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INTRODUCTION
There are some basic sources
that a researcher of international and foreign law uses frequently or
should become familiar with in order to facilitate research in these
areas. For example, it is almost impossible to do any research on an
international law issue without finding references to and using International
Legal Materials (ILM) [INTL REF KZ64 .I58]. Below is a list
of resources that are close to ILM in terms of importance to international
and foreign legal research. It is by no means a complete list of essential
tools, so the reader is encouraged to examine these tools personally
and determine which ones are most appropriate to her or his research
style.
RESEARCH GUIDES AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES
Research guides and bibliographies,
as well as catalogs, are good tools for identifying the titles of foreign
and international legal materials. There are many research guides on specific
countries. Subject headings for locating research guides and bibliographies
on foreign and international law are:
legal
research--[geographic area or country]
law--[geographic area or country]--bibliography
legal bibliography--[geographic area]
law--[geographic area or country ]
[international organization's name]--bibliography
international agencies--bibliography
[legal topic in Library of Congress form]--[geographic area]--bibliography
The International
Journal of Legal Information
[INTL K9 .N787] is a particularly good source for bibliographies on
a country or a specific topic.
1. The
Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (18th ed., Cambridge,
MA: Harvard Law Review Association, 2005) [INTL REF & Williams
KF245 .U5 2005].
2. International
Encyclopedia of Comparative Law (New York: Oceana) [INTL
REF K530 .I57]. A bit dated, but still useful.
3. Modern
Legal Systems Cyclopedia (K. Redden ed., Buffalo, NY: W.S.
Hein, 1984- ) [INTL K530 .M62 1984].
4. M. Cohen, R. Berring
& K. Olson, How
to Find the Law (9th ed., St. Paul, MN: West Pub. Co., 1989)
(Later editions and abridged editions do not cover international
and foreign law.) [Williams KF240 .C5383 1989].
5. Guide
to International Legal Research (3rd ed., Salem, NH: Butterworths,
1998) (plus 2001 Cumulative Supplement) [INTL REF KZ1234 .G85].
6. C. Germain, Germain's
Transnational Law Research (Ardsely-on-Hudson, N.Y.: Transnational
Juris Publications, 1991-) [INTL REF K85 .G47 1991]. Selected
topics and some European countries.
7. The
International Lawyer's Deskbook 2d (L. Law et al. eds, Washington,
DC: Section of International Law and Practice, ABA, 2003) [INTL
REF K48 .I57 2003].
8. Introduction
to Transnational Legal Transactions (M. Raisch and R. Shaffer,
eds., New York: Oceana Publications, 1995) [INTL K7615.4 .I58 1995].
9. T. Reynolds &
A. Flores, Foreign
Law: Current Sources of Codes and Basic Legislation in Jurisdictions
of the World (Littleton, CO: Rothman, 1989-) [INTL REF K38
.R49 1989]. See also the electronic version, Foreign
Law Guide - GULC only.
10. Information
Sources in Law (Winterton and Moys eds., 2nd ed., London;
New Providence, N.J.: Bowker-Saur, 1997) [INTL REF KJC76 .I54 1997].
Coverage of European countries.
11. Accidental
Tourist on the New Frontier: An Introductory Guide to Global Legal
Research. (Littleton, CO: Rothman, 1998) [INTL REF
K85 .A27 1998].
12. Web sites:
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS
International and foreign
legal research means deciphering an alphabet soup. Below are a
few sources which are generally useful in solving pesky abbreviations
problems. A general approach to finding the meaning of an abbreviation
is to look in the source you found the abbreviation in first (a full
title or name might have been indicated in an earlier footnote or there
might be a table of abbreviations at the beginning of the book or periodical).
Then try Bieber's
(see below). Other sources to try are periodical indexes, an index of
acronyms for organizations, a legal research guide, or an abbreviations
list or dictionary for legal terms from a particular country. Searching
full text law reviews (or case law) on Lexis or Westlaw is another good
way to determine the meaning of an abbreviation.
Important Tools
1. Bieber, Bieber's
Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations (Prince ed., 5th ed., Buffalo,
NY: Hein, 2001) [INTL REF & Williams KF246 .B46 1993]. Also available
on Lexis. The older edition of Bieber's can also be useful.
