Legal Research

California Code  (CA Legislature):
Select name of code from pull-down menu and type section number in box.
Ex:
CAL. FAM. CODE § 3084
Code:   FAM  Code:   3084 

FindLaw Professional: 
On Professional site, choose Caselaw - Supreme Court
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Ex:
384   US   436
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Ex:
Miranda  

Each branch of government produces a different "kind" of law:

Legislative Branch: Statutory Law
Executive Branch: Regulatory and Administrative Law
Judicial Branch: Case Law

Laws are published in different sources at select points during adoption.

Proposed: not yet adopted, but officially being considered
Initial adoption: text of law as written
Codified: arranged with all other laws by subject

Federal Statutes

Bills in the U.S. Congress (proposed)

Typical Citation: H.R. # or S.# (Examples: H.R. 810, S. 3)
Description: Laws proposed by a member of the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate but not yet passed.
Process Notes: If passed by both houses and not vetoed by the U.S. President (or the veto is over-ridden), a bill becomes Public Law (aka a Federal or U.S. Statute).

Public Laws of the United States (individual laws as passed)

Typical Citation: PL ###-## (Example: PL 101-35)
Description: Text of a law as written when it was passed by Congress.
Process Notes: Also known as slip laws, public laws get bound into volumes called United States Statutes at Large.
Text online: U.S. Government Printing Office (1995 - present only)

United States Statutes at Large (individual laws bound together in order of passage)

Typical Citation: ## Stat ### (Example: 79 Stat 453)
Description: Text of laws as written when they were passed by Congress, bound together sequentially into a printed book.
Process Notes: When enough public laws are passed by Congress, they are bound together in a printed volume, which is issued as part of the series called Statutes at Large. These volumes include the text of the laws exactly as written when passed by Congress, and the laws are bound sequentially (i.e. in the order they were passed). When each law eventually gets codified (i.e. broken apart so the various subjects covered in a single law can be grouped with other laws on the same topic), it is published in the United States Code.

United States Code (all laws in force arranged by subject)

Typical Citation: ## USC §####   (Example: 29 USC §3291   - official version published by the U.S. Government)
Other Citation styles: ## USCS §####   &   ## USCA §####   (private, annotated versions published by Lexis and West - the citations should be interchangeable with official government version)
Description: All federal laws (statutes) currently in force arranged by subject.
Process Notes: Individual laws passed by Congress may deal with multiple subjects, and they may change previously passed laws. In order to help administrators, judges, lawyers, etc., identify all of the current law related on a specific issue, when a law is passed, it is codified. That is, the text of the law is divided into individual parts, each which covers a discrete subject. Each part is then put together with all other laws currently in force on that specific topic.

State Statutes

Bills proposed in the California Legislature

Typical Citation: AB # or SB # (Examples: AB 1433 or SB 735)
Description: Laws proposed by a member of the California State Assemly or the California State Senate but not yet passed.
Process Notes: If passed by both houses and not vetoed by the Governor of California (or the veto is over-ridden), a bill becomes California Law (aka California Statute).

California Statutes or Chaptered Bills (laws as written when passed by the legislature)

Typical Citation: Most commonly still cited by the bill number (e.g. SB 629, AB 35), bills that actually become law each year are also given a Chapter n umber (e.g. Stats 1981 ch 782).
Description: Text of laws as written when passed by the Legislature.
Process Notes: After a bill has passed through both houses of the Legislature and has been signed by the Governor (or becomes law without the Governor's signature), is is "chaptered" by the Secretary of State. A Chaptered Bill (aka California Statute) is the text of a law exactly as written when passed by the legislature. When each law eventually gets codified (i.e. broken apart so the various subjects covered in a single law can be grouped with other laws on the same topic), it is published in one of the California codes.

California Codes (all California statutes in force arranged by subject)

Typical Citation: ### (name of code) §###   (Example: 34 Educ. Code §3423 )
Citation Note: There are 29 different codes, each representing a broad area. (e.g. Health and Safety, Food and Agriculture, Public Utilities, etc.)
Other Citation styles: ### CA (name of code) §###   (Publications and citations outside of California often add CA in front of the code name to inform the reader the citation pertains to California law)
Description: Text of all California laws (statutes) currently in force, arranged by subject.
Process Notes: When a statute is passed into law, it is broken into parts, each part dealing with a different discrete subject. Each part is then put together with all other statutes currently in force on that specific topic. This is known as codifying the law, and California codes arrange all California statutory law by subject.

Federal Regulations

Federal Register (proposed regulations, regulations as written when passed)

Typical Citation: ## FR #####   (Example: 34 FR 10391)
Description: The text of newly proposed as well as newly adopted federal regulations (aka rules).
Process Notes: The text of new regulations proposed by federal agencies are published in the Federal Register, allowing individuals to comment on the effects of the proposed regulation. When the agency decides on the final form of the regulation, it is published as a "final rule" in the Federal Register. Final rules are later arranged by subject in the Code of Federal Regulations.

