily Record (1888 - to date), Maryland Legislative History files on microfilm, Supreme Court Records and Briefs, and the series Historical Trials on Microfiche.

All microform material is located on the first floor of the Thurgood Marshall Law Library.

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Select Print Resources

Andrews, Matthew Page. Tercentenary History of Maryland. F181.T34

Baltimore City Reports: Comprising Opinions of the various Courts of Baltimore City since 1888. KFX1103.3.C522 A22

Bruce, William Cabell. Seven great Baltimore Lawyers. Special Collections KF355.B3 B7

Brugger, Robert J. Maryland: a Middle Temperament, 1634-1980. F181 .B85 1988

Chesnut, William Calvin. Sixty Years in the Courts. KF373.C5

Friedman, Dan. The Maryland state Constitution : a reference guide. KFM1601 1867.A6 F75 2006

Gross, Joel M., Lynn Dodge. Clean Water Act. KF3790 .G76 2005

Histories of the Bench & Bar of Baltimore City. Special Collections KFX1103.5.A2 1997

McSherry, James. History of Maryland. F181.M19 1968

Miller, Michael S. The Maryland Court of Appeals: a Bibliography of its History. KFM1712.M67 1987

Niles, Alfred S. Maryland constitutional law. KFM1602.N54 (E-book via the Making of Modern Law)

Scharf, J. Thomas. History of Maryland from the Earliest Period to the Present Day. F181.S31 1967

Schneider, James F. A Century of Striving for Justice: the Maryland State Bar Association, 1896-1996. Special Collections KFM1278.S35 1996

Walsh, Richard. Maryland - a History, 1632-1974. F181.W34

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Legal Resources

Primary Authorities

"Primary authorities [law] are authorized statements of the law by governmental institutions. Such documents include the written opinions of courts (case law); constitutions; legislation; rules of court and the rules, regulations and opinions of administrative agencies." An Introduction to Legal Research. Jacobsten, Merskey and Dunn (1998).

Federal Legislative Materials

Federal Administrative Materials

Judicial Materials

NOTE: for both more comprehensive and more precise case law searches be sure to check either Lexis or Westlaw.

Lexis Tip: If you find one good case on Lexis, you may be able to find others by identifying the headnote that best describes the issue of interest to you, then clicking "More Like This Headnote," or by Shepardizing the case to find other cases that have cited it for the issue represented by the headnote.

Westlaw Tip: If you find one good case on Westlaw, you may be able to find others by identifying the headnote(s) that best describes the issue of interest to you, then clicking "Most Cited Cases" for that headnote. You could also try clicking "KeyCite Notes" to fine other cases that have cited your case for the issue represented by that headnote.

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Secondary Authorities

"Secondary authority is anything other than primary authority that a court could use as a basis for decision, should the matter you are researching come before a court...Secondary authority includes commentary sources...treatises, periodicals, dictionaries, and encyclopedias of various sorts." The Process of Legal Research: Successful Strategies. Kunz, Schmedemann, et al. (1992).

Legal Encyclopedias

Legal encyclopedias are a secondary source for understanding the law. They are an excellent resource for starting research particularly in an unfamiliar area of the law. Usually arranged alphabetically by subject the brief articles will contain citations to case law and statutes relevant to the topic.

  • West's Maryland Law Encyclopedia (KFM1265.W3)

Two other, more general, legal encyclopedias are:

  • Corpus Juris Secundum [commonly referred to as CJS] ( KF154 .C57)
  • American Jurisprudence [commonly referred to as AMJUR] (KF154 .A51)

Commentaries

Like legal encyclopedias commentaries are a secondary source that can provide valuable background when approaching a topic area that may be new to the researcher. There are a number of commentary types available although almost all share some basic features - detailed analysis of the issues represented by a particular case or series of cases; annotations to case law and relevant statutes; and some type of internal finding aid or index. The American Law Reports is one of the most frequently consulted type of commentary.

  • ALR (American Law Reports) (REF KF132.L2)

Additional sources of secondary material: hornbooks, nutshells, treatises, and restatements can be located by using the library's catalog.

Maryland Materials

General

Researching Maryland Law - A comprehensive guide to locating Maryland legal resources.

Ghost Hunting: Searching for Maryland Legislative History - (courtesy the author, Michael S. Miller, Director of the Maryland State Law Library, 1977-2005)

 

Judiciary

Records and Briefs (KFM1248.9)
The Thurgood Marshall Law Library receives the records and briefs of reported cases from both the Court of Appeals and the Court of Special Appeals. The earlier ones, from 1948 for the Court of Appeals and from 1967 for the Court of Special Appeals are in paper format and are shelved in the Maryland Collection on level two. The later ones, from the October 1979 term, are on microfiche are are filed on level one.

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