• Made up of individual articles called “annotations”
• Attorney authors
• Narrow legal topics with summaries of relevant cases by jurisdiction
• ALR Index covers all but 1^st series, which has its own index
• Updated by pocket parts

• + Annotations have detailed summaries for many of the cases discussed & usually have in-depth analysis
• + Good overview of how courts throughout the country deal with a particular issue
• - On-point annotation may not exist
• - On-point annotation may not provide much authority for your jurisdiction, or may be out of date

• Individual reports on current political and legal issues
• Objective analysis on a public policy topic
• CRS is a branch of the Library of Congress
• Individual publication numbers (order codes)

• + Reports provide in-depth analysis of a specific topic
• + Good overview of legislation that may be involved
• - On-point report may not exist
• - Updates to a report may depend on individual author, may be out of date

ProQuest Congressional

http://opencrs.com

• Alphabetical arrangement
• Broad topics
• Jurisdiction varies (can be national or state-specific)
• Multiple authors
• Multi-volume subject index

• + Good overview of law on a variety of topics
• + National provides a sense of how different jurisdictions are treating a topic
• + State focuses on single jurisdiction
• - Not much in-depth discussion of cases
• - National may not provide much (if any) authority for your jurisdiction
• - State limited to one jurisdiction

• Aimed at attorneys and judges
• Provide sample forms with commentary
• Usually large multi-volume sets
• Transactional or litigation focus
• Forms may be incorporated into other resources

• + Provides model language and guidance that may save you drafting time
• + Focus on specific jurisdiction may be available
• - Model language cannot be used as-is, must be adapted to situation at-hand

Am. Jur. Pleading and Practice Forms

Print
Lexis (coverage varies)
Westlaw (coverage varies)

• In-depth scholarly articles by law faculty or law students
• Tend to analyze current issues
• Published by law schools
• Use periodical index or full text database to find articles

• + Provides critical legal analysis and policy arguments
• + Discusses emerging trends in law
• - Rarely provides a general explanation or overview of the law
• - Law school journal editorial boards are students; few peer-reviewed law periodicals
• - Articles are not updated

Full text: Print, Lexis, Westlaw, Hein Online (dates of coverage vary)

Subject indices: LegalTrac, Index to Legal Periodicals

• Single-subject focus, heavily-regulated areas
• Updated frequently, as often as weekly
• Practitioner audience
• Compile primary materials and analysis
• Newsletter or interfiled-page format

• + Exhaustive coverage of complicated areas of law
• + Provides most current information available
• + In-depth explanations often accompany primary materials
• - Not as useful for how-to guidance
• - May be overwhelming if unfamiliar with the area of law

Standard Federal Tax Reporter (CCH)

Checkpoint (tax titles)
CCH Intelliconnect (coverage varies)
BNA (coverage varies)

• Single-subject focus in a particular jurisdiction
• Practitioner audience—written by and for practicing attorneys
• Court rules included
• May contain checklists, tips, sample forms

• + Provides how-to guidance in plain language
• + Includes many practice-oriented tools
• - Updated less frequently, often annually
• - Primary law only highlighted if relevant for practice

• Detailed analysis on one subject
• Scholar authors
• Often updated by pocket parts and/or supplements
• Available in multiple formats
• Single or multi-volume with index

• + Exhaustive analysis
• + Discusses many jurisdictions
• + Fair amount of discussion of cases
• - May not cover your jurisdiction 
• - Not all treatises are authoritative, comprehensive, current, and well-organized

Corbin on Contracts  

McCarthy on Trademarks and Unfair Competition

Print
Lexis (coverage varies)
Westlaw (coverage varies)

Treatises at UCI Law