In certain areas of law, it benefits states to have similar legislative approaches. Sometimes states pass virtually identical acts, known as uniform laws, to reduce the confusion caused by conflicting state statutes. But how do they decide what makes up these uniform laws, and how can we research them? The Uniform Law Commission (ULC) is …
A court case involves more than just the final opinion. Many documents are created during active cases that are useful for research, including briefs, trial transcripts, jury instructions, and more. These can be found in the court docket. The materials in a docket can reveal what arguments persuaded the court and contextualize factual issues that …
LawDroid’s Copilot is a new law-trained large language model (LLM.) It works similar to ChatGPT, but is made specifically for legal research and analysis. It’s now available for free to law students (registration is available here.) To register, you need to sign up using your UNC email to confirm that you are a law student. …
Nothing helps fight the anxiety of a job interview like preparation. If you are interviewing for a job at a law firm, you have a powerful ally on your side: legal analytics. You can use analytics to find helpful statistics on law firms or individual attorneys that can: (1) help you decide if that firm …
As of early January, academic Westlaw Edge accounts transitioned to Westlaw Precision. This update brings some new research features as well as a new homepage layout: This post will cover a few easy ways to customize your Westlaw homepage to better suit your needs and help you get into your most-used resources faster. Changing the …
One of the more difficult parts of legal research can be navigating the complicated structure of the government, especially if you are doing research involving administrative agencies. Government manuals are underutilized resources that provide nuts-and-bolts details like organizational charts, staffing information, department histories, and more. They can save you a lot of time by compiling …
If you are taking an RWE class this semester, enrolled in one of UNC’s dual degree programs, or an externship, you may need to complete some non-legal research. Luckily, UNC libraries provide a plethora of helpful resources to help you complete research in any field. First, don’t forget to take advantage of the law library’s resources! That includes …
With classes beginning this week at the law school, there is one thing on everyone’s mind: the Bluebook! Especially for first year students, the Bluebook can feel labyrinthian and intimidating. Luckily, members of the UNC law community have access to many helpful resources for brushing up on citation writing. First, here are some helpful training …
The Law Library has recently added two new packages of digital study aids to our extensive digital study aid collection. Some particularly popular highlights include One L of a Year: How to Maximize Your Success in Law School by Leah M. Christensen; Constitutional Law, Principles and Policies by Erwin Chemerinsky; and Civil Procedure by Richard …
Last week, the Supreme Court agreed to hear two cases about the role of race in college admissions, including one case involving UNC. These cases—due to the new makeup of the Supreme Court—could signal a significant change in the law surrounding race conscious college admissions programs. So, if you want to know more about the …
