This resource compiled by the Ontario barrister and solicitor Bill Henderson provides legal materials relating to aboriginals from Canada, the United States, New Zealand and Australia. It includes constitutions, legislation and court decisions.
Originally written by Margaret Greville, formerly Law Librarian at the University of Canterbury (New Zealand), and published on the GlobaLex site, this is a narrative account of the New Zealand legal system and legal research, with hypertext links to the sources mentioned. This updated version by Rosa Polaschek was published January 2019. Earlier editions were titled Introduction to New Zealand Law & Sources of Legal Information.
This site, which focuses on Canadian maritime, admiralty and shipping law, is currently maintained by Darren Williams and Robert Anderson of the British Columbia law firm League and Williams. The subject is divided into categories, listed on the left, and within each category are case summaries, prefaced by an introduction. The relevant Canadian statutes are reproduced and there is a selection of papers and speeches by various authors. There are links to maritime law sites, and some more general ones, from many countries.
Advocate Khoj is a free legal information web portal which helps people find qualified lawyers for their legal needs in India. Its Law Library also provides free access to Acts, Supreme Court judgments, law school information, agreements, forms and a glossary of legal terms.
This Anguilla government site provides company registration and related services, including the full text of selected legislation relating to companies, partnerships, intellectual property and financial services.
The web site of the Ministry of Legal Affairs contains the Revised Laws of Antigua and Barbuda, 1992 and annual laws 1993 onwards, all in PDF format. Selected Statutory Instruments 2006 onwards and Bills before Parliament are also available.
Appleby is a firm which provides offshore legal, fiduciary and administration services from offices in locations worldwide including Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong, Shanghai, the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Mauritius and the Seychelles. Publications on its web site include articles and commentary on recent developments in areas of interest.
This official site is notable in particular for providing the Laws of Malaysia, in PDF format. This incorporates all principal laws enacted after 1969, and pre-1969 laws as revised since then. These are listed numerically with links to full text in both English and Malay. Recent legislation is additionally obtainable using the link to e-Federal Gazette, which contains PDFs of federal legislation gazetted since 2011.
AustLII, the web site of the Australasian Legal Information Institute, provides full-text databases of most Australian decisions and legislation, both of the Commonwealth of Australia (ie federal) and of states and territories, and incorporates links to New Zealand material on the NZLII site. Also included are treaties to which Australia is a party, and access to the full text of nearly a hundred Australian legal journals.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides useful analysis of Australia’s constitutional and legal history, and the administration of justice at Commonwealth and Federal level. The coverage of online resources is extensive, indicating what material is available on subscription-based services and providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
This site is the entry point for information and online services provided by the government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The homepage presents an alphabetical list of subjects which includes “Public Safety and Law”. Under each subject heading are official publications, statements of government policy and links to other relevant sites. At the foot of every page there are links to the web sites of state and territory governments and of local councils.
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) is Australia’s national research and knowledge centre on crime and criminal justice. It publishes frequent reports to aid government in policy-making, which may be found on the web site.
The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC), a federal agency which was established in 1975, conducts inquiries into areas of law reform at the request of the Attorney-General. Most of its Final Reports, 1975 onwards are available free on the web site, as are Discussion Papers 1979 onwards (also selected papers from earlier years), Issues Papers 1996 onwards, and the journal Reform, retitled ALRC Brief in 2011.
This guide, compiled by Robin Gardner of Melbourne University Library, outlines free legal resources for Australian legal research (legislation, case law and secondary sources), and provides links to research guides covering Australian and foreign/international/comparative law. Also included is a section on historical resources.
The Australian Privacy Foundation (APF) is a non-government organisation dedicated to protecting the privacy rights of Australians. The Resources section of its web site contains Commonwealth and State/Territory privacy laws, laws of other countries and international instruments. There is also a directory of associations, media releases and papers published by the Foundation and a history of privacy law and policy. Guidance is given on how – and to whom, depending on the sector or industry concerned – to make a complaint relating to intrusion of privacy.
The Australian Treaties Database (ATD) on the web site of the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade allows access to Australian treaties by subject, type and/or country, or date. Links are provided to multilateral treaty status sites, and there is information on treaties generally and treaty making.
