Locate a Relevant Statute with a Legal Database

When locating statutes that do not possess an adequate citation, there are a few options you may consider. These include: consultation of a "table of popular names," conducting of a search of a "statutory index," and the application of a "full-text search" within a "digital database."

The popular names table can be found at the conclusion of "statutory codes." In this way, when locating statutes without a citation, yet possessing a "common name" of reference, you may, thus, locate it.

The tables, themselves, are organized in alphabetical order according to the "popular titles," where the citations of "session law" and "affected code sections will reside. Such a search may also be done by way of West Law and Lexis-Nexis. Locating statutes within indexes will necessitate the use of key terms in order to focus your search toward the relevant statute.

These indexes will be available only on West Law, however, in contrast to Lexis-Nexis. "Full-text searching" assists in locating statutes with the employment of exactness in language used. The terms you use while searching are, then, vital to your acquirement of the appropriate statutes.

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