Political Science: US Federal Case Law/Judicial Branch Materials

Case Law

The Judicial branch interprets the law whenever there is confusion or a conflict about its implementation or enforcement. Case law is found in the published, written opinions of judges, and it includes the judge’s decision and the reasoning behind it. Opinions are published in a series called Reporters, which contains the text of opinions arranged chronologically. They are indexed in Digests, which may be broken down by topic and/or geography.

Looking for published court opinions (case law)? Start with Nexis Uni or HeinOnline.

These resources are also useful for finding law review articles, codified laws, and administrative codes.

Nexis Uni
includes decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court, US Courts of Appeals, US District Courts, state supreme courts, and state appellate courts. Also includes proprietary analysis and citation linking.
HeinOnline
includes full text of Supreme Court cases
Canadian Content
Acts of the Parliament of Canada (Annual Statutes)
Provincial Statutes of Canada

Case Law
Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases
U.S. Supreme Court Library

International Resources
Acts of the Parliament of Canada (Annual Statutes)
Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS)
History of International Law
Law Library of Congress Reports
Open Society Justice Initiative
Provincial Statutes of Canada
U.S. Treaties and Agreements Library
World Constitutions Illustrated: Contemporary & Historical Documents and Resources
World Treaty Library

International Treaties and Agreements
U.S. Treaties and Agreements Library
World Treaty Library

Journals and Periodicals
Bar Journals
Law Journal Library
NOMOS: American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy
Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases

Special Collections
Air and Space Law
American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
Brennan Center for Justice Publications at NYU School of Law
Business and Legal Aspects of Sports and Entertainment (BLASE)
COVID-19: Pandemics Past and Present
Cataloging Legal Literature
Civil Rights and Social Justice
Criminal Justice & Criminology
Democracy in America
Gun Regulation and Legislation in America
Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: History, Culture & Law
John F. Kennedy Assassination Collection
LGBTQ+ Rights
Labor and Employment: The American Worker
Law Academy Project
Legal Classics
Military Legal Resources (U.S. Army JAG School)
Military and Government
National Defense University Press Publications
NOMOS: American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy
Open Society Justice Initiative
Pentagon Papers
Religion and the Law
Reports of U.S. Presidential Commissions and Other Advisory Bodies
Slavery in America and the World: History, Culture & Law
Voting Rights & Election Law
Water Rights & Resources
Women and the Law (Peggy)

U.S. Federal Content
Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS)
Bremer-Kovacs Collection: Historic Documents Related to the Administrative Procedure Act of 1946
COVID-19: Pandemics Past and Present
Civil Rights and Social Justice
Code of Federal Regulations
Executive Privilege
Federal Register Library
GAO Reports and Comptroller General Decisions
History of Supreme Court Nominations
Immigration Law & Policy in the U.S.
Indigenous Peoples of the Americas: History, Culture & Law
John F. Kennedy Assassination Collection
Labor and Employment: The American Worker
Law Library of Congress Reports
Military Legal Resources (U.S. Army JAG School)
Preview of United States Supreme Court Cases
Reports of U.S. Presidential Commissions and Other Advisory Bodies
U.S. Code
U.S. Congressional Documents
U.S. Congressional Serial Set
U.S. Federal Agency Documents, Decisions, and Appeals
U.S. Federal Legislative History Library
U.S. Presidential Impeachment Library
U.S. Presidential Library
U.S. Statutes at Large
U.S. Supreme Court Library
Water Rights & Resources

U.S. State Content
Civil Rights and Social Justice
LGBTQ+ Rights
National Survey of State Laws
Prestatehood Legal Materials: A Fifty-State Research Guide
Session Laws Library
State Attorney General Reports and Opinions
State Constitutions Illustrated
State Reports: A Historical Archive
State Statutes: A Historical Archive
Subject Compilations of State Laws
Water Rights & Resources

RECAP Archive
The Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) service is the government-run system that provides electronic public access to nearly every legal document and record filed in federal court cases. Despite its name, access to PACER is not free for the general public. The RECAP Archive was created by CourtListener as a free, alternative, searchable collection of millions of PACER documents and dockets. Use RECAP to find federal case documents beyond published opinions.

