Whether you’re working on a summer internship, building research skills for practice, or simply looking to save on database fees in your future practice, there are lots of quality legal research tools beyond Lexis and Westlaw. Below is a curated list of free and reduced-cost legal resources, along with guides to help you navigate them.
📚 Start Here: Research Guides
Before diving into databases, check out these comprehensive guides for strategies and sources:
- Online Legal Research: Beyond LexisNexis & Westlaw – UCLA School of Law
- Free & Low-Cost Legal Research – Georgetown Law Library
- Zief Law Library Guide to Free and Low-Cost Legal Research — USF School of Law
⚖️ California Legal Materials (Free Access)
Cases
- Published/Citable Opinions (via Lexis, 1850–Present)
- Recent Slip Opinions (Non-Searchable)
- Google Scholar – California Case Law (use Advanced Search)
Codes
Legislative Information
Regulations
Court Rules
Ethics & Professional Responsibility
Jury Instructions
Judicial Council Forms
🇺🇸 Federal Legal Materials (Free Access)
Cases – U.S. Supreme Court
- Supreme Court Opinions (Official Site)
- Library of Congress Opinions Archive
- Google Scholar – U.S. Supreme Court
- FindLaw Supreme Court Decisions
- LII’s Supreme Court Collection
- Justia Supreme Court Opinions
Cases – Court of Appeals
- Google Scholar – Federal Courts
- GovInfo – Court of Appeals
- FindLaw Cases – Circuit Courts
- Ninth Circuit Site
- Northern District of California
Codes
- U.S. Code – Office of the Law Revision Counsel
- GovInfo U.S. Code
- LII – U.S. Code
- FindLaw’s U.S. Code
Legislative Information
Regulations
- Code of Federal Regulations – GovInfo
- e-CFR
- Federal Register – GovInfo
- Regulations.gov
- Justia – Regulations
Court Information
💸 Low-Cost Subscription Databases
- HeinOnline – Includes law journal archives, U.S. Code, CFR, legislative histories, treaties, and more.
- Collections include:
- American Law Institute Library (Restatements)
- U.S. Attorney General Opinions
- U.S. Statutes at Large
- U.S. Supreme Court Library
- United Nations Law Collection
- Federal Agency Decisions and Appeals
- U.S. Congressional Documents
📍 Public Law Libraries (Bay Area)
Need help outside of Zief? These public law libraries are great local options:
- San Francisco Law Library – (415) 554-6821
- Alameda County Law Library – (510) 208-4832
- Marin County Law Library – (415) 472-3733
- Santa Clara County Law Library – (408) 299-3567
- Sonoma County Law Library – (707) 565-2668
- Sacramento County Public Law Library – (916) 874-6012
- Solano County Law Library – (707) 421-6520
- San Mateo County Law Library – (650) 363-4913
Have questions about navigating these tools or want a one-on-one research consult? Stop by the reference desk, email us at lawlibrarians@usfca.edu, or book a time to chat with a librarian. Happy researching!