BC 470: Mass Communication Law
Professor Chuck Ganzert

Library Resource Guide

Off-Campus Access: If you have trouble accessing Westlaw or any other electronic library resources from off-campus with a cable modem, wireless, or a non-NMU internet service provider, login using the VPN client software. It is located under Start, All Programs, Nortel Networks, Contivity VPN Client. If you don't have an NMU issued laptop download the software here.

Lecture Notes (powerpoint) from Library Presentation.

Reference & Secondary Sources

Black's Law Dictionary..........(click on Content List, then Legal Encyclopedias & Dictionaries link)
.............Also available in the library Reference Collection...........................Reference:: KF 156 .B53
Legal Thesaurus ............................................................................................Reference: KF 156 .B856
Legal Research in a Nutshell .......................................................................Reference: KF 240 .C54
The Elements of Legal Style ........................................................................Reference: KF 250 .G37
Using Westlaw Campus. ........This .pdf contains helpful information about searching Westlaw Campus.

American Jurisprudence 2d
A comprehensive legal encyclopedia summarizing legal principles of state and federal law (written for lawyers). Provides citations to leading cases, statutes, regulations, and journal/law review articles.

Michigan Law and Practice Encyclopedia
A 26 volume encyclopedia for Michigan law, this is the Michigan equivalent of Corpus Juris Secundum. Located in the Olson Library Reference collection, 2rd floor: Reference KFM 4265 .M5

American Law Reports
Attorney-written articles that cite, summarize, and analyze case law on a particular legal issue.

Legal Periodicals
Full text articles from over 700 legal journals and law reviews available through Westlaw. Articles often discuss developing areas of law, legal issues on which there is disagreement among scholars and judges, or legal issues of particular social importance.

Library Catalog
Use the library catalog to locate books on various legal topics.  Also used to determine if the library owns a particular law journal.

Decisions

Westlaw Campus
Westlaw Campus is a comprehensive database containing the decisions of cases from all 50 states as well as the federal courts including the Supreme Court.

United States Reports (U.S.) - KF 101 .A3 (v.389- ; 1967-present)
The complete decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court, including dissenting opinions.

Supreme Court Reporter (S.Ct.) - KF 101 .S9 (v.1-94: 1882-1973)
The Library's earliest set of Supreme Court cases.  Contains the headnotes of the main points of law for each case. Available through Westlaw Campus.

Federal Reporter, Third Series. (F.3d) - KF 105 .F42 (v.1-; 1993-present)
Federal Reporter, Second Series. (F.2d) - KF 105 .F42 (v.176-999; 1924-1992)
Contains the complete decisions of cases decided in the U.S. Court of Appeals (all circuits). Available through Westlaw Campus.

Federal Supplement (F.Supp.) - KF 105 .F45 (v.86-999; 1950-1998)
Federal Supplement, Second Series (F.Supp.2d) - KF 105 .F45 (v.1- ; 1998-present)
Contains the complete decisions of selected cases decided in the U.S. District Courts.  Available through Westlaw Campus.

B.  MICHIGAN COURT CASES

Decisions

Michigan Reports (Mich.) - KFM 4245 .M5 (v.1-407; 1847-1980)
Official publication of all decisions of the Michigan Supreme Court.  Available through Westlaw Campus.

Michigan Appeals Reports (Mich.App.) - KFM 4248 .A2 (v.1-93; 1965-1979)
Official publication of all decisions of the Michigan Court of Appeals.  Available through Westlaw Campus.

A. FEDERAL STATUTES AND CODES

Westlaw Campus contains federal and state statutes (United States Code Annotated and Michigan Compiled Laws Annotated) as well as the Code of Federal Regulations and state administrative codes. Click on the U.S. Constitution & Code for federal laws or State Constitutions & Statutes to find the laws of an individual state.

United State Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.) - Ref. KF 62 .W4
The entire body of federal law currently in force, organized into 50 subject divisions (called titles).  Includes references to court decisions and articles related to particular laws.  Available through Westlaw Campus. Click on the U.S. Constitution & Code to access the popular name table of federal laws.

B.  FEDERAL ADMINSTRATIVE REGULATIONS

Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) - Ref. KF 70 .A3 (library retains latest edition)
A cumulating of the Federal Register arranged into 50 subjects divisions known as titles.  See the index volume located at the end of the set. Available through Westlaw Campus.

Federal Register (F.R.) - Gov. Docs. AE 2.106: (library retains latest 2 years)
The daily compilation of executive and administrative rules and regulations which have the force of law.  See the monthly and annul indexes. Freely available on the Internet: Federal Register.

C. MICHIGAN STATUTES AND CODES

Michigan Compiled Laws Annotated (M.C.L.A.) - Ref KFM 4230 1948 A44
The entire current law of Michigan arranged into subject divisions. Includes references to court decisions and journal articles related to particular laws.  Available through Westlaw Campus. Click on State Constitutions & Statutes to access the popular name table of Michigan laws.

D.  MICHIGAN ADMINSTRATIVE REGULATIONS

Michigan Administrative Code - Ref. KFM 4235 1972 A2
A compilation of administrative rules and regulations issued by various state agencies and departments. Available through Westlaw Campus.

Michigan Register - Ref. KFM 4236 .M53
The state version of the Federal Register, issued monthly.  Contains new and proposed rules issued by state agencies. Freely available on the Internet: Michigan Register.

Citations and Abbreviations

The basic citation form for any legal reference you may find is:

In general, abbreviations for law materials found in Olson Library are listed below. Click on an abbreviation to determine the Olson Library holdings of that particular source. 

For abbreviations not listed above, see:

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation - Ref. KF 245 .U58

Bieber's Dictionary of Legal Citations - Ref. KF 246 P73

Further Assistance
If you need help with any of these resources, ask for assistance at the Library's Reference Desk (227-2294), use the live chat, or contact Mike Burgmeier, Reference Librarian.