2. Osmanczyk, The
Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Relations
(2nd ed., NY: Taylor & Francis, 1990) [INTL REF KZ4968 .O8213
1990].
3. Index
to Foreign Legal Periodicals (London: Institute of Advanced
Legal Studies; Chicago: American Association of Law Libraries, 1960-).
[INTL REF KF8 .I35] or through the Law
Library web site - GULC only.
4. Raistrick, Index
to Legal Citations and Abbreviations (2nd ed., Abingdon,
Oxon: Professional Books, 1993) [INTL REF K85 .R3 1993].
5. Kavass, World
Dictionary of Legal Abbreviations (Buffalo, NY: Hein, 1991-)
[INTL REF K89 .K38 1991]. Covers various languages and subjects.
6. The
Bluebook: A Uniform Style of Citations (17th ed., Cambridge,
MA: Harvard Law Review Association, 2000) [INTL REF & Williams
KF245 .U5 2000].
7. Szladits, A
Bibliography on Foreign and Comparative Law: Books and Articles
in English (Dobbs Ferry, NY: Oceana, 1995-) [INTL K520 .S9].
8. Acronyms
and Abbreviations Covering the United Nations Systems and Other
International Organizations (NY: UN, 1981) [INTL REF KZ4969
.T47].
9. Acronyms,
Initialisms & Abbreviations Dictionary (Detroit, MI: Gale,
1976-) [INTL REF & Williams P365 .A28].
10. Noble's
Revised International Guide to the Law Reports (Etobicoke,
Ont. : Nicol Island Pub., 1998) [INTL REF K38 .N63 1998].
Especially good for case reporters.
11. Law
Reports Searchable by Abbreviation or Title
http://www.library.unsw.edu.au/~law/repsrch.html
INTERNATIONAL AND FOREIGN
LAW TERMS AND PHRASES
Definitions of
Terms
Relevant subject headings
for GULLiver and other bibliographic databases include:
international
law--dictionaries
international relations--dictionaries
law--dictionaries--[language]
international organization--dictionaries
international law--encyclopedias
Below is a list of books
that contain English-language definitions and descriptions of international
and foreign legal terms and concepts. There are many dictionaries and
encyclopedias devoted to specific international topics as well (for
example, Dictionary
of International Trade or Encyclopedia
of Human Rights).
1. Bledsoe and Boczek,
The International
Law Dictionary (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1987) [INTL
REF KZ1161 .B57 1987].
2. Ziring et al.,
International
Relations: A Political Dictionary (5th ed., Santa Barbara,
CA: ABC-CLIO, 1995) [INTL REF KZ1161 .P55 1995].
3. Lindbergh, International
Law Dictionary (London: Blackstone Press, 1992) [INTL REF
& Williams KZ1161 .L56 1992].
4. Osmanczyk, The
Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Relations
(2nd ed., NY: Taylor & Francis, 1990) [INTL REF KZ4968 .O8213
1990].
5. Parry, Parry
and Grant Encyclopaedic Dictionary of International Law
(2nd ed. New York: Oceana, 2004) [INTL REF KZ1161 .P37 2004].
6. Encyclopedia
of Public International Law (Amsterdam: North Holland, 12
vols., 1981-1990) [INTL REF KZ1160 .E53 1981] and the new edition
(1992-) [INTL REF KZ1160 .E53 1992].
7. Fox, Dictionary
of International and Comparative Law (3rd ed. Dobbs Ferry,
NY: Oceana, 2003) [INTL REF KZ1161 .F69 2003].
8. Bennett, Historical
Dictionary of the United Nations (London: Scarecrow Press,
1995) [INTL REF KZ4970 .B395 1995].
9. Treaty
Reference Guide and Glossary of Terms Related to Treaty Actions
http://untreaty.un.org/English/guide.asp.
10. Zimmerman's
Research Guide, An Online Encyclopedia for Legal Researchers
by Andrew Zimmerman http://www.lexis-nexis.com/infopro/zimmerman/
Foreign-Language Equivalents
To locate bilingual or polyglot
dictionaries with English as one of the languages, use the following
subject headings:
english language--dictionaries--[language]
[language] language--dictionaries--english
law--dictionaries--[language]
english language--dictionaries--polyglot
law--[country or region]--dictionaries
[subject]--dictionaries--[language or polyglot]
1. Herbst, Dictionary
of Commercial, Financial and Legal Terms (4th rev.& enl.
ed., Thun, Switzerland: Translegal, 1985-87) [INTL REF K1004.3 .H463
1990].