This site, maintained by the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs, contains the Laws of the Bahamas revised to 31 December 2009 (full text, PDF) and annual laws 2010 onwards. (Laws may be browsed by the date of original enactment as well as by volume.)
The Barbados Judicial System site includes a Judgments section providing full text of Court of Appeal and High Court judgments (dates not readily ascertainable), as well as Rules of Court and Practice Directions. The Laws section contains Consolidated Statutes and Subsidiary Legislation of Barbados, Annual Acts 2009 onwards, and Statutory Instruments 2009 onwards.
The Basic Law is the constitutional document of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China. Apart from the text of the Basic Law itself, this site includes background information and a searchable “Basic Law Court Case Database” of decisions relating to its interpretation.
Belize Judiciary is the official web site of the Supreme Court of Belize. Site content includes court rules, practice directions and information on the judges. The following judgments are available – but note that coverage is incomplete for the earlier years: Supreme Court (Criminal) 1977 onwards; Supreme Court (Civil) 1972 onwards; Court of Appeal (Criminal) 1977 onwards; Court of Appeal (Civil) 1987 onwards. In addition there is a link to the online version of the Laws of Belize, revised edition 2000.
This site contains the Revised Laws of Belize, published in 2000. These may be browsed by volume or chapter; alternatively there is a keyword search facility. Each law is a separate PDF document.
The Bermuda Bar Association is the governing body for the (fused) legal profession in Bermuda. Its web site includes the Barristers’ Code of Professional Conduct, lists of individual members and firms and details of continuing legal education programmes, the text of the Bermuda Bar Act, the Bar Disciplinary Tribunal Rules and other relevant legislation and professional rules.
The Laws of Bermuda are provided here as currently in force, and annual Acts and Statutory Instruments are available from 1993 onwards. Texts are fully searchable. Also available are the Constitution of Bermuda 1968 and selected UK Statutory Instruments 2000 onwards applicable to Bermuda.
The official site of the Bermuda Parliament includes Hansard (House of Assembly, not currently Senate) 2010 onwards, Bills, 2011 onwards, Parliamentary Questions, session 2009/10 onwards, Statutory Instruments, 2011 onwards and Ministerial Statements, 2013 onwards.
The British Antarctic Territory (BAT) is the largest British Overseas Territory by area, but has no indigenous population. This, the BAT page of the GOV.UK site, provides information on the administration of the Territory and on the Antarctic Treaty, with link to the full text.
The Commission is the regulatory authority for all financial services business operating in and from within the British Virgin Islands. The site’s “Legislation” section has full text (PDF) of legislation relating to the following sectors: Anti-money laundering, Corporate structures, Deposit-taking institutions, Governance, Insolvency, Insurance, Intellectual property, International Cooperation, Investment business, and Trusts & estates. There is also an extensive “Form Library”.
The Canada Gazette is the official newspaper of the Government of Canada, divided into three parts: Part I, Notices and proposed regulations; Part II, Regulations; Part III, Acts of Parliament. This site contains Gazettes for 1998 onwards. To browse by year select “Canada Gazette Publications”. The Canada Gazette is available in both PDF and HTML format. The PDF version is regarded as official from 2003 onwards. Earlier Gazettes will be found on the archive site, A Nation’s Chronicle.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides a useful summary of Canada’s constitutional and legal history, and the administration of justice at Federal and Provincial level. The coverage of online resources is extensive, indicating what material is available on subscription-based services and providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
The Government of Canada site provides links to all Canadian government department and agency web sites and to the official web sites of the provinces and territories of Canada.
This guide by the Library of Queen’s University (Kingston, Ontario) provides links to free sources of Canadian Federal and provincial legislation, bills, official gazettes, Hansards, and judgments. Historical as well as current legislation is covered, although not all the sources of historical material are free to access.
CanLII is the Canadian Legal Information Institute, a gateway site developed by LexUM (University of Montreal) for the Federation of Law Societies of Canada. Federal and provincial case law and legislation may be searched or browsed individually, or the whole database searched. In addition to primary materials, “Commentary” includes full-text books and articles, journals and case digests.
