UNIT-II

SOURCES TO STUDY LAW

The materials used for legal research are generally divided into two broad categories: primary
sources and secondary sources.

 Primary Source in Law:

o Legislation and cases are the documents which contain the written records of
the law.
o These are known as 'primary' legal materials.
o A statement of the law itself from a governmental entity, such as a court,
legislature, executive agency, President or Governor.
o In other words, primary sources ESTABLISHES the law. Primary legal
sources are the actual law in the form of constitutions, court cases, statutes,
and administrative rules and regulations.
 Secondary Source in Law:
o Secondary legal materials are those materials which are ABOUT the law.
o Secondary legal materials include-
 Books, journals and commentaries which discuss the law;
 Materials that discuss, explain, interpret, and analyze what the law is or
what it should be.
o Secondary sources explain the law but do not themselves establish binding
law.

Secondary sources are used to help locate primary sources of law, define legal words and
phrases, or help in legal research. In short, anything that is more than the actual law is
considered a secondary source.
Examples

 Primary law consists of sources that state the actual law. These sources include:
o Constitution

[ex. Indian Constitution]

For a country or state, a constitution can be defined as the system of

fundamental laws and principles that prescribes the nature, functions, and
limits of a government or another institution.

o Statutes (laws enacted by legislatures)

[ex. Indian Penal Code]

It is a law established by an act of the legislature that is signed by the

executive.

o Case laws (opinions handed down by courts)

[ex. Supreme Court/High Court decisions]

Case Law is the decisions, interpretations made by judges while deciding on

the legal issues before them which are considered as the common law or as an
aid for interpretation of a law in subsequent cases with similar conditions.
Case laws are used by advocates to support their views to favour their clients
and also it influences the decision of the judges.

o Rules & Regulations (established by administrative government agencies)

[ex. Environmental Protection Agency/Censure Board/Pollution Control

Board)
Secondary Law consists of sources that explain, criticize, discuss, or help locate primary
law.  Examples of secondary legal sources include:

o Legal dictionaries

[ex. Black’s Law Dictionary]

It includes definitions from legislation and case law.

 Use them to find definitions of terms, subjects or topics

 Use them to determine the subject context of a new topic to help with
further searching

o Legal encyclopaedias

Encyclopaedias typically provide more detail than dictionaries.

Use encyclopaedias to find:

 A concise overview of the key aspects of a subject or concept

 A review of the history of a topic

 References to further information

 Biographical details of key figures

Wikipedia is a well-known online encyclopaedia but has variable quality and should
not be relied upon for your university research. If you do use it at all be sure to follow
up references to other sources to check the factual content and to reference these
rather than Wikipedia itself.

o Books
Focussed on the knowledge construction
Books are useful tools for legal research:
 An in-depth overview of a subject
 A good grounding in a new discipline
 A comparison of differing ideas, theories and opinions
 Facts and figures
 reference/cite significant cases to support an argument
o Journal Articles
Focussed on argumentation/challenge
 Journals are collections of articles that are published on an ongoing
basis in online or in print.
 Journals report current research within a discipline.
 A major part of your studies as a student will be finding, reading and
analysing articles published in journals.
o Reports
Reports are produced by agencies and departments on specific topics or issues.
These agencies can include Government departments, research establishments,
National Crime Records Bureau, etc.
Reports are useful for providing:
 Up to date information - they are usually published to a specific
deadline or as a reaction to an event
 Current views and opinions
 Recommendations about future practice
 Technical information, statistics or data that you would not find in
books or journal articles
o Digests
A digest is a compilation of case comments, arranged alphabetically by subject
(i.e., short descriptions of a single aspect of a case).
o Manuals
(ex. Criminal Manual)
It is a handbook that comprises of the major statutes that are primarily related
to specific subject.
 For example, Criminal Manual comprises of all three major laws of
criminal- Evidence Act, IPC and CrpC have been summarised smartly.
It is kind of combination of all three bare acts with short summary.
Useful for quick revision and quick reference whenever needed. It is
quite handy and easy to carry!
Library: Online/Digital/E-Library and Offline/Physical Library

A well-stocked library is an asset to any institution. It is a place where not only books but
also magazines, journals, and newspapers are well-stocked for the benefit of the readers.
Besides this one can also get the entire charts, Encyclopaedia, government gazette, etc. A
reader can either read in the library or borrow the book/journal of his choice and take it home.
A library is a popular place in the academic curriculum. With the growing popularity of the
internet, the retrieval of information becomes faster. In view of the above facts, it is apparent
that a library is a very important place in society.

