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Legal Research for 2Ls

A short guide for basic legal research.

Why use secondary sources?

The primary purpose of using a secondary source is to save you time. Someone else has done the research and analysis and is presenting all of their work in a single source, with citations, so you can both understand the law and find primary sources.

Pennsylvania Secondary Sources

  • West
    • West’s Pennsylvania Practice
    • Standard Pennsylvania Practice 2d
    • Goodrich Amram 2d
    • West’s Pennsylvania Forms
    • Summary of Pennsylvania Jurisprudence 2d
    • Eastern District Manual
    • Middle District Manual
    • Western District Manual
    • Pennsylvania Employment Law Letter
    • Pennsylvania School Personnel Actions
    • Pennsylvania Suggested Standard Civil Jury Instructions
    • Pennsylvania Suggested Standard Criminal Jury Instructions
  • Lexis
    • Pennsylvania Transaction Guide – Legal Forms
    • Dunlap Hanna, Pennsylvania Forms
    • Pennsylvania Civil Practice
    • Pennsylvania Law Encyclopedia
    • Ohlbaum on the Pennsylvania Rules of Evidence
    • Pennsylvania Causes of Action
    • Pennsylvania Motion Practice
    • Remick's Pennsylvania Orphans' Court Practice
    • Pennsylvania Tax Handbook
    • Pennsylvania Evidence Courtroom Manual
    • PA Products Liability
    • PA Commercial Litigation
    • Insurance Bad Faith in Pennsylvania, 18th Edition

General Secondary Sources

  • Lexis
    • Moore’s Federal Practice – Civil
    • Bender’s Federal Practice forms
    • Weinstein’s Federal Evidence
    • Federal Habeas Corpus Practice and Procedure
    • Federal Litigation Guide
    • 50 State Surveys
    • Treatises – look for individual titles on your specific topic
  • West
    • American Jurisprudence 2d
      • Proof of Facts
      • Trials
      • Legal Forms 2d
    • American Law Reports (ALR)
    • Restatements
    • Causes of Action
    • Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR)
    • Federal Practice & Procedure (Wright & Miller)
    • Manual for Complex Litigation
    • McCormick on Evidence
    • Motions Practice
    • The New Wigmore: A Treatise on Evidence
    • West's Federal Forms
    • West's Legal Forms
    • Treatises – look for individual titles on your specific topic