Carey Olsen is an offshore law firm serving clients in many jurisdictions including Jersey, Guernsey, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands. The site’s Briefings section contains a number of articles relating to legal developments in those jurisdictions.
The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) was inaugurated in 2005. In addition to replacing the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council as a court of final appeal for member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), it is vested with an original jurisdiction in respect of the interpretation and application of the Treaty Establishing the Caribbean Community. The web site contains the Rules of Court, information on the judges and on the court administration. All judgments of the Court, 2005 onwards (Appellate jurisdiction) and 2008 onwards (Original jurisdiction) are available, in PDF format.
This guide to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), on the LLRX.com web site, is written by Yasmin Morais, Resident Librarian at Georgetown University Law Center, Edward Bennett Williams Law Library, Washington, D.C., and was published February 2008. It traces the CCJ’s history and outlines its mandate and structure. It also provides information on the court’s funding, its justices and recent judgments.
This site, part of the Lowtax Global Tax & Business Portal, provides information and news regarding the legal and tax regimes primarily of “low-tax” or offshore jurisdictions. The “Cayman Islands Law of Offshore” section here concentrates on trust law, banking, insurance and mutual funds. The regime is discussed in some detail; however individual statutes are not reproduced in full.
The official web site of the Cayman Islands Government provides information about the legal system and contacts for government departments and agencies. There is a link to the separate web site of the government’s Gazette Office, where legal notices are available in the Cayman Islands Gazette 2004 onwards and Acts, Regulations and Bills in the Gazette supplement, also 2004 onwards. The Gazette Office site also contains the latest annual Consolidated Index of Laws and Subsidiary Legislation in force.
This official web site provides information on the Cayman Islands courts and judicial officers, court rules and practice directions, and lists of attorneys and law firms. Case law consists of Cayman Islands Law Reports and Unreported Judgments. The latter are currently (June 2020) available for the following dates: Court of Appeal (Civil) 2013 onwards, Court of Appeal (Criminal) 2017 onwards, Grand Court (Civil General) 1989 onwards, Grand Court (Criminal) 2000 onwards, Grand Court (Family Division) 2009 onwards, and Financial Services Division 2007 onwards. These are available by subscription, or with limited access on registration. Legislation (Cayman Islands enacted plus UK laws extended to the Cayman Islands) is available on a similar basis.
Cayman Islands Laws and Regulations relating to banking, trusts, companies, insurance, investment business etc. are available on the web site of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), as well as CIMA’s own Regulatory Handbook and Enforcement Manual. See “Regulatory Framework”.
The Laws and Regulations section of the Central Bank of Belize website gathers together the major legislation governing the supervision and regulation of banks, credit unions and other financial institutions in Belize.
The Centre was established by the University of Melbourne in January 1996, its purpose being to undertake and promote research on corporate law, corporate governance and securities regulation. The web site includes a monthly Corporate law bulletin, September 1997 onwards (subscription is required to view the most recent bulletins), a substantial collection of research reports (see Resources), and annual reports, 1996 onwards. The section “History of Australian Corporate Law” (also in Resources) includes links to key Australian and UK legislation, reports and other documents from the 1800s onwards.
These legal resources are provided by a Maltese law firm, and comprise outlines of the law on various subjects and a collection of articles.
The Commonwealth Legal Information Institute (CommonLII) aims to provide one central internet location from which it is possible to search, free of charge, core legal information from all Commonwealth countries. Depth of coverage varies from country to country, but so far there is at least some primary material (legislation and case law) for all but a very few countries.
The Caribbean Law Project is a resource within CommonLII (the Commonwealth Legal Information Institute) providing access to legal information from all Caribbean jurisdictions. There are two main components. “Databases” contain material available via CommonLII, and “Catalog and Websearch” enables searches of Caribbean law on other web sites. Coverage includes cases, legislation, treaties and other materials.
The Commonwealth Secretariat is the central institution of the Commonwealth. Its web site, now simply called “The Commonwealth”, provides information on the constitution, politics and economics of all Commonwealth member states and details of the activities of all Commonwealth organisations.
