Chapter 1
Legal Research
Exercises on the Web
Activity 1-1: Legal PerspectiveInternet Sources of Law
URLs:
http://www.findlaw.com
http://www.law.cornell.edu
The FindLaw Web site is probably the most comprehensive source of free legal information on the Internet. Go to the first URL listed above, and you will be at the main FindLaw home page. The FindLaw Web site includes links, by subject, to major sources of law in the United States, law schools, professional development, legal organizations, law firms and lawyers, cases and codes, federal government legal resources, state law resources, foreign and international law resources, legal news and reference materials, and legal practice materials.
- From the main page, select the "For Professionals" tab, which is located at the top of the page. Next, click on "Practice Areas" under the Research the Law section. Name ten of the legal subjects, or areas of law, included in this list. Are most of the areas listed here covered in your text? Are there any areas that are not covered in your text? If so, what are they?
- From the list of subjects, click on the link to Cyberspace Law. Look over the contents of this page, and explore some of the links. List and briefly describe the nature of five legal issues relating to cyberlaw.
- From the "Cyberspace Law" page, go back to the main page of the FindLaw Web site by selecting the "Back" button on your browser twice. Select the "Cases & Codes" heading, andscroll down to the heading "Case Law" and click on the link to the US Supreme Court - Opinions & Web Site. The FindLaw Web site has full-text access to Supreme Court decisions since 1893. List the three kinds of searches that you can perform if you are looking for a Supreme Court case. List at least five other Supreme Court resources that are linked to this page.
- Click on Home from the FindLaw menu bar above, scroll down to the "Research & References" section and select the link to US Federal Resources. List the categories of government sites that are linked to this page. Can you find links to the Web sites of specific government agencies on this page? Can you link to the White House and to Congress?
- Scroll down to the Legislative Branch link. Click on this link and then select the link to House of Representatives. Click on United States House of Representatives, and then under the heading "Legislative Information," select Find Vote Information. This opens the Office of the Clerk web page. Under the column "Roll Call Votes," select the link to the most recent Congress. You can then browse through the most recent roll call votes that are listed by roll call number, date, issue, question, result, and title. As you can see, this Web site is kept very current; roll call vote tallies are often available the day on which the vote is taken.
Go to the second URL listed above, which will take you to the Web site of the Legal Information Institute (LII) at Cornell Law School. The LII was created to discover new ways to distribute legal information and commentary, all in electronic form. This Web site offers extensive information about the Supreme Court and U.S. law.
- Place your cursor over the links listed on the left-hand side of the LII's home page, and then list at least five legal resources regarding codes and regulations.
- Place your cursor over "Law about." in the left-hand column and from the pop-up menu click on All Topics. Scroll down the resulting list and click on the topic Legal Theory (jurisprudence) and then select the link for Feminist Jurisprudence near the bottom of the page. What is feminist jurisprudence, and what areas of law have benefited from the analysis and insight of feminist jurisprudence? Describe the three major schools of thought within feminist jurisprudence..
Activity 1-2: Management PerspectiveOnline Assistance from Government Agencies
URL:
http://www.firstgov.gov
As you will read throughout this text, government agencies regulate many areas of business activity. Fortunately for managers today, most government agencies have detailed Web sites designed to keep the public informed. Go to the URL above to find a gateway to the Web sites of government departments and agencies.
- Click on the tab titled "for Businesses and Nonprofits." Under the heading "Information by Topic," click on Laws & Regulations. Where does this link take you? Who is responsible for maintaining this Web site?
- Return to the First.gov home page above, and scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the "Frequent Questions." Browse through some ofthe frequently asked questions (which are organized by topic or by agency) and rate the detail and usefulness of the answers. How might this Web site be beneficial to a business manager?
Activity 1-3: Social PerspectiveThe Case of the Speluncean Explorers
URL:
http://www.nullapoena.de/stud/explorers.html
Lon Fuller, a professor of law at Harvard University, devised a hypothetical court case entitled The Case of the Speluncean Explorers to illustrate how different legal philosophies might affect judicial decisions.
Go to the URL given above and read the "facts" of this hypothetical case, then answer the following questions:
- What was the outcome of the case?
- To which schools of jurisprudential thought did the different judges ascribe?
- How would you have ruled on the case if you had been one of the judges?
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