The purpose of this column is not to teach you how to use the law library to perform legal research (something very few lawyers know how to do efficiently), but to give you enough information so that you can locate the legal materials cited in Nursing Law & Ethics. To locate most references cited in this newsletter, you will have to use a law library. The first rule of research in any unfamiliar library is, of course, to ask the reference librarian for assistance.

All law schools have substantial libraries, as do many local bar associations. To obtain admission to the law library of your local law school, you may need special permission from the school or the assistance of a law student. Once inside, you will discover the principal problem with writing about “the law” in the United States: each of the 50 states has its own court system and legislature, and therefore, each has its own set of statutes and case reporters. Superimposed on this structure is a system of federal district courts and federal appeals courts.