2. West's
Law and Commercial Dictionary in Five Languages: Definitions of
the Legal and Commercial Terms and Phrases of American, English
and Civil Law Jurisdictions (St. Paul, MN: West, 1985) [INTL
REF K54 .W47 1985].
3. English-French-Spanish-Russian
Manual of the Terminology of Public International Law (Law of Peace)
and International Organizations, (Brussels: Bruylant ; Deventer,
The Netherlands : Kluwer, 1983) [INTL REF KZ1161 .P33 1983].
4. Lexis provides
access to Dahl's French-English Law Dictionary and Dahl's Spanish-English
Law Dictionary. We have these dictionaries in print as well.
5. YourDictionary.com
http://www.yourdictionary.com Access to a number of foreign language
dictionaries. Some law
dictionaries are available as well.
Background Information
on an International or Foreign Law Concept
In addition to the sources
listed below, books and articles specifically on the topic should be
checked. A subject or title word search in GULLiver, other library catalogs,
or in periodical indices may be used. Note that sometimes non-legal
sources might be worth checking depending on the breadth of interest
in or the interdisciplinary nature of the topic. Articles are a particularly
good source for information on an event or concept, especially if it
is a relatively new concept or a recent event.
1. Osmanczyk, The
Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Relations
(2nd ed., NY: Taylor & Francis, 1990) [INTL REF KZ4968 .O8213
1990]
2. Parry, Parry
and Grant Encyclopaedic Dictionary of International Law
(2nd ed. New York: Oceana, 2004). [INTL REF KZ1161 .P37 2004].
3. Encyclopedia
of Public International Law (Amsterdam: North Holland, 12
vols., 1981-1990) [INTL REF KZ1160 .E53 1981] and the new edition
(1992-) [INTL REF KZ1160 .E53 1992].
4. International
Encyclopedia of Comparative Law (New York: Oceana) [INTL
REF K 530 .I57].
5. Martindale
Hubbell International Law Digest (New Providence, NJ :
Martindale-Hubbell,1993- ) [INTL REF & Williams KF190 .M45]. Also
available on Lexis (INTLAW library; INTDIG file).
6. Restatement
of the Law, Third, The Foreign Relations Law of the United States
(Philadelphia, PA: The American Law Institute, 1987 & Supp.
1998). Also available on Lexis and Westlaw. [Williams
KF395.A2 F63 1987]
7. Yearbook
of the United Nations (Norwell, MA: Kluwer, 1947- ). [INTL
KZ4947 .U65]
8. Calvert, Treaties
and Alliances of the World (7th ed., London: John Harper,
2002) [INTL REF KZ1301 .T74 2002].
9. Zimmerman's
Research Guide, An Online Encyclopedia for Legal Researchers
by Andrew Zimmerman http://www.lexis-nexis.com/infopro/zimmerman/
INFORMATION ABOUT FOREIGN
LEGAL SYSTEMS
Subject headings for locating
background information about a foreign country include:
law--[country
or region]
comparative law
justice, administration of--[country or region]
legal research--[country]
courts--[country or region]
Searches can be done under specific
legal topics using Library of Congress subject headings with the country
or region name as a subheading (for example, commercial law--latin america)
or by using the country or region as a main subject heading with topical
subdivisions provided by the Library of Congress as subheadings (for example,
australia--politics and government or germany--constitutional law or
italy--law and legislation). Periodicals are another good source for
background information on a country or on a specific topic.
For more information on researching
foreign law, see Researching
Foreign and Comparative Law http://www.ll.georgetown.edu/intl/guides/foreign/.
Legal Systems
1. International
Encyclopedia of Comparative Law (New York: Oceana) [INTL REF
K530 .I57].
2. Modern
Legal Systems Cyclopedia (K. Redden ed., Buffalo, NY: W.S.
Hein 1984- ) [INTL K530 .M62 1984].