Google Scholar
In addition to scholarly articles and patents, Google Scholar also includes case law (U.S. Supreme Court, US Courts of Appeals, US District Courts, state supreme courts, and state appellate courts.) in its search results.
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest tribunal in the nation for all cases and controversies arising under the Constitution or the laws of the United States. As the final arbiter of the law, the Court ensures the American people the promise of equal justice under law. The court's website provides comprehensive resources including:
- Opinions: Access to recent and historical Supreme Court opinions and decisions.
- Oral Arguments: Information on upcoming oral arguments, live audio streaming, and transcripts.
- Case Documents: Detailed case documents, including briefs and other filings.
- News and Media: Latest news releases, media advisories, and information on media access to the Court.
- About the Court: Information on the Court's structure, justices, and court officers.
- Visiting the Court: Details on visiting the Supreme Court Building, including public sessions and courtroom seating.
Oyez
Oyez (pronounced OH-yay) is a comprehensive multimedia archive dedicated to making the Supreme Court of the United States accessible to everyone. This free law project is a collaboration between Cornell’s Legal Information Institute (LII), Justia, and Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Key features of Oyez include:
- Audio Recordings: Access to audio recordings of Supreme Court oral arguments since October 1955.
- Transcripts: Searchable, transcript-synchronized audio of oral arguments.
- Case Summaries: Plain-English summaries of Supreme Court cases.
- Full-Text Opinions: Full-text Supreme Court opinions through Justia.
- Justice Information: Detailed biographies of all justices throughout the Court’s history.
- Virtual Tour: A panoramic tour of the Supreme Court building, including the chambers of several justices
Federal Court Opinions
Access to opinions from selected U.S. appellate, district, and bankruptcy courts. Incomplete content, dating back to April 2004.
Findlaw
Free access to decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court, US Courts of Appeals, US District Courts, state supreme courts, and state appellate courts.
Justia
Free access to decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court, US Courts of Appeals, US District Courts, state supreme courts, and state appellate courts.
CourtListener
Provides free access to primary legal materials. The case law content includes opinions from the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Federal Appellate Courts, U.S. Federal District Courts and Bankruptcy Courts, U.S. State Supreme and Appellate Courts, and many special courts.

Caselaw Access Project
All published U.S. court decisions freely available to the public online, digitized from the collection of the Harvard Law School Library. Includes bulk download, API access, Historical Trends visualizer, and a variety of apps created using the data..
Court Listener - Bulk Data
Includes bulk download of federal and state court opinions, oral arguments, dockets, and judges; a citation database; and the judicial database of biographical information about judges. Site also includes online network visualization tool.

Nexis Uni Support Resources
Includes online courses/tutorials on searching with Nexis Uni. Each course takes approximately 30 minutes to complete and offers a certificate of completion and a link to add the certificate to your LinkedIn profile.
-Nexis Uni®: Learn the Fundamentals of Searching and Results—Level 1
-Nexis Uni®: Learn the ABCs of Legal Research—Level 1
-Unlocking Political and Governmental Insights

News sources to find additional court case information

►Tip: Nexis Uni and HeinOnline only include published court opinions, which means that lower-level court cases (civil cases, trials) are not included. However, news sources can be particularly useful as primary sources that describe events as they unfold, especially for major or historic cases. The Library subscribes to many sources for United States and international news.

Guide to U. S. Historical Newspapers @ UCSD

Access World News
Dates vary. More than 1500 sources worldwide, including 650 in the U.S. Largely newspapers,local news video for the U.S.; newspapers for Canada, UK and other English-speaking countries. For the rest of the world mostly wire services, BBC news digests
Factiva
Provides access to over 16,000 global sources including: * 1,000+ Global and local newspapers * 3,000+ Journals and magazines * 30,000+ Company Reports. Factiva.com delivers content in 27 languages, from Arabic to Vietnamese.
Scroll down on the landing page to the Newsstand: US section for the latest content of Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Barron's & more.
Nexis Uni
Thousands of full-text sources including newspapers, wires, transcripts, newsletters, magazines, trade journals; also industry news, company information, law reviews, court decisions. Coverage dates vary. Former name: Academic Universe.
ProQuest Historical Newspapers
Cover to cover article text and page images of the Chicago Tribune (1849-1986), Los Angeles Times (1881-1986), New York Times (1851-2005), San Francisco Chronicle (1865-1922), Washington Post (1877-1992), Wall Street Journal (1889-1991).

