Legal Research Fact Finding Methods

Legal research fact finding methods have rapidly increased and become much more efficient since the Internet has exploded with users. There are hundreds of pages devoted to legal research and many of them are now free and indexed for quick fact finding via the Internet.

Here is a list of the many online legal research fact finding methods and sources:

• Search the Internet for U.S. code, bills and legislative history.


• Search for State code, bills and legislative history


• Factual information on U.S. transportation websites for bus and vehicle safety, guidance and accident statistics.


• Get copies of company data, including insurance statistical findings.


• Check magazine and newspapers for articles on the subject you desire, specifically looking for expert articles and statistics.


• Use legal research sites to search for relevant articles, opinions, and statistics.


• Use many of the top U.S. colleges and university law libraries that are now available 24/7 online.


• Try Google Scholar for research in the area of fact finding you require. It contains many findings, studies and journals of relevance.


• Try searching under a criminal code or civil code that is pulled from charges notated in a court case file.


• Look at previous legal decisions for the most effective fact finding usable results.


• Hofstra University’s Research Laboratory for Law, Logic and Technology is a great resource as they conduct research on previous legal cases. The laboratory also has a database that is publicly available, and for those needing legal research and the use of its findings.