Supreme Court Paper Resources
Library Home -- Research Guides Page
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Databases |
Print |
Websites |
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Gale e-Books For online access to Supreme Court reference books. Look under History, Law, and Nation and World headings ProQuest Historical Newspapers For Op-Ed/Editorial: Four major newspapers dating back to 1850. ProQuest Newspapers For current Op-Ed/Editorial: Several current newspapers. Opposing Viewpoints For background and case significance and analysis Facts on File For background and case significance and analysis JSTOR: scholarly journals only, may have case analysis SEE BELOW for search hints. |
Your Librarians will
place these books, and more, on reserve near the reference desk. Books will
remain in the library, but may be checked out overnight and returned before
8:15 a.m. the following day. - Reference books exist to
help you in choosing a case, or to find Statistical information about case
decisions - Books on the history of
Supreme Court, and
biographical information for important Justices. - Case-specific books on
selected cases. -Landmark Cases series that discuss key cases on topics like Civil
Rights, Abortion, Education, Freedom of Speech, etc. SEE BELOW for a detailed description of some of the
books available, or see a Librarian for help. |
http://www.supremecourtus.gov/ This is the actual site for the US Supreme Court http://www.oyez.org/ - multimedia archive of US Supreme Court cases. Includes podcasts and transcripts of arguments , browse by justice, issue or term. http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/
- Legal Information Institute, http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/cases/historic.htm
One of the best websites on this subject emanates from http://supcourt.ntis.gov/ - FedWorld/FLITE offers full text Supreme Court decisions from 1937-1975 seachable by case name or full text. http://www.findlaw.com/casecode/supreme.html - FindLaw searchable database of Supreme Court decisions since 1893. Searchable by year, U.S. Reports volume number, citation, case title and full text. http://www.supremecourthistory.org/ - History and workings of the Supreme Court http://www.llrx.com/features/supremectwebguide.htm - Webguide to US Supreme Court research. This is a collection of links to other websites that cover the supreme court. http://scdb.wustl.edu/index.php - The Supreme Court Database contains over two hundred pieces of information about each case decided by the Court between the 1953 and 2008 terms. |
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Search Tips |
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- Some databases allow you to limit your search to “Editorial”. This can be helpful in finding an Op-Ed. -
Limiting the - Select “Full Text” results when you can in the Databases. - Change your search parameters to “Document Text” instead of “Abstract” if you have limited search results. - Prepare yourself to search using more than just the Case Name as your search term. Use names of the key figures in the case, aspects of the subject of the case, etc. - Don’t judge articles strictly by their titles. Read the articles, or at least Scan their text for your key terms. - Sometimes a non-editorial article that provides detailed analysis of the significance and impact of a case is also acceptable. . |
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Print Sources:
The following books are on reserve behind
the circulation desk in the library for you to review – please see the
librarian for check out procedure.
Actual case documents:
347.
73 Lan Landmark Decisions of the
Edited into plain non-legal English for the general reader. The actual text of 12 major US Supreme Court decisions included in each volume.
347.302 Civ Civil Rights Decisions of the United States
Supreme court the 19th century
Edited version of the official texts that provide a
brief history of the case; the opinion expressed by the Justice chosen to speak
for the majority and a bibliography. The
first of two volumes, features the Supreme Court’s
most important civil rights decisions for the years 1831-1896. It covers the post-Revolutionary War period
through the American Civil War into the reconstruction Era and up to the turn of
the Century. This book is divided into
three sections: The Native Americans,
The African Americans; Chinese American Cases.
347.302 Civ Civil Rights Decisions of the United States
Supreme Court the 20th century
Edited version of the official texts that provide a
brief history of the case; the opinion expressed by the Justice chosen to speak
for the majority and a bibliography. The
second of a two volume set, features the most important civil rights decisions
issued from the turn of the century through the present day. It is divided into two sections: the Japanese
American Decisions and the African American Decisions.
363.4 Abo Abortion Abortion347.302 Civ c.2 Civil Rights Decisions of the
363.4 Abo Abortion
Decisions of Supreme Court the 20th century
363.4 Abo Abortion
Decisions of the
Edited versions of the official texts issues by the
Supreme Court that provide the majority opinion of the Court as expressed by
the chief Justice chosen to speak for the Court as well as all concurring and
dissenting opinions of the Justices and a complete copy of the U.S.Constitution to which all decisions refer follows the
abortion decisions. This Abortion
Decision series features major abortion decisions issued in the decade noted.
REF 347.73 FIN Landmark
decisions of the
Comprehensive reference of landmark cases and the decisions they rendered.
Reference:
REF 437.73 SUP The Supreme Court Compendium 3rd ed.
Data, Decisions & Developments, 2003
Comprehensive collection of data and relevant information on the Supreme Court including characteristics of the Court and its members, to the environment in which it operates, to the public’s views on its decisions and perceptions about the Court itself.
REF 347.73 SHU The Encyclopedia of the Supreme Court, 2005
Reference source that provides an overview of the major cases, concepts, and issues and of the personalities who have shaped it and American politics. Seeks to demystify the Court.