3. Merryman, Civil
Law Tradition: Europe, Latin America & East Asia (Charlottesville,
VA: Michie Co., 1994) [INTL K585 .M468 1994].
4. Introduction
to Foreign Legal Systems (R. Danner and M. Bernal eds.,
New York: Oceana, 1994). [INTL K583 .I57 1994].
5. T. Reynolds &
A. Flores, Foreign
Law: Current Sources of Codes and Basic Legislation in Jurisdictions
of the World (Littleton, CO: Rothman, 1989-) [INTL
REF K38 .R49 1989]. See also the electronic version, Foreign
Law Guide - GULC only.
6. Accidental
Tourist on the New Frontier: An Introductory Guide to Global Legal
Research (Littleton, CO: Rothman, 1998) [INTL REF &
Williams K85 .A27 1998].
7. Information
Sources in Law (2nd ed., London, [England] ; New Providence,
N.J., [USA] : Bowker-Saur, 1997) [INTL REF KJC76 .I54 1997].
Focus is Europe.
8. Glendon, Comparative
Legal Traditions in a Nutshell (2nd ed., St. Paul, MN: West
Group, 1999) [Williams K560 .G43 1999].
9.
Some relevant Web sites include:
General (brief overviews)
1. The
Statesman's Year-Book (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1864-).
[INTL REF & Williams JA51 .S7]
2. The
World Almanac and Book of Facts (New York: Newspaper Enterprise
Association). [INTL REF & Williams AY67.N5 W7]
3. The
World Factbook (Washington, D.C.: Central Intelligence Agency).
[INTL REF G122 .U56]. Also available on the web
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html.
4. The
Europa World Year Book (London: Europa Publications, 1989-).
[INTL REF JN1 .E85]
5. Some useful Web
sites include:
- Foreign
Government Resources on the Web
http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/foreign.htmll
(CIA World Factbook, Background Notes on Countries, biographies
on officials, and much more)
- Foreign
Governments (Northwestern University) http://www.library.northwestern.edu/govpub/resource/internat/foreign.html
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Subject searches on GULLiver,
WorldCat - GULC only - and periodical
indexes under the name of the organization are useful for finding descriptions
of international organizations. Yearbooks and dictionaries are excellent
sources to check for this type of information. To locate information and
materials by an international organization, use the organization's name
as an author. Yearbooks and encyclopedias are also good sources for charters
and constituting documents for international organizations.
For more assistance in researching
international organizations, see Researching
Inter-Governmental Non-Governmental Organizations. See
also ASIL Guide to
Electronic Resources for International Law: International Organizations.
2. The
Europa World Year Book (London: Europa Publications, 1989-)
[INTL REF JN1 .E85].
3. Yearbook
of International Organizations (Munchen: K.G. Saur, 1967-)
[INTL REF KZ4836 .Y43]. See also the website http://www.uia.org/website.htm. Not
all information on this site is freely available.
4. Encyclopedia
of Associations: International Organizations (Detroit, MI:
Gale Research Co., 1989-). [INTL REF HS17 .G335].
5. Encyclopedia
of Public International Law (Amsterdam: North Holland, 12
vols., 1981-1990) [INTL REF KZ1160 .E53 1981] and the new edition
(1992-) [INTL REF KZ1160 .E53 1992].
6. International
Organization and Integration (Dordrecht: Nijhoff, 1981-)
[INTL KZ172.8 .I54].
7. International
Information: Documents, Publications, and Information Systems of
International Governmental Organizations (2nd ed., P. Hajnal
ed., Englewood, CO: Libraries, 1997) [INTL REF JZ4850 .I58 1997].
8. Introduction
to International Organizations (L. Louis - Jacques and J.
Korman, eds., New York: Oceana Publications, 1996) [INTL KZ5566
.I57 1996].
9. Williams, The
Information Systems of International Inter-Governmental Organizations:
A Reference Guide (Stanford, Conn.: Ablex, 1998) [INTL
REF JZ4850 .W55 1998].
10.
Some relevant Web sites include:
PERIODICALS
Periodical literature is a
good way to information on a topic, find a treaty citation, locate the
text of a foreign law, the meaning of a term, figure out what an abbreviation
stands for, etc. A list of periodical indices and sources of the full
texts of periodical articles online follows:
1. Index
to Legal Periodicals & Books (New York: H.W. Wilson
Co.) [Williams KF8 .I4]. Also available on Lexis & Westlaw.
