how to do legal research without westlaw or lexis

Library electronic resources outage May 29th and 30th

Between 9:00 PM EST on Saturday, May 29th and 9:00 PM EST on Sunday, May 30th users will not be able to access resources through the Law Library’s Catalog, the Law Library’s Database List, the Law Library’s Frequently Used Databases List, or the Law Library’s Research Guides. Users can still access databases that require an individual user account (ex. Westlaw, LexisNexis, and Bloomberg Law), or databases listed on the Main Library’s A-Z Database List.

• Georgetown Law Library
• Research Process

Free and Low Cost Legal Research Guide

Free sources of case law.

• Introduction
• Free Sources of Statutes & Codes
• Free Sources of Legislative History
• Free Sources of Administrative Regulations
• Free Sources of the Constitution
• Free Sources of Secondary Sources
• Low-Cost Legal Databases

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There is an abundance of free case law available online. Unfortunately, many of the editorial enhancements and finding aids that legal researchers are accustomed to are not available through these free sources. For example, these sources do not provide digests or headnotes, which organize cases by points of law. Instead, these sources utilize browsing and keyword searching as the principal means of finding relevant cases. Researchers should be aware of these limitations and understand that keyword searching and browsing are not necessarily the best methods to find cases.

For guidance on the significance of case law and methods for finding relevant cases, please see our  Case Law Research Guide .

U.S. Supreme Court Cases

Federal Circuit Court Cases (Reported)

Federal District Court Cases

State Court Cases

Online access to state materials varies widely. Please consult our  state research guides  for information about individual jurisdictions.

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• Last Updated: Oct 3, 2024 9:50 AM
• URL: https://guides.ll.georgetown.edu/freelowcost

• Research Guides

Free Online Legal Research

• Getting Started

A Message for Law Students

Places to start, benefits of free resources, keep this in mind, evaluating online resources.

• Legislative Materials
• Judicial Materials
• Executive & Agency Materials
• Secondary Sources
• International & Foreign Materials
• Low Cost Alternatives

Other Helpful Guides

• Harvard Law School Library Guide to Free Legal Research Resources
• Georgetown Law Library's Free and Low Cost Legal Research Guide
• Library of Congress Guide to Law Online
• Connecticut State Library Guide to Law and Legislation
• The Law Student Guide to Free Legal Research on the Internet

At some point in your legal career, you will need to do legal research without using Westlaw, Lexis, or Bloomberg.  You or your employer may not be able to afford those services, or you may have clients who will not pay for them.  You may only have access to certain content from those services, but need information outside of your subscription.  If you learn how to do legal research for free now, your future employers will thank you.

• GovInfo.gov This website from the United States Government Publishing Office provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government.
• Organization -- Because free resources are not all located in the same place, you must be more organized about your research from the start.  You have to think about what exactly you need and where you can find it.
• Efficiency -- Westlaw and Lexis will often give you an overwhelming number of results when you are searching for something simple.  Free resources can sometimes direct you to only the most important or relevant information, or will enable you to more easily see which results are the most relevant.
• Format -- There is a wealth of information contained in formats that are not supported by Westlaw and Lexis.  For example, you can find statistical data and audio or video of oral arguments, none of which is available on Westlaw or Lexis.

The location of free online legal resources often varies by what type of resource you are looking for and what jurisdiction you need.  You will likely have to search in multiple places to find all of the pertinent information.

Shepardizing cases is difficult without using Lexis or Westlaw.  Free case law searches, such as Google Scholar , often have ways to at least look at other cases that have cited to the case you are trying to Shepardize, but this will not identify cases that may be overruled by implication or find cases on the same issue that are conflicting but do not cite each other.

The older the information that you need is, the harder it will be to find online.  This is particularly true for federal materials prior to around 1995.

Many free online resources are not official sources, and so may contain errors.

Sometimes, searching for information online can lead you to some questionable websites. Whenever you are doing research online, make sure to evaluate the information you find.  The following criteria can help you determine whether the information is reliable.

• Accuracy -- The truthfulness and correctness of the information.  What evidence supports the information? Can the information be verified from another source?  Has it been reviewed or refereed?
• Authority -- The source of the information.  Who wrote, published, or sponsored the information?  What are the author’s qualifications?  Who maintains the website (a university, government agency, or commercial organization)?
• Objectivity -- The reason for providing the information.  Is the information designed to teach, sell, entertain, or persuade?  Is it fact, opinion, or propaganda?  Are there political, institutional, or personal biases?
• Currency -- The timeliness of the information.  When was the information published or posted?  When was the website last updated?  Do you need the information to be current, or will older sources be sufficient?
• Coverage -- The scope and relevance of the information.  Does the information help your research?  How much information about your topic is provided?  Who is the intended audience for the information?

If you have any questions, ask a reference librarian!

Quick Links

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At the Library

Although this guide focuses on free online sources for legal research, it is important to remember that a lot of research can be done for free by taking a trip to your nearest public law library.  You can also contact the law librarians for assistance or to make sure that the library has what you need.

• UConn Law Library We are open to practicing attorneys and members of the public doing legal research, and our reference librarians can assist you in finding what you need.
• Connecticut State Library The State Library is open to the public and has an extensive collection of legal reference materials. The library also provides access to legal research databases, both in person and online.
• Judicial Branch Law Libraries The Connecticut Judicial Branch has law libraries located throughout the state, all of which are open to the public.
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• Last Updated: Jan 24, 2022 2:09 PM
• URL: https://libguides.law.uconn.edu/free