REF 348.73 Oxf
c2. The
Guide to analyze on an individual basis the 440 most important cases in the Court’s history. Source sheds light on the evolution of constitutional law and also maps the nation’s underlying social, cultural, and political dynamics.
Non –fiction:
347.73 BAL The Supreme Court in the intimate Lives of Americans: Birth, Sex, marriage, Childrearing and Death, Howard Ball, 2002
Discusses the Court’s role in topics which relate to the most private, intimate areas of the lives of American citizens.
347.7326 Baum The Supreme Court 2nd ed., Lawrence Baum, 1985
Provides an understanding of that most important political institution - a short but comprehensive source. Describes the basic workings of the Court and offers explanations for the behavior and the people and institutions that affect the Court.
347.73 GRE Great American Trials, 1994
Provides readers with a brief, accurate, and readable summary of the most significant and celebrated trials in U.S. History.
347.73 Iro A People’s History of the Supreme Court, Peter Irons, 1999
Represents scrupulous record of legal scholarship and the history of the Supreme Court and its decisions. It delves into cases that Professor Irons uncovered in the course of his research and illustrates the abiding concern for human rights, sometime violated by the law, sometimes upheld.
342.73 The Courage of their Convictions: Sixteen Americans who fought their way to the Supreme Court, Peter Irons, 1990
Study of sixteen individual cases and the people behind them that made their way to the Supreme Court told by esteemed professor of constitutional law.
347.73 Capitol games: Clarence Thomas, Anita Hill, and the Story of a Supreme Court Nomination, Timothy Phelps and Helen Winternitz, 1992
presents the series of tumultuous events that led to Clarence Thomas’s elevation to the Supreme Court
347.7326 Rehniqui The Supreme Court: How it was; How it is, William Rehnquist, 1940
Personal insights into the workings and history as well as the decisions of this institution told from an insider’s point of view. It is an effort to understand the territory between American history and constitutional law and includes a portrayal of some important justices.
347.732 Schwart A History of the Supreme Court, Bernard Schwartz, 1993
Chronological history of the Court in relation to the development of the nation. Seeks to show the Court as a mirror and a motor- reflecting the development of the society which it serves.
347.73 Sup The Supreme Court A to Z 2nd ed, 1998 Congressional Quarterly’s ready reference Encyclopedia of American Government
Provides a comprehensive accessible source of information about history , powers and operations of the three branches of governments
347.73 Woo The Brethren: Inside the Supreme Court, Bob Woodward, 1975
Detailed behind the scenes account of the Supreme Court’s landmark decisions over the late 1950’s through the late 1970’s.
Database Resources:
Note on periodical literature: offers very opinionated but useful discussions of cases. Students should learn to discern biases inherent in these articles.
The following databases can be access from the GCS Library Homepage: The search strategy here is based on a generic keyword search on “civil rights” and the “Supreme court”. Once you’ve identified your specific civil right case – then you would enter that in a keyword search to retrieve articles specific to your case.
I. Opposing Viewpoints:
Using the Advanced Search mode: enter terms supreme court (keyword) and
civil rights (keyword) or your specific case/topic
Important Note: The results of your search can be retrieved
in three different
formats: Viewpoint
essays; Referencereference: Magazines &
Newspapers; Web sites etc by clicking on those tabs at
the top of your result lists.
The articles/essays retrieve are list chronologically most recent articles first – going back.
II.
Proquest Databases
Option 1. linking directly into eLibrary
Curriculum Edition:
There are three tabs for different type of searches: Search;
Topics; Reference.
A. Search:
Access: Enter terms: “Supreme Court” and “Civil Rights” (or your specific case/topic) You should check the Boolean Operator option. You can use the advanced search feature. You can sort your results by relevance (the default); date, etc
Content: Generates items in a number of different formats noted in top tabs.
B: Topics:
Access: Go to Government and click United States Government; Then go to Judical Branch and click Supreme Court.
Content: Individual links to information on the following – Current Justices; Directories of Opinions (this is especially helpful link as it contain a number of additional links to quality web sites); Featured Justices; Landmark Decisions; Reference of Justices; Supreme Court General Info
C. Reference:
Access: Enter Supreme Court as search term.
Content: A variety of entries from reference sources
Option 2.
Access: Click eLibrary Curriculum and go into the link on left hand side of page for “History” this is the access point for the History Study Center. Enter “supreme court” in the search box and retrieve a variety of sources: Study Units; Historical documents; Maps and reference; multimedia and journals. Click each source to retrieve information in that format.
III. Proquest Platinum
Access: Enter search terms “Supreme Court” and “Civil Rights” (or your specific case/topic) You may want to limit by full text and scholarly journal – peer reviewed.
Content: A variety of articles on this general topic including subject heading listing.
IV. SIRS Knowledge Source
Access: Click SIRS Knowledge Source.
Enter search term: Supreme Court as either a subject or a keyword/natural language search. Results in subject deal with individual cases in certain subjects; results in keyword deal with information about the court and decisions in a variety of formats: newspapers, magazines, gov doc, primary sources, references, graphics and webselect sites.