Law collections
Information about:
The Wills Memorial Libraryhouses most of the law collection though other relevant material may be found in the Arts and Social Sciences library, the Geography library or the Medical library
Books
- Books on legal subjects are kept on the gallery floor of the law wing of the Wills Memorial Library. They are shelved by classmark, a summary of which is available online, and also just inside the law library wing next to the stairs :
- Law Classification Summary (Word, 24Kb)
- Law Classification Detail (Word, 64Kb)
- Use the library's online catalogue to find the classmark of a particular item. Online help in using the catalogue is available from the library's web pages or from leaflets available in all libraries.
- A collection of our more heavily used books are kept behind the issue desk in the Short Loan Collection. These are denoted in the catalogue by status 'SLC 3 hour loan'. Make a note of the classmark of the book you require and ask for it at the issue counter. An alphabetical list (by author) of books held in the SLC is available at the issue counter.
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Law reports
In print
- Major cases are published as law reports, and the library holds printed copies of a number of different general and specialist series. A full list is available (with abbreviations) online, and also just inside the law wing on the left hand side after the stairs.:
- Law Serials List (Word, 1321kb)
- Law reports are shelved by classmark on the right side of the ground floor of the law wing in the Wills Memorial Library and are confined to the library. Use the library's online catalogue to check printed law report series holdings.
In electronic format
- Many law report series are now available via online databases. The databases can be used to search for individual cases. Please note that if you want to access these databases from a non-University of Bristol computer, you will need to set up the off-site proxy on your computer.
- Westlaw contains official law reports including WLR, CMLR, FSR, LloydsLR, RPC etc. Search the Westlaw Case tab using party names or free text for a summary of the case (with link to full text in many instances). This will also tell you which subsequent cases have cited it, any legislation referred to, and also any relevant journal articles.
- Lexis Library like Westlaw, also contains official law reports including AllER, EG,FamLR, IRLR etc. Search the Lexis Case tab for a summary of the case (with link to full text in many instances). This will also tell you which subsequent cases have cited it, any legislation referred to, and also any relevant journal articles.
- Lawtel contains case reports and summaries since 1980 with links to official court transcripts where available. It is very current with case summaries often appearing within 24 hours of judgment.
- English Reports, available on Westlaw as well as in print, contains important English cases from 1220 to 1873.
- BAILII is a free resource and contains case reports from 1996 onwards. It is not comprehensive but does contain some tribunal cases not reported in the commercial databases. It is also very current with cases often appearing here within a day of judgment. It is often the best place to find transcripts of unreported cases.
- Further help with legal abbreviations can be found using the Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations
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Journal articles
- Sometimes referred to as serials or periodicals, journals contain articles and are published at regular intervals, usually several times a year and often weekly or monthly. To find a specific article, you will need to know which journal it comes from as individual articles are not generally included in the library catalogue.
Print Journals
Electronic Journals
- Use the Library's eJournals catalogue to search for a journal title. The Get it button will take you through to full text online if available at University of Bristol
- Many legal eJournals are available in Westlaw, Lexis Library, HeinOnline or Business Source Complete. Most of the journal titles will appear in the eJournals search, but you may wish to check the individual databases as well. If you want to access these databases from a non-University of Bristol computer, you will need to set up the off-site proxy on your computer.
Finding articles on a particular subject
- For legal topics, search under the Journals tab in Westlaw, or Lexis Library, or the Law Journal Library in HeinOnline. Full text may be available within the database. If not check the eJournals catalogue for online titles, and the library catalogue for print titles. For articles on a wider range of topics use one of the bibliographic databases listed on the Internet links page.
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Official publications
Parliamentary papers
From 2006/7, all House of Commons and House of Lords papers and bills as well as Command Papers and debates of standing committees are available from the Public Information Online database. For publications prior to this date use House of Commons Parliamentary Papers database or Official Documents and Official Documents Archive websites. Further details can be found on the Government Publications page. Access to Parliamentary papers (including reports produced by Select Committees) can also be found at the Parliament website The Parliament website also includes a wealth of information about Parliament, Parliamentary business and the progress of current and draft Bills before Parliament
Law Commission reports
are listed on the library catalogue and many (not all) are kept in the Wills Memorial Library on the gallery above the Enquiry Desk. In addition Law Commission reports from 1996 onwards are available electronically on the Law Commission website.
Legislation
Print versions of statutes and statutory instruments as enacted can be found in the Wills Memorial Library at classmark KF21-22 and statutes and statutory instruments as amended at KF23.H1
Electronic versions of statutes and statutory instruments are available from a number of sources - see Internet links, Primary Legal Materials section for details
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Exam papers
Exam papers for the last three years are held in the Wills Memorial Library in the reference bookshelf by the Issue Counter.
They are also available via the General Student Information section of the University of Bristol Law School Blackboard. In addition some individual units contain the past three years papers within the individual unit pages, together with feedback on previous years' assessment.
Theses
PhD theses relating to law are kept in the Osborne Clarke Room in the Wills Library. Please consult staff at the Issue Desk if you would like to use one. Note that use of theses is confined to the library.
Special collections
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