Publications

Illinois Bar Journal
Articles on Finding Illinois Law

Beyond the Regs: Illinois Administrative Law Online By Tom Gaylord July 2007 Column, Page 382 A look at state agency Web sites that offer the agency's administrative decisions and more.
New Legislative History Resources By Tom Gaylord May 2007 Column, Page 268 Debate transcripts and more are on the General Assembly's Web site.
Finding Illinois Municipal Ordinances Online By Tom Gaylord March 2007 Column, Page 156 They can be hard to come by online - here's where to find them.
Fastcase: A Legal Research Tool Whose Time Has Come By Thomas Keefe January 2007 Column, Page 46 A summary of ISBA's free research offering.
Legal Research and the Threat of the Available By Thomas Keefe November 2006 Column, Page 618 Is print research disappearing in the age of Google?
A Primer on the General Assembly's Web Site By Thomas Keefe September 2006 Column, Page 504 It's now an excellent starting point for research.
Federal Government Info on the Web By Thomas Keefe July 2006 Column, Page 382 Much of the primary federal law once available only for a fee is now free on the Web.
Internet Legal Portals By Thomas Keefe May 2006 Column, Page 264 A look at some leading one-stop-shopping centers of legal research. 
What Search Engines Can - and Can't - Do for You By Thomas Keefe March 2006 Column, Page 152 Internet search engines are important research tools, but take care to learn their limitations.
Using the Internet for Legal Research By Thomas Keefe January 2006 Column, Page 46 The net is best used as a compliment to, not replacement for, traditional sources of legal information.
Illinois Ethics Opinions on the Internet By Thomas Keefe November 2005 Column, Page 596 There's plenty of material about Illinois ethics law on the 'Net, much of it freely available
Finding Haystacks: Context in Legal Research By Thomas Keefe September 2005 Column, Page 484 A necessary first step in legal research is to identify what an answer might look like and where one might find it.
Researching Illinois Administrative Law in the Electronic Age By Thomas Keefe July 2005 Column, Page 364 The Illinois Administrative Code is on the Net.
The 80/20 Rule of Legal Research By Thomas Keefe May 2005 Column, Page 258 The 80/20 rule has implications for how you do–and pay for–legal research.
Lexis and Westlaw Lite By Thomas Keefe March 2005 Column, Page 146 The Big Two legal data providers offer more affordable options than ever.
Books in Space – Online Versions of Print Publications By Thomas Keefe January 2005 Column, Page 42 Your familiar print resources are probably online, where they're more powerful than ever.
What are "Books" and Why Do We Need Them? By Thomas Keefe November 2004 Column, Page 598 The question isn't whether to use books, it's how.
Illinois Agencies on the Web By Phill Johnson September 2004 Column, Page 493 More and more information is available on state agency Web sites, much of it useful to lawyers and – best of all – free.
Finding Legal Briefs Online By Thomas Keefe July 2004 Column, Page 373 Someone else's brief can serve as the starting point; maybe even the foundation; for yours. But how do you find one? Here are some possibilities.
At Last, a New Guidebook for Illinois Legal Researchers By Phill Johnson May 2004 Column, Page 271 Here's review of the first new Illinois legal research tome in well over a decade.
Have Online Citators Made Print Obsolete? By Phill Johnson March 2004 Column, Page 155 Have we reached the point that using print citators to track the subsequent treatment of a case begs a malpractice suit?
Getting Your Research Bearings; Dead Reckoning v the Sextant By Paul D. Callister January 2004 Column, Page 49 Sometimes research still works best with books, and sometimes it works better on the computer. We're still trying to figure out why and when.
Free on the 'Net: FindLaw, LexisONE and More By Phill Johnson November 2003 Column, Page 579 West Group and LexisNexis both offer free online research services that, while much more modest than Lexis and Westlaw, are well worth visiting.
The "Science" of Citation Analysis By Paul D. Callister September 2003 Column, Page 473 Is legal research a science grounded in precise measurements or is it an art based on subjective editorial judgments? And does it matter?
How to Find Jury Instructions By Phill Johnson July 2003 Column, Page 361 Jury instructions aren't hard to find in print, but you'll have less luck searching online.
Legal Research and the Ballad of John Henry By Paul D. Callister May 2003 Column, Page 261 The rise of electronic sources has changed legal research forever, and it may be changing the nature of law itself.
Using the 'Net to Research Illinois Legislative History By Phill Johnson March 2003 Column, Page 147 Thanks to the General Assembly's Web site, researching recent legislative history is easier than ever. Here's a step-by-step guide.
Working the Problem By Paul D. Callister January 2003 Column, Page 43 Some leading litigation-related online resources.
Litigation Resources on the 'Net for Illinois Lawyers By Adria P. Olmi July 2002 Column, Page 381 Some leading litigation-related online resources.
Internet Resources for Illinois Corporate and Securities Lawyers By Adria P. Olmi May 2002 Column, Page 267 Here are some of the helpful Internet resources; most of them free; for corporate and securities lawyers.
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