HOW TO FIND A LAW

RECENT ENACTMENTS (WITHIN THE PAST TWO YEARS).

If the Public Law number is known, go to the Government Documents book stack and search under the classification AE 2. 110: (public law number). If you have any problems finding the document ask for assistance at the Government Documents Office or the Reference Counter.

If the Public Law number is not known consult Volume 1 of the CONGRESSIONAL INDEX (REF. J69 .C6) for the current Congress. The red tabs in this volume are index tabs. Select the tab "Enactments - Vetoes". Behind this tab are the following indexes:

                                                       Enactments by Public Law Number
                                                       Enactments by Bill/Resolution Number
                                                       Names of Laws Amended/Enacted
                                                       Subject Index to Public Laws
                                                       Author Index to Public Laws
                                                       Vetoes

Go to the Subject Index to Public Laws. This index lists new laws by subject. Some law titles are subjects in their own right. A new law's short title followed by its Public Law number will be entered under an appropriate subject heading, for example:

                   Small business

                            . loans
                            .. guarantees... 104 - 36

        Under the subject heading "Small business" is the Small Business Loans Guarantees Act, Public           Law 104 - 36. The text of this law can now be searched in the Government Documents
        Collection under the classification AE 2 . 110: 104 - 36.

ALTERNATIVE SOURCE:

                    UNITED STATES CODE CONGRESSIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE NEWS (REF. KF 63                      .U56X). (Recent enactments can be found in the paperback volumes which follow the bound volumes of                      this set in the Reference stacks.)

PENDING LEGISLATION

If a Senate or House Bill's number is known, search the current CONGRESSIONAL INDEX as follows:

        Go to the tabs labeled "House Bills" or "Senate Bills" in volumes 1 and 2, the bills will be listed             in numerical order.

                            A Bill's progress through either House can be followed by referring to the status tables in both volumes.                               These tables are indicated by the tabs "Status of House Bills" and

                            "Status of Senate Bills."

                            Bills and Resolutions listed by authors or sponsors can be found in the"Author Index" in volume 1.

        If a Bill's number is not known, consult the Subject Index in volume 1 (Red tab). This index          also contains a section titled "Headline Legislation" which lists bills by "popular name." It is good          for finding legislation that has attracted some public interest.

ADDITIONAL SOURCE:

                    CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY WEEKLY REPORT (Current Periodicals 1st Floor). At the back of                       each issue is a status table of major legislation. A combined subject and names index is published at three month                       intervals and is filed with the weekly issues. It is a separate issue printed on yellow paper. . .

SUMMARIES OF PUBLIC LAWS AND BILLS

The CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY WEEKLY REPORT contains summaries of laws and pending legislation as well as commentaries, voting records, committee assignments, etc. Recent issues of this periodical are shelved in the Current Periodicals collection on the first floor of the library.

EARLIER ENACTMENTS

Federal laws from 1789 to current can be found in the UNITED STATES STATUTES AT LARGE (REF. KF 50 .U52). The Paul Meek Library's holdings of the STATUTES, format, and locations are as follows:

UNITED STATES STATUTES AT LARGE (REF. KF 50 .U52). Volumes 87 (93rd Congress, 1st Session, 1973) to current. Printed edition. Shelved in the Reference Collection on the 1st floor. Each volume contains Public Laws, Private Laws, Bills Enacted into Law, Concurrent Resolutions, and Proclamations. Indexing is by Subject, Numeric Listing, and, beginning with Volume 105 (1991), Popular Name. The indexes are non-cumulative. For cumulated indexing, see the UNITED STATES CODE ANNOTATED below.

UNITED STATES STATUTES AT LARGE. Volume 36 (1909) - 86 (1972). These volumes are on microfilm and are located in the Media Services Department on the 1st floor of the Library. Indexing is the same as for the printed volumes.

PUBLIC STATUTES AT LARGE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, VOLUME 1 (1789) - 38 (1915), are part of the LIBRARY OF AMERICAN CIVILIZATION (LAC 22035 - 22108) microfiche collection available in the Media Services Dept. Each volume has a subject index. For other indexing see, UNITED STATES CODE ANNOTATED below.