Code of Federal Regulations (all federal regulations in force arranged by subject)

Typical Citation: ### CFR §###   (Example: 34 CFR §3423 )
Description: Text of all federal regulations in force at the time of printing arranged by subject.
Process Notes: Final rules published in the Federal Register are broken into individual parts, each dealing with a different discrete subject. Each part is then put together with all other regulations currently in force on that specific topic. This is known as codifying the regulations, and the Code of Federal Regulations arranges all federal regulations by subject.

State Regulations

California Regulatory Notice Register (proposed regulations, notice of new regulations)

Typical Citation: #### Cal. Reg. Notice Register ####   (Example: 2003 Cal. Reg. Notice Register 685)
Description: Text of newly proposed regulations and announcements of the adoption of new or revised regulations.
Process Notes: The text of new regulations proposed by state agencies are published in the Notice Register, allowing individuals to comment on the effects of the proposed regulation. When an agency adopts a new regulation, the new rule is written in the California Code of Regulations and noted in the Notice Register.

California Code of Regulations (all federal regulations in force arranged by subject)

Typical Citation: ## CCR §###   (Example: 3 CCR §432 )
Description: Text of state regulations currently in force arranged by subject.
Process Notes: State agencies writing new regulations insert them into the appropriate spot in the California Code of Regulations, which arranges all state regulations currently in force by subject.

Federal Case Laws

U.S. District Court Opinions

Typical Citation: plaintif v. respondent, ## F. Supp. #####   (Example: Azalea Meats v. Muscat, 246 F. Supp. 780 )
Other Citations: There are multiple series, F. Supp., F. Supp. 2d., F. Supp. 3d., etc.
Citation Notes: The citation sometimes includes an abbreviation for the specific court district and the year, e.g. (S.D. Fla. 1965).
Description: The text of rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Process Notes: Courts resolve disputes when interpretations of laws differ, or one law appears to conflict with another or with the constitution. As a general rule, state laws cannot violate federal laws, and no U.S. law can violate the U.S. Constitution.

U.S. Appellate Court Opinions

Typical Citation: ## F. #####   (Example: 22 F. 354)
Other Citations: There are multiple series: F., F. 2d., F 3d., etc.
Description: The text of rulings by each U.S. Court of Appeals.
Process Notes: Each of the regional "Court Circuits" in the United States has a court of appeals. The rulings of each of these appellate courts is legally binding only in that circuit. There are also additional appellate courts for some special areas (e.g. Armed Forces, Taxes, Patents, etc.).

U.S. Supreme Court Opinions

Typical Citation: ## US #####   (Example: 546 U.S. 189)
Other Citation style: ## L Ed. #####   (Example: 168 L. Ed. 2d 508)
Other Citation style: ## Sup. Ct. #####   (Example: 127 S. Ct. 2738 )
Description: The text of rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Process Notes: As the highest court in the nation, the Supreme Court's interpretation of law is final and cannot be changed by another court. The Supreme Court's interpretation of the U.S. Constitution (the highest law in the land) can only be changed by amending the constitution (or be a later Supreme Court re-interpreting the issue).

State Case Laws

California Superior Court Opinions

Typical Citation: plaintif v. respondent   (Example: People v. Lewis and Oliver)
Description: The text of rulings by California Superior courts (e.g. local trial courts in California).
Text: Not generally available. Usually most relevant to case law if the case is appealed and the appellate courts make a ruling affecting interpretation of law.

California Appellate Court Opinions

Official Citation Style: ## Cal.App.4th #####   (Example: 39 Cal.App.4th 970)
Alternate Citation Style: ## Cal. Rptr. 3d #####   (Example: 47 Cal. Rptr. 3d 467)
Alternate Citation Style: ## P.3d #####   (Example: 140 P.3d 775)
Citation Notes: Each of these citation styles add new numbers for new series: Cal Rprtr., Cal Rptr. 2d, Cal Rptr. 3d., P., P.2d, P3d., Cal.App., Cal.App.2d, Cal.App.3d, Cal.App.4th, etc.
Description: The text of rulings by each California Court of Appeals.

California Supreme Court Opinions

Official Citation Style: ## Cal. 4th #####   (Example: 39 Cal. 4th 970)
Alternate Citation Style: ## Cal. Rptr. 3d #####   (Example: 47 Cal. Rptr. 3d 467)
Alternate Citation Style: ## P.3d #####   (Example: 140 P.3d 775)
Citation Notes: Each of these citation styles add new numbers for new series: Cal Rprtr., Cal Rptr. 2d, Cal Rptr. 3d., P., P.2d, P3d., Cal., Cal.2d, Cal.3d, Cal.4th, etc.
Description: The text of rulings by the California Supreme Court.
Process Notes: As the highest court in the state, the California Supreme court is usually the final interpreter of state law (although if there are issues of federal law involved, a case may be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court).