libr430 week1
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LIBR 430
Week 1
Topics to Cover
Course Requirements Information Literacy General Information Literacy in Law Overview of American Legal System Jurisdiction Primary v Secondary Legal Citation
Information Literacy
Determine the extent of information needed Access the needed information effectively and efficiently Evaluate information and its sources critically Incorporate selected information into one's knowledge
base Use information effectively to accomplish a specific
purpose Understand the economic, legal and social issues
surrounding the use of information, and access and use information ethically and legally.
Legal Information Literacy
More than knowing where to look (legal research)
Knowing what you are looking at Understanding information’s relevance to a legal
issue Determining which kinds of legal information is
appropriate Deciding confidently/competently when you have
enough Citing ‘legally’ as opposed to ethically
Evaluating Legal Information
Primary or Secondary Official or unofficial Current Impact of subsequent documents or actions Jurisdictionally applies Synthesize body of information on a legal issue Reconcile inconsistencies Apply facts appropriately Use reasoning tools (hypotheticals, deductions,
analogies) to draw conclusions
Law in the United States
Where does it come from? What forms does it take? Who drafts/crafts/writes it? Special role of the courts Types of law What outcomes does the law create?
Sources of the law
U.S. common law Stare decisis Precedent US and state
Constitution US and state
Statutes US and state
Administrative Rulings and Regulations
What forms does it take?
Common law Judicial opinions Cases
Constitution Statutes
Codes Administrative rulings and regulations
Administrative codes, regulations
Who creates them?
Judges State Federal
Legislative bodies State Federal
Executives (governor, president) Administrative agencies
The Courts
Federal courts 94 district courts across the country
Federal trial courts Report in to 13 courts of appeals
Right to review Hear district court appeals Also hear appeals from administrative judges (bankruptcy,
tax, trade, etc.) US Supreme Court
No right of review Discretionary (writ of certiorari)
What kinds of outcomes can the law create?
Civil liability: Compensatory damages Punitive damages Injunctive relief Specific performance Recission/Reformation
Criminal guilt Fines Incarceration Execution
Jurisdiction
Extremely important when evaluating legal information
Applies to virtually all forms of law and legal information including cases, statutes and regulations
Jurisdictional issues are mostly associated with courts due to the number of them and the subjects, levels they cover
Statutes and regulations are typically geographical or preemptive
Primary v Secondary
Primary: The law Cases, statutes, regulations
Secondary: About the law Law review articles, restatements, legal encyclopedias,
practice guides, treatises, study guides Help lawyers and judges understand the law but cannot be
cited as law
Citation
The Bluebook Governs citation in law but also a style guide Purpose: So those reading law review articles,
memos, appellate briefs and judicial opinions can find the law being referenced
Not primarily a plagiarism preventive Rule and practice usually merge in subsequent
editions Created by students at Harvard, Columbia, Penn
and Yale and distributed by HLR
Jurisdiction (courts)
Defined as the power or authority to hear a case Venue: The appropriate location for an action; Often
confused with but different from jurisdiction; once jurisdiction is determined venue is the decision regarding where the case will be held; typically a plaintiff choice but part of tactical approach to legal actions
Personal jurisdiction (in personam jurisdiction): does the court have power over the parties (residency and/or sufficient contacts)
In rem jurisdiction: Events took place or property involved is located within a specific geographic area
Types of Law
Important when reading cases or statutes Criminal or civil
Criminal: Higher burdens of proof, guilt is established Civil: Lower burden of proof, liability is established Different outcomes (jail, execution v money) 6th Amendment guarantees right to jury trial in criminal
cases Criminal has a right to an attorney Right to appeal in civil in criminal on defendant can appeal
Substantive or procedural Substantive regulates rights and duties Procedural law relates to methods (FRCP, FRAppP,
FRCrimP etc.)
Precedent and Stare Decisis
Stare decisis: Doctrine that binds courts to previous decisions
Precedent: The actual decisions of the court Persuasive (a lower court’s precedent) Binding (a higher or appeals court)
Courts can distinguish fact as ways of diminishing precedent
When does precedent get ‘abandoned?’ Legislative action Policy/Politics?
State Courts
Vary Typically:
Trial court Appellate court Supreme court
State questions are settled in state courts If there is a federal question and the SCOTUS
grants cert. it can be appealed to the US Supreme Court
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