Federal Statutory Law:Background
Statutes Timeline
1.Slip Laws 2.Session Laws 3.Codes
Cons of Session Laws
Amendments are not included; so they may not be current status of law; arranged chronologically (cannot find a law by subject)
Code (federal example)
Code-organized by Title>Section in the USC ex. 42 USC §2000e
Sources for Statutes (Federal)
Federal (Divided into 51 Titles or broad areas of law) a.U.S.C. >Official version from government GPO b.U.S.C.A. >Commercial, annotated version from Westlaw c.U.S.C.S >Commercial, annotated version from Lexis d. Online >Official Use www.GPOACCESS.gov
Where can you find the current state of the law?
Federal Statutes/Codes 1. USC 2.USCA 3.USCS
Sources for Statutes (State)
Individual states codes (usually has term statute or code in title)
Pros of Session laws
Legislative history- you can see original language of law or piece together exactly what law applied for your cause of actions
Slip Law (federal example)
Slip Law-Assigned Public Law # ex. Pub.Law 108-364 (364th law passed in the 108th congress)
Slip Laws
a.Single law exactly as published b.First Publication c.Published in chronological order
Session Law (federal example)
United States Statutes at Large (stat.) citation ex. 118 Stat. 1707 (1707th page in volume 108)
Federal Statutes can be both, either/or
a.Substantive Laws b.Procedural Law (requirements for filing, rules, etc)
Anatomy of a statute
a.Title Outline b.Chapter Outline c.Section number and Title d.Statutory Language e.Brief History (Dates of passage and amendments with cites to session laws) f.Annotations
Codes (current law) summary
a.Arranged by subject b.Current Law c.Ordered by title or subject name and section d.Amendments reflected in statutory language e.Used for current law research
Session Laws
a.Bound version of all laws passed in a session of congress. b.Arranged chronologically by legislative session (by order of law passed c.Snapshot of law on the day it was passed (no amendments)
Session Law summary
a.Chronologically Arranged b.Law on Date it was passed c.Ordered by year and chapter or congress and law # passed d.Amendments not reflected in original passage e.Used for history of the law or to see organization of act before divided up by subject.
Annotated
a.Commercially Published b.Statutory Language c.Historical notes d.Statutory notes e.Cross-references to other sections f.Library references g.Notes of Decisions h.Use of continuing research
what can you find in the "codes"?
a.Constitution b.Rules c.Statutes They are arranged by subject (Title = broad legal topic; Sections = narrow area within topic)
Annotations
a.Detailed history of how amendments affected law b.References to secondary sources on point c.Topic Name & Key Number (Westlaw case research tool) d.If applicable, administrative law citations e.Practice material references f.Summaries of cases interpreting statute (arranged by topic)
Jurisdictions
a.Federal b.State (all 50 States have own constitution and statues) c.Local (county, city, etc)
Codes
a.Law as it currently exists (amendments are folded in) b.Includes statutes, court rules and constitution c.Arranged by subject d.Ordered by: Federal= Title>Section State = Title or Subject Name >Section
Unannotated
a.Often Published by state b.Statutory language c.Brief History notes