Created by a team at the University of Hong Kong, Community Legal Information Centre (CLIC) is an easily digested guide, mostly in question and answer form, to the Hong Kong legal system, legal sources and a number of specific legal topics. There are links to sources throughout the text.
The Competition Tribunal was established in 1999 and adjudicates on such matters as restrictive practices, abuse of dominant position and mergers. The web site includes the Competition Act, the Tribunal’s rules, forms, and a collection of Decisions by the Tribunal, 2000 onwards. The Publications section contains annual reports, 1999/2000 onwards.
Digitised text of the 1973 Constitution as edited by Makhdoom Ali Khan, published 1986 by Pakistan Publishing House, Karachi, with the addition of amendments up to 2018.
The Constitutional Court of South Africa began hearings in 1995. Its present web site, launched in February 2005 to coincide with the tenth anniversary of the Court’s establishment, includes full text and summaries of judgments, 1995 onwards; the interim (1993) and final (1996) Constitutions of South Africa; rules of the Court; biographical information on current and former judges; and access to the Library catalogue.
This collection of Court of Appeal decisions dating from 1809 and from 1872 to 2010 inclusive is available on the CommonLII web site and uses data provided by LawNet, a Sri Lanka Government project. Cases are as reported in the Ceylon New Law Reports (1809-1978) and the Sri Lanka Law Reports (1978-2010).
The official web site of the Bahamas Court of Appeal contains selected judgments 2003 onwards, court rules and other information on the procedure and administration of the court, and cause lists.
Courts of New Zealand covers the New Zealand High Court, Supreme Court and Court of Appeal, and a number of lower courts, providing information on the history, structure and role of the courts, practice directions, case summaries, and judgments (all Supreme Court, Court of Appeal 2003 onwards, High Court 2005 onwards) in PDF: for judgments select From the Courts > Judicial Decisions. “Judicial Decisions of Public Interest” provides prompt access to selected new decisions of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and High Court.
Cylaw is a legal information project set up in February 2002 by the Cyprus lawyer Laris Vrahimis. It provides judgments of the Supreme Court of Cyprus, Competition Commission decisions and law articles and consolidated Civil Procedure Rules (all in Greek). “Judgments of the Supreme Court of Cyprus 1970 to 1988” [in fact 1964-1988] are available in English.
Cyprus Law Reports contains the full text of the judgments of the Supreme Court of Cyprus for the period 1976 to 2003. Many of the judgments are in Greek only, but the search engine allows for the use of English keywords.
De Rebus is a monthly journal for South African attorneys, published by the Law Society of South Africa and covering developments in law, legal practice and the legal profession. A monthly column discusses new cases reported in the South African Law Reports. The archive of this electronic version covers the period 2012 onwards.
The reports featured on this site are of Tasmanian cases from 1824 onwards, when Tasmania (then named Van Diemen’s Land) was separated from New South Wales to become a colony in its own right. Contemporary newspapers are the main source, and the period so far covered is 1824 to 1843. Amongst other content there is an index of cases 1840-1857, and the records of pre-1850 appeals to the Privy Council from the Australian colonies. The site is published by the Division of Law, Macquarie University and the School of History and Classics, University of Tasmania.
A primary aim of this project is to make available the early case law of New South Wales before effective formal law reporting was established in the latter part of the 19th century. The main source is contemporary newspaper reports. At present it concentrates on Supreme Court decisions between 1788 and 1855: there are currently no decisions for most of the 1860s and 1870s. Also included are a number of cases concerning Aborigines from later years, and the surviving records of pre-1850 appeals to the Privy Council. The site is published by the Division of Law, Macquarie University, Sydney.
The web site of Sri Lanka’s official printer and publisher contains Acts, 1980 onwards, Bills, 2003 onwards and the official Gazette 2004 onwards. Also available are forms, arranged by relevant government department. These do not include forms for use in litigation. Not all documents are available in English, particularly in the earlier years.
This guide to legal research and sources of law (print and online, with links where applicable) was written by Ted Tjaden when holding the post of Co-ordinator, Information Services at the Bora Laskin Law Library, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto. It is an updated version, published on the LLRX.com web site April 2008.
