Quick Links
- Article Indexes & DatabasesDatabases for finding individual journal articles and conference papers by topic, author, and more. Most require ISU Library login.
- Subject LibrariansAn ISU Library subject librarian can answer questions and help you explore specific subject areas more efficiently. Access your subject librarians contact information here.
- Find e-JournalsLooking for a specific journal online? Begin your search here.
Resources For All 50 States
Basic Resources
The resources on the tab are a good overall starting point in your legal research process. You can discover background information, learn legal terminology, or become familiar with specific areas of law. They will also help you determine what sort of resources you need to access to do further research, for example will you need to research federal, state, or local law resources.
Indexes & Databases
- HeinOnline This link opens in a new windowHeinOnline provides access to numerous legal and essential government publications, among them, congressional records, US federal agency documents, and several collections related to Iowa state law. Its archive of case law consists of federal, state, and overseas cases.
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- Constitution Annotated"The Constitution Annotated provides a comprehensive overview of how the Constitution has been interpreted over time and is now available on this new site with upgraded search capabilities. The online Constitution Annotated includes discussions of the Supreme Court’s latest opinions. In the coming months, we will be making broader changes to further modernize the Constitution Annotated."
- Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new windowThis database covers almost all subject areas and is especially good at interdisciplinary areas. Good place to start for class assignments. It contains full text articles for more than 6,500 journals.
- CQ Researcher Plus Archive This link opens in a new windowFull text discussions of current, controversial U.S. public policy issues in a variety of areas.
- Web of Science Core Collection This link opens in a new windowWeb of Science Core is a database of “core publications” across all disciplines. This database has a cited reference search tool that can be used for searching for a specific item from a citation.
- Scopus This link opens in a new windowA large database containing scholarly journal articles and conference papers on any topic in science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts & humanities. Includes cited references and h-index information.
Click here for tutorial - Policy Commons: Global Think Tanks This link opens in a new windowPolicy Commons: Global Think Tanks pulls together policy documents and makes them searchable. This includes reports from NGO, philanthropies, and think tanks, as well as videos, slide decks, and other formats that organizations use to share their information.
- ProQuest U.S. Serial set digital collection, 1789-1979 This link opens in a new windowRead our Congressional profiles to gain an understanding of the historical context of each Congressional term, including an overview of party divisions and leadership, economic conditions, conflicts, major laws, Landmark Supreme Court cases and major events.
- Google Scholar This link opens in a new windowProvides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. Results are limited to just scholarly sources. It includes content from academic websites such as publishers, universities and professional associations. It will find presentations, Word documents, and other file types not typically found in other databases.
- Findlaw: Cases and CodesThis site provides information for both federal and state laws. The information covers resources pertaining to constitutions, statutes, cases and more.
- Avalon Project at the Yale Law School This link opens in a new windowA rich compendium of primary documents relevant to the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government. Materials in this collection date from antiquity to the 20th century. Some of the text, especially the most recent ones, link to supporting documents expressly referred to in the body of the text.
- GovInfo This link opens in a new windowFDsys provides online access to Congressional Bills, the Congressional Record, the Federal Register, Federal Bulletin Board, GAO Reports, GAO Comptroller General Decisions, GILS Records, the Monthly Catalog, Privacy Act Notices, and the U.S. Code.
- Legal Information InstituteCornell University resource for online legal information.
- Law Library of CongressProviding access to government resources, current, and global news related to Law.
- Congress.gov (Previously "Thomas")Provided by the Library of Congress. This site makes federal legislative information freely available to the public.
- National Agriculture Law CenterSponsored by the University of Arkansas - providing links to major statutes, regulations, case law, Federal Register Digest reports, Center-published research articles, notes and bibliographies, government publications, Congressional publications, and numerous other research resources on topics related to agricultural and food law.
- NOLO - Legal SolutionsThis site provides access to selected legal forms, a lawyer directory, and a number of free articles.
- United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law This link opens in a new windowAn international and multilingual multimedia resource for teaching, studying, and researching international law.
- Congressional Research Service Reports This link opens in a new windowThe Congressional Research Service (CRS) serves as shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. CRS approaches complex topics from a variety of perspectives and examines all sides of an issue, writing the reports for legislators. Staff members analyze current policies and present the impact of proposed policy alternatives.
- Congressional Digest Debates This link opens in a new windowAn independent, scholarly publication featuring controversies before Congress. Congressional Digest is not an official organ, nor is it controlled by any party, interest, class or sect.
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Encyclopedias
Aside from the general encylopedia's listed below, the library collection also has topical encyclopedia's such as the Encyclopedia of ethical, legal, and policy issues in biotechnology. Try searching the catalog for specific topics of interest.
- Guide to American Law: Everyone's Legal EncyclopediaDesigned for general use. This encyclopedia is arranged alphabetically with detailed indexing at the end of each volume.
REF KF156 .G77 1983
Librarian
Credo Reference: Criminology & Law
Credo Reference helps you start your law research with dictionaries of legal terms, handbooks in criminology, and histories of key cases.
HeinOnline Resources
- Research GuidesThis libGuides and the database A-Z list on the right pane are a great way to learn more about database content and interface functionality.
- HeinOnline Blog"Peruse the HeinOnline Blog to discover endless content relating to numerous disciplines, including law, history, international relations, criminal justice, human rights, and many more."