Cases - First Year Legal Research - 2024-2025 - Research Guides at Vanderbilt University

Introductory Considerations

Case law is the collection of reported cases that form the body of law within a given jurisdiction. It is based upon judicial opinions by various courts, which may set future precedent. As legal researchers, we research and look for cases because:

Interpret the law: cases interpret constitutions and statutes
Formulate common law: cases formulate common l aw (law derived from judicial precedent instead of statutes adn regulations)
Hierarchy of authority: cases are the third highest source of law in the United States (after Constitutions and Statutes)
Easy to find when using secondary sources: annotated versions of codes and statutes will provide you with citations and references to relevant cases.

The following pages will help you to understand:

Additional Case Law Research Guides

Georgetown Law Library Case Law Research Tutorial
Understanding and researching U.S. case law.
NYU Law Library Case Law Research Guide
This guide provides information on Case Law Research, and identifies pertinent print and online resources.
UCLA Federal Case Law Research Guide
This guide is intended to familiarize the user with the U.S. court structure, publication of federal decisions, and finding the text of federal cases. Primary sources are listed throughout this document, as well as some important Internet sites.