The Eastern Caribbean Securities Regulatory Commission (ECSRC) regulates securities dealing in Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, and St Vincent & The Grenadines. It operates under the Securities Act 2001, which is available on the site along with the Rules of the Commission and Regulations and Statutory Orders from the various territories concerned.
The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is a superior court of record for member states of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). Its web site contains full-text judgments from Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent & the Grenadines. Coverage starts in 1972 although it is very selective in the early years. Also on the site are cause lists, Court Rules, practice directions 2008 onwards, and information about the Court and its officers.
The Falkland Islands Government site contains the new Constitution (in operation from 1 January 2009) accompanied by an account of the differences between it and the former constitution of 1985. The Legislative Assembly section provides verbatim reports of Assembly sittings, 2007 onwards: these are within the subsection “Public Papers”. For legislation, see the separate Falkland Islands Statute Law Database.
The Statute Law Database is maintained by the Statute Law Commissioner and describes itself as “an authoritative statement of the legislation applying to or in relation to the Falkland Islands by Ordinance”. It contains Ordinances, secondary legislation, United Kingdom laws and European Union laws as in force in the Falkland Islands. Legislation made after 31 July 2017 is also included in the form in which it was made.
The Family Court of Australia is a specialist federal court. Its web site provides extensive information including court lists, recent judgments and practice directions. Links are provided to AustLII’s Family Court of Australia cases database, and (also on AustLII) to the legislation under which the court operates. Publications reproduced in full text include the Family Court Bulletin, papers and reports on many aspects of family law, and annual reports 1997/98 onwards.
The Federal Circuit Court was established in 1999 to provide a simple and accessible alternative to litigation in the Federal Court of Australia and the Family Court of Australia, and to relieve the workload of those courts. The jurisdiction of the Court has grown since its inception and broadly includes family law and child support, administrative law, admiralty law, bankruptcy, copyright, human rights, industrial law, migration, privacy and trade practices. The website provides the rules of the court (principally the Federal Circuit Court Rules 2001, as amended), directory of judges and staff, judgments via links to AustLII, forms, lists of court business, and information on jurisdiction.
The Federal Court is Canada’s national trial court, successor since 1971 to the Exchequer Court. The web site provides information on the history, administration and personnel of the court. For court rules and practice guides, select “Law and Practice” and for hearing lists and court decisions select “Court files and decisions”. There are full text decisions from December 1990 onwards, although coverage is very selective before 1997.
The Federal Court is a superior court of record exercising a broad jurisdiction, both original and appellate, in Australian federal law matters. The resources available for practitioners on its web site include practice notes, administrative notices, forms, hearings lists, legislation and detailed information about the Court’s registries in each Australian state. Judgments, February 1977 onwards, are provided via links to the AustLII web site. Judgments published in the last week are accessible via the court’s own web site.
Federal Law Review is a journal covering constitutional and administrative law, published by the Faculty of Law, Australian National University, since 1964. There are three issues a year. This archive covers 1995 to 2011. The more recent issues of the journal are on a separate site, and a subscription is required. Click on “Publisher’s site” for details.
The Federal Register of Legislation is the authorised web site for full text Commonwealth legislation and related documents. It replaced the earlier ComLaw site and is managed by the Office of Parliamentary Counsel. It provides access to Commonwealth of Australia Acts in force, Legislative Instruments in force, Notifiable Instruments in force, Bills as introduced, and Gazettes 1901 onwards – including PDF copies of the Commonwealth Government Gazette, 1901-2012, under “Historical”.
Part of the PacLII site, this page provides access to Fiji annual Acts, 1985 onwards, with a few Acts from earlier years.
The “Legislation” section of this site contains the legislation of St Vincent and the Grenadines relating to banking, companies, insurance, money laundering and trusts. These are all in PDF format. There is a brief outline of the legal system.
The Financial Services Commission, Mauritius (FSC) regulates and supervises the non-bank financial services sector and global business in Mauritius. Within “Legal Framework”, the Rules and Regulations section of its web site contains the major legislation relating to companies, trusts, insurance, the Stock Exchange, money laundering and income tax. The “Codes and Guidelines” section reproduces various codes for the conduct of business and prevention of money laundering. Other content includes details of the FSC’s enforcement powers and actions.