Libraries are the repositories of knowledge form of an integral part of education. The primary
objective of the library is to organize and provide access to information. This objective will
never change but the format and methods that are used will change dramatically, providing
new opportunities and challenges. Libraries have witnessed a great metamorphosis in recent
years. The print medium is increasingly giving way to the electronic form of materials. The
library is an extremely important entity in an ever-changing society, and it must be
responsive to the needs of society. Information Technology (IT) has changed the complexion
of today’s libraries. Libraries have evolved to become an information provider rather than
mere document providers. The shift from the traditional libraries to the digital is not merely a
technological evolution but requires a change in the pattern by which the user’s access and
interact with information. This shift from traditional to electronic libraries also alters the
fundamental role of the library.

An e-library/digital library/online library allows users, to read or refer any published items
from their residence or office or college via internet. Users are no need to visit the library
directly for their reference.

A comparison of traditional physical/offline libraries with online library:

1. A physical library consists of Physical Books, Magazines, Newspapers, Reports, etc.

Whereas digital library consists of digital content viz e-books, e-magazine, e-
newspapers, e-reports, video, audio, etc.
2. A physical library has Limited Space and thus is difficult to expand. Whereas a digital
library has limited infrastructure but large space and thus makes it easier to expand.
3. A physical library will provide access to objects via issue and borrow system certainly
limited to number of available quantities. Whereas a digital library will provide access
to objects any number of times by any number of users.
 4. A physical is created on a physical space. Whereas a digital library is created on
virtual space viz. data centres, cloud, servers.
5. A physical library follows rack-based search and indexing. Whereas a digital library
provides Web Interface based search and indexing.
6. The major demerit of physical library is material degradation, mutilation, and loss
over time. Whereas a digital library provides digital preservation and long-time
archival of the contents.

Advantages of Online Library:

It is easy to carry and more convenient. the new form of reading a book by using technology
like smart phone or tablet. Reader can easily carry in their pocket which can take it to office,
parks and even in the bus while travelling. Furthermore, information is easily available at
lower cost and saves time. For instance, individual who need to read a book must go to
nearby library to issue books and then get a chance to read but not in case of online mode
where books are available on internet and person can easily download it at marginal cost or
some time it is available free; therefore, it saves lots of time and money.

Disadvantages of Online Library:

Online reading affects human eye. In simple words, continuously watching blue screen of the
phone not only reduce eyesight or burn the eyes but also have headache.

Moreover, few books on traditional value and depicting the culture of the country are yet to
transformed into digital platform.
LIVE SOURCES: MOOT COURTS, SEMINARS, CONFERENCES AND
WORKSHOPS (ONLINE AND OFFLINE)

MOOT COURTS

A moot court is a replica of real court proceedings. The purpose of moot court competitions
is to make students aware of the court proceedings related to disputes between parties. These
competitions are organised mostly in law schools for students who wish to pursue their
careers as Lawyers, Judges and Arbitrators. This practice helps in the development of legal
skills, research insight and speaking skills.

Participating in moot court contests helps students to improve their research abilities because
it is based on their research that they will be arguing their case and defending their side, as
well as constructing a good moot court memorial on which the opposing team will raise
objections and interrogate them.

Importance of Moot Courts

The practice of having moot courts is considered necessary because of multiple reasons. We
have listed some of which below –

1. It helps students to engage and understand legal issues

2. It helps students analyse legal topics and work on its research
3. Students learn to work in teams and learn from their teammates
4. Students can demonstrate their advocacy skills and legal skills
5. Students can improve their confidence and speaking skills
6. Students can learn from your peers and develop your debating skills
7. Mooting is intellectually rewarding and stimulating for budding lawyers
SEMINARS, CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS

Generally organized for either a single day or couple of days, the prime objective of seminars
conferences and workshops is to assemble the like-minded intellectuals and professionals to
exchange ideas, thoughts, and views related to a specific topic.

Workshops, conferences and seminars are a wonderful opportunity to acquaint yourself of the
development in law and legal technology. Thus, live sources like seminars, conferences and
workshops are a good way to expand your knowledge base and become more versatile.

The main difference between workshop, seminar and conference is their unique
characteristics:

 Workshops are more practical in nature,

 Seminars are more academic in nature,
 While conferences tend to be more formal in nature.

It’s difficult to identify the differences between these types of meetings since people tend to
use these terms interchangeably.
OFFLINE (SEMINAR/CONFERENCE/WORKSHOP) V. ONLINE (WEBINAR/e-
CONFERENCE/e-WORKSHOP)