Getting Started
This guide is a curated list of Daemen Library resources to help you get started with research in law or legal issues. When navigating this guide, it's important to understand the distinction between primary and secondary sources of law.
Credo Reference
Find background information using Credo, an alternative to Wikipedia with reliable information that you can cite in your papers.
Primary vs. Secondary Sources of Law
Primary legal sources are the actual law in the form of constitutions, court cases, statutes, and administrative rules and regulations.
A good place to start most research projects is with a secondary source. A secondary source is not the law. It may describe, explain, interpret, or critique the law. A secondary source can be used for three different purposes: it might educate you about the law, it might direct you to the primary law, or it might serve as persuasive authority.
Westlaw
For legal research at Daemen, you'll be using Westlaw - a comprehensive legal research database that includes both primary and secondary materials, including case law, statutes, administrative materials, treatises and more.
Paralegal students given Westlaw accounts will be able to access Westlaw Edge, a more premium and professional flavor of Westlaw. All other Daemen students, faculty, and staff have access to Westlaw Campus Research.
- WestLaw EdgeAvailable only to Paralegal students with Westlaw login. Students without a Westlaw Edge loging should use Westlaw Campus Research.
Learning Tools
- CALICALI (Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction) contains tutorials, casebooks, and software tools for formative assessment.
PAR students: See instructor or contact a librarian for authorization code to access homework.