UNITED STATES CODE ANNOTATED. The "Popular Name Table For Acts of Congress" in the UNITED STATES CODE ANNOTATED (REF. KF 62 1927 .W45 Index v.9), is a cumulative index of U.S. Public Laws. It is not a subject index, but it can be used to locate specific laws by title. It is a very substantial index (approx. 800 pages) and is part of the General Index of the CODE . The latter is a subject index.

 

STATE LAWS

Tennessee is the only state for which we have a collection of public laws and a law code. The PUBLIC ACTS OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE... (REF. KFT 25 PUB) and the PRIVATE ACTS OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE... (REF. KFT 25 PRIV) are shelved in the Reference Collection. Each volume contains an index. Recent enactments can be found in the ADVANCE LEGISLATIVE SERVICE TO TENNESSEE CODE ANNOTATED (REF. KFT 6 .T42X). Read the notes on the front cover. The ADVANCE has a listing of Acts by title and a subject index. Our holdings of Tennessee Private and Public Acts are listed in the Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC). To access select "T" from the main menu and enter any of the titles above, or select "C" from the menu and enter, then enter "L", then enter either KFT 25 PUB or KFT 25 PRIV.

The TENNESSEE CODE ANNOTATED (REF. KFT 6 .T4) contains Tennessee laws as codified. The CODE has a Combined General Index with a topical arrangement of subjects. It is updated yearly by cumulative supplements in the form of pocket parts inserted in the back cover of each volume. The CODE is further updated by the TENNESSEE CODE ANNOTATED ADVANCE CODE SERVICE (REF. KFT 6 .T4 Advance) which is published three times and includes notes to cases, Attorney General opinions, and law reviews.

INTERNET ACCESS TO THE TENNESSEE CODE ANNOTATED.

The Tennessee Code Annotated is also available through the Internet. To access proceed as follows:

On the Paul Meek Library’s Home Page click on Government Documents. When the Government Documents Home Page comes up, click on Internet Resources and when that screen comes up, click on State Sources Specific to Tennessee. When the Tennessee Screen comes up, click on Tennessee Legislative Information. A large window will open up and in that window the Tennessee Code will be listed along with links to other Tennessee legislative materials. Click on Tennessee Code and this will access the Code. Note that other legislative information is also available on the Tennessee Legislative Information site, such as: Bills Search, Budget Summary, fact Book, Legislative record, Daily Service, etc. This site is an excellent source for what is currently happening in the State Legislature.

PUBLIC LAW NUMBER. The public law number indicates the chronological order of approval of the laws of each Congress. The first number stands for the Congress and should always be given when citing by public law number, e.g. 104 - 36. The number "104" indicates the Congress and "36" the law's number.

SLIP LAW. The first officially published form of recently enacted laws printed and issued individually by the U.S. Government Printing Office are called "slip laws". The Paul Meek Library has a collection of slip laws in the Government Documents stacks. They are filed under the classification AE 2.110: (public law number after the colon).

LEGISLATIVE HISTORIES. Congressional committee reports which explain the background, history, and purpose of legislation. See UNITED STATES CODE CONGRESSIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE NEWS below.

UNITED STATES STATUTES AT LARGE (REF. KF 50 .U52). The Statutes are slip laws arranged in numerical order and bound into volumes. The Statutes are the first permanent version of federal legislation. For Paul Meek Library holdings see "Earlier Enactments" above.

UNITED STATES CODE (REF. KF 62 .A2). The current official compilation by subject of the "public, general and permanent laws of the United States in force." The printed version of this title is shelved in the Reference stacks. A CD-ROM version is available in the Government Documents Department.

