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Researching Constitutional Law

Third Edition

Albert P. Melone

Knowledge of how to conduct research in constitutional law is valuable not only for legal professionals but for anyone interested in the political and legal systems of the United States. Melone introduces the process of legal research with clear, understandable writing aimed at the lay reader. This practical, convenient reference work guides students on every aspect of writing a quality research paper, from showing how to brief a legal case to explaining elementary quantitative analysis techniques. Also included are extensive lists of primary and secondary sources, summaries of leading Supreme Court decisions, and a sample student research design. Melone references the most up-to-date print and electronic legal research materials throughout the thoroughly revised Third Edition.
 

$25.95 list, 305 pages

10-digit ISBN: 1-57766-315-2

13-digit ISBN: 978-1-57766-315-7

© 2004

Instructor’s Manual available

“. . . the most valuable aid available to undergraduate public law courses, plus a great deal of additional material valuable to pre-law and political science students. In sum, a first-rate contribution.”  — John R. Schmidhauser, University of Southern California

“Very impressive bibliography and summaries of case briefs. Good-look chapter on quantitative methods. Looks like a useful accompanying manual to a good Constitutional Law textbook.”   — Keith E. Clement, University of Tennessee

“An excellent source for faculty and students who are interested in obtaining the legal research skills that are essential for writing scholarly research papers. An invaluable addition to the literature that concerns constitutional law and related legal issues.”  — Abraham L. Davis, Morehouse College

“An interesting treatment of legal research focused at a specific substantive area. The exercises are particularly helpful.”   — Cynthia H. Kramer, William Woods University

“The book fills an important gap in undergraduate courses on constitutional law. I have always assigned research papers. This text should save me a lot of time by answering many of the students’ questions on the how-to’s of researching constitutional law.”  — Robert M. Howard, Georgia State University

“A handy key to what’s out there in the con-law world and where to find it in the Internet age.”  — David M. Wagner, Regent University

“This is the most useful book for all students of constitutional law. Not only does the author explain in detail how to use legal sources in order to write a research paper, but he also goes through the major Supreme Court cases and then adds a glossary of terms. A course devoted to research methods in the legal field would find this book a must.”  — Robert Langran, Villanova University

Table of Contents

1. Primary Sources: Judicial Opinions and Statutory Law

Supreme Court Opinions / Access to Court Opinions through Subscription Services / Briefs Filed with the U.S. Supreme Court / Lower Federal Court Reports / State Court Reporters / American Law Reports / Keeping Current on Case Law / Statutory Law and Codification / Administrative Agency Reporting / Primary Historical Documents / Legal Research Exercises

 2. Secondary Sources as Research Aids

Compendia, Guides, and Summaries / Treatises / Legal Encyclopedias / Digests / Cite-Checking (Citators) / Periodical Literature and Indexes / Newspapers as Secondary Sources / Electronic Book Review / legal Mobilization Sites / Law Dictionaries / Legal Research Exercises

 3. Why and How to Brief a Case

Elements of a Brief / Model Brief

 4. Quantitative Applications

Labeling and Counting Judicial Votes / Scaling Cases / Bloc Analysis / Cases and Data Analysis 

5. Writing and Documenting Research Papers

Choosing a Topic / Designing the Research Project / The Format for a Paper / Special Writing Problems / Documentation of Sources / Footnote or Endnote Format / Bibliography Form / Sample Citations / In-Text Citation Form 

6. Summaries of Leading Supreme Court Decisions

Appendix A: Sample Research Design

Appendix B: The United States Constitution

Glossary of Terms and Phrases