Also includes:
Civil War Era‎
Atlanta Daily World (1931 - 2003)
The American Hebrew & Jewish Messenger‎ (1857 - 1922)
The American Israelite‎ (1854 - 2000)
The Arizona Republican‎ (1890 - 2007)
The Atlanta Constitution (1868-1984)
The Austin American Statesman‎ (1871 - 1978)
The Baltimore Sun (1837 - 1992)
The Boston Globe (1872-1986)
Calgary Herald: (1883-2010)
Chicago Defender (1909-1995)
Chinese Newspaper Collection (1832 - 1953)
The Christian Science Monitor (1908 - 2004)
The Cincinnati Enquirer (1841 - 2009)
Cleveland Call & Post (1934 - 1991)
Communist Historical Newspaper Collection‎ (1917 - 2013)
Dayton Daily News (1898 - 1922)
Detroit Free Press (1831 - 1999)
Edmonton Journal (1903-2010)
The Globe and Mail‎ (1844 - 2014)
The Guardian and The Observer‎ (1791 - 2003)
Hartford Courant (1764 - 1992)
Indianapolis Star (1903 - 2004)
The Irish Times and The Weekly Irish Times‎ (1859 - 2016)
The Jerusalem Post‎ (1932 - 2008)
The Jewish Advocate‎ (1905 - 1990)
The Jewish Exponent‎ (1887 - 1990)
The Korea Times‎ (1956 - 2016)
Le Monde (1944 - 1995)
Leader-Post (Regina) (1883-2010)
Leftist Newspapers and Periodicals (1845 - 2015)
Los Angeles Sentinel‎ (1934 - 2005)
Louisville Courier Journal
Michigan Chronicle (1936 - 2010)
Le Monde (1944 - 1995)
Montreal Gazette (1857 - 2010
Minneapolis Star Tribune‎ (1867 - 2001)
The Nashville Tennessean (1812 - 2002)
Newsday (1940 - 1989)
New York Amsterdam News (1922 - 1993)
New York Tribune / Herald Tribune (1841 - 1962)
Norfolk Journal and Guide (1916 - 2003)
Ottawa Citizen (1846-2010)
The Philadelphia Inquirer (1860 - 2001)
Philadelphia Tribune (1912 - 2001)
Pittsburgh Courier (1911 - 2002)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazete (1786 - 2003)
The Province (Vancouver) (1898-2010)
Saskatoon Star Phoenix (1902-2009)
The Scotsman‎ (1817 - 1950)
South China Morning Post
St. Louis Post Dispatch‎ (1874 - 2003)
St. Petersburg Times / Tampa Bay Times (1901 - 2009)
Times Colonist (Victoria) (1884-2010)
The Times of India
Toronto Star‎ (1894 - 2015)
Vancouver Sun (1912-2010)
Windsor Star (1893 - 2010)
ProQuest U.S. Major Dailies
Provides access to The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, and the Wall Street Journal; offers users thorough and timely coverage of local, national, and global events. Current content is available each day with archives that stretch as far back as 1980.

Court Transcripts, Briefs, Documents

Finding Court Documents (University of San Diego Legal Research Center LibGuide)
A docket is a chart listing all of the documents that have been filed with the court in the proceedings of a case. Each case has an identifying docket number. The docket shows the names of the parties and their attorneys and the judge who has been assigned to the case. It also shows the date the case was filed and the dates of all the filings and proceedings. USD's detailed guide provides comprehensive information on how to locate and access federal and state court documents.
RECAP Archive
The Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) service is the government-run system that provides electronic public access to nearly every legal document and record filed in federal court cases. Despite its name, access to PACER is not free for the general public. The RECAP Archive was created by CourtListener as a free, alternative, searchable collection of millions of PACER documents and dockets. Use RECAP to find federal case documents beyond published opinions.
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest tribunal in the nation for all cases and controversies arising under the Constitution or the laws of the United States. As the final arbiter of the law, the Court ensures the American people the promise of equal justice under law. The court's website provides comprehensive resources including:
- Opinions: Access to recent and historical Supreme Court opinions and decisions.
- Oral Arguments: Information on upcoming oral arguments, live audio streaming, and transcripts.
- Case Documents: Detailed case documents, including briefs and other filings.
- News and Media: Latest news releases, media advisories, and information on media access to the Court.
- About the Court: Information on the Court's structure, justices, and court officers.
- Visiting the Court: Details on visiting the Supreme Court Building, including public sessions and courtroom seating.
Oyez
Oyez (pronounced OH-yay) is a comprehensive multimedia archive dedicated to making the Supreme Court of the United States accessible to everyone. This free law project is a collaboration between Cornell’s Legal Information Institute (LII), Justia, and Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Key features of Oyez include:
- Audio Recordings: Access to audio recordings of Supreme Court oral arguments since October 1955.
- Transcripts: Searchable, transcript-synchronized audio of oral arguments.
- Case Summaries: Plain-English summaries of Supreme Court cases.
- Full-Text Opinions: Full-text Supreme Court opinions through Justia.
- Justice Information: Detailed biographies of all justices throughout the Court’s history.
- Virtual Tour: A panoramic tour of the Supreme Court building, including the chambers of several justices

Nexis Uni
Nexis Uni contains thousands of full-text sources including newspapers, wires, transcripts, newsletters, magazines, trade journals; also industry news, company information, law reviews, court decisions, statutes. Coverage dates vary. International and U.S. sources. Click on the Sources tab and then choose Briefs, Pleadings and Motions.

Landmark briefs and arguments of the Supreme Court of the United States: constitutional law
Call Number: KF4549 .L3