UNITED STATES CODE ANNOTATED (REF. KF 62 1927 .W45). This Code differs from the UNITED STATES CODE in that it is privately published and contains annotations provided by the publisher. It is updated during the year by pamphlets and pocket inserts. Both Codes are consolidations of all permanent laws in force classified by subject matter. Many laws are amended over the course of time and the Codes will reflect these changes.  The UNITED STATES CODE ANNOTATED has a very good index.

UNITED STATES CODE CONGRESSIONAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE NEWS (REF. KF 63 .U56X ). The NEWS contains all public laws enacted by Congress. It also contains Legislative Histories, referenced under the laws to which they pertain and Executive Orders and Proclamations. The NEWS is issued monthly in paperback form and is reissued in bound volumes at the end of each Congressional session. The Paul Meek Library's holdings of the NEWS begin with the 96th Congress (1980) and continue through the current Congress.

CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY ALMANAC (REF. JK 1 .C66). An annual publication which focuses on the activities of Congress. It has a section on Public Laws which lists them by number and includes a brief summary for each. It also contains Roll Call Votes by house and a Bill number index. The Paul Meek Library's holdings of the ALMANAC begin with the 1959 edition and continue to current.

CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (GOV. DOC. AE 2 .106/3: title). A codification of the general and permanent rules published in the FEDERAL REGISTER by the executive departments and agencies of the Federal Government. The CODE is kept up to date by the individual issues of the FEDERAL REGISTER (see below). Use the CODE and the FEDERAL REGISTER together to determine the latest version of any given rule. The CODE is filed in Reference stack #17.

FEDERAL REGISTER (GOV. DOC. AE 2.106: vol./no.). A publication of regulations and legal notices issued by federal agencies. These include Presidential Proclamations and Executive Orders and federal agency documents having general applicability and legal effect, documents required to be published by act of Congress, and other federal agency documents of public interest. This publication is received daily and is shelved in Reference stack #17 along with the CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS (see above) which it updates.

 

 

DICTIONARIES AND OTHER LEGAL REFERENCE SOURCES

FUNDAMENTALS OF LEGAL RESEARCH (REF. KF 240 .J32 1994). This is the 6^th edition of a popular text on legal research. New to this edition are references to and discussions of non-print sources of legal information, such as computer assisted research (CALR). There is a chapter devoted to the discussion of the latter and other databases such as WESTLAW and LEXUS and how to prepare search requests for them. The Internet and CD-ROM databases are also discussed. Fundamentals of Legal Research is a basic text for students learning to do legal research.

BLACK’S LAW DICTIONARY. 6^TH Edition (READY REF. KF 156 .B53 1990). Kept at the Reference Desk. The standard law dictionary, Black’s gives precise definitions and examples of use. It includes American, British and Latin law words and phrases. For this edition over 5,000 terms have been added or revised.

LEGAL THESAURUS. 2nd Edition (REF. KF 156 .B856 1992). Brief definitions, parts of speech, synonyms, and associated legal terms. For definitions consult Black’s (above) or the next entry.

DICTIONARY OF MODERN LEGAL USAGE (REF. KF 156 .G367 1995). Good for practical guidelines on language and style.

                    BIEBER’S DICTIONARY OF LEGAL CITATIONS: REFERENCE GUIDE                      TO ATTORNEYS, LEGAL SECRETARIES, PARALEGALS AND LAW                      STUDENTS. 5^th Edition, 1997. (REF. KF 246 .P73 1997).

This book is a combination of two formerly separate titles, The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, and Bieber’s Dictionary of Legal Citations. The Bluebook (16^th Edition, 1996) is included as an appendix to Bieber’s. Together, the forms in this book have been designed for types of legal writing, including general rules of citation and style. United States, foreign and international reporting services are listed along with dates of coverage.

WOMEN’S LEGAL GUIDE. 1996 (REF. KF 478 .W674 1996). Addresses the special legal needs of women and seeks to help them make informed decisions on the legal issues facing them. Twenty-nine women lawyers contributed to this book.

LAW ON THE NET. 1995 (REF. KF 242 .A1 .E94 1995). Lists legal web sites under broad subject headings. Discusses each site and gives instructions for logging on.

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