Access through Library's
homepage - GULC
only
2. Index
to Foreign Legal Periodicals (London: Institute of Advanced
Legal Studies Chicago: American Association of Law Libraries, 1960-
) [INTL REF KF8 .I35]. Access through Library's
homepage - GULC
only)
3. Legal
Journals Index (Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire: Legal Information
Resources Ltd., 1986-) [INTL REF KD59 .L43]. Also available
on Westlaw. Access through Library's
homepage - GULC
only)
4. Legal Resource
Index. Available on Lexis & Westlaw. The print version is
Current Law
Index (Los Altos, CA : Information Access Corp.,1980-) [Williams
KF8 .C8]. Access through Library's
homepage - GULC
only)
5. Public
International Law (Berlin; New York: Springer-Verlag, 1975-
) [INTL REF KZ3 .P83]. An online version of this index is available
on the Max
Planck Institute's Web site.
6. Other indexes are also
available in either print and/or electronic form. See the Library's
Journal
Indexes page and the Web
Databases page for other indexes. These include PAIS International,
Social Science Index, Current Index to Legal Periodicals, and many
others - GULC
only
7. Szladits, A
Bibliography on Foreign and Comparative Law: Books and Articles
in English (Dobbs Ferry, NY: Oceana, 1995-) [INTL K520 .S9].
An excellent source for locating English-language articles and books.
8. Lexis and Westlaw.
Both have many full-text articles from a variety of journals. Access
to periodical indexes is also available.
CITING INTERNATIONAL AND FOREIGN
LEGAL MATERIALS
1. The
Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (18th ed., Cambridge,
MA: Harvard Law Review Association, 2005) [INTL REF & Williams KF245
.U5 2005].
2. International Court
of Justice, Yearbook
(Hague, the Netherlands: The Court) [INTL KZ6273 .I58].
3. S. Rosenne, Practice
and Methods of International Law 23-26, 53-54, 105-07, 121-22
(London; New York: Oceana, 1984) [INTL
KZ3405 .R66 P7 1984].
4. The Chicago Manual
of Style (15th ed., Chicago : University of Chicago Press, 2003)
[INTL REF & Williams Z253 .U69 2003].
5. Frequently-Cited Treaties and Other International Instruments (U of Minn.) This site was creating as an to law review citation-checking. It lists treaties frequently cited in law review articles, along with available sources of hard copy.
6. Lexis and Westlaw. It is often a good idea to check how others are citing a document by conducting a search in full-text law review files.
CURRENT AWARENESS SOURCES
Periodicals and newspapers,
news feeds, newsletters and press releases and blogs are major sources for
keeping abreast of new developments in international and foreign law.
International and comparative law journals and yearbooks are of particular
usefulness for up-to-date information on legal activities worldwide.
Looseleaf services on international and foreign law-related topics often
include a "current reports" section which contains new information.
Key subject headings for locating periodicals in catalogs are:
international law--periodicals
comparative law--periodicals
[international organization]-- periodicals;
law--country or region]--periodicals
[legal topic in
library of congress form]--[country or region]--periodicals
1. ASIL's International
Law in Brief http://www.asil.org/ilibindx.htm for new developments
in international law.
2. Bulletin
of Legal Developments (London, British Institute of International
and Comparative Law) [INTL REF K521 .B84].
3.
International Law Update (Washington, D.C.: Transnational
Law Associates, 1995-) [INTL K521 .I5]. Sample issues available on
the web site
http://www.internationallawupdate.com/
4. International
Enforcement Law Reporter (Washington, D.C. : International
Law Enforcement Reporter) [INTL K5036.A13 I57].
Selected Blogs and News Feeds
1. Exploring International Law (RSS Feed available)
2. Comparative Law Blog
MEGA WEB SITES
The sites listed below are
usually good starting points for researching an international law topic
since they maintain up-to-date collections of links.
This guide was prepared by
the staff of the John
Wolff International and Comparative Law Library at the Georgetown
University Law Center. If you need additional assistance, stop by the
reference desk or contact us by phone or email or by filling out this online form.
Revised August 2005 |