The Financial Services Regulatory Commission is the ultimate regulatory body for anti-money laundering for St Kitts and Nevis. The “Regulatory Framework” section of this web site contains current legislation relating to financial services regulation, money laundering and anti-terrorism. Forms are also available.
This guide was prepared by Karen Skiffington, a law librarian in Bermuda since 1986 and founder of Bermuda Law Reports Ltd. It outlines the Bermuda legal system and sources of law, and provides links to online resources wherever possible. It was published in its present revised form on the GlobaLex site in June/July 2013.
FindLaw Australia is a service provided by Thomson Reuters Australia. It includes legal news and articles arranged by subject area, and directories of law firms and individual lawyers.
FindLaw New Zealand is a resource guide for New Zealand lawyers including case law, legislation, legal news, law directories and links arranged by subject area.
Focus Business Services is a company specialising in Cyprus company registration and taxation. Its web site provides guidance on these subjects and reproduces (in English) the relevant legislation, and also the tax treaties entered into by Cyprus.
This free section of the commercial tax/law information service, Lowtax.net, provides full text of Gibraltar financial services legislation, summaries of the law relating to banking, insurance and trusts, and news relating to taxation and company law.
The Gibraltar Courts Service website includes unreported cases of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal (PDF) 1996 onwards; information on the court system and judiciary; lists of legal practitioners, public notaries and commissioners for oaths; and selected Supreme Court and magistrates’ court forms.
The Gibraltar Financial Services Commission (GFSC) regulates the financial services industry in Gibraltar. Its web site provides a large collection of downloadable legislation, forms and other documents relating to the financial services sector. To display these, select “Regulated Firms”, and choose a subject area.
The Gibraltar Public Services Ombudsman investigates complaints from the general public about acts of maladministration undertaken by government bodies or by providers of services appointed by the Government. Reports of complaints and their outcomes are posted on the web site under Investigations. Annual reports, 1999/2000 onwards are also available. Full information is given on the role and procedures of the Ombudsman service.
This site is maintained by the Treaty Section of Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. It provides information on (and in some cases the text of) treaties entered into by Canada, whether bilateral, multilateral or plurilateral. There is in addition a substantial chapter on treaty practice and procedure.
This is Australia’s “whole-of-government entry point”, a gateway site providing access to online information resources for the Commonwealth Government, the state and territory governments, and the Australian Local Government Association with its links to local council and local government association sites.
This Bermuda Government site contains Judgments of the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, 2007 onwards, Practice Directions, 2007 onwards, information on the constitution and personnel of the courts, and (via a link) the Court Rules.
This Montserrat government site provides the Revised Edition of the Laws 2019, Acts omitted from the Revised Edition (because they are inoperative, obsolete, expired, spent or have had their effect), SROs 2019 onwards, and [UK] Statutory Instruments [Orders in Council] extending to Montserrat.
South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) have been a self-governing Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom since 1985. From 1908 to 1985 they were dependencies of the Falkland Islands. The SGSSI Government web site contains legislation (Ordinances and SROs) from 1908 onwards, those of the period 1908 to 1950 being in the form of scans (PDF) taken from Laws of the Colony of the Falkland Islands and its Dependencies (revised edition, 1951). There are also links to the Falkland Islands Statute Law Database and the UK’s legislation web site.
Hong Kong’s official Gazette is published weekly and contains ordinances, regulations and bills as well as company winding-up and other notices. This web site makes available the full text, volume 4 (May 2000) onwards. Issues may be browsed by year/volume; there is also a search facility.
The Official Gazette is the official publication of the Government of the British Virgin Islands. The Gazette itself contains government notices; bills, acts and statutory instruments are circulated along with it. It is published weekly, with extraordinary editions appearing as necessary on other days. Free registration permits unlimited access to Gazettes for two months following publication; an enhanced subscription service is also available, allowing complete access to all Gazettes.
GovPubs is an initiative of NSLA (National and State Libraries Australasia). The site, which is no longer actively maintained, though it is still updated occasionally, provides descriptions of selected Australian official publications and enables the user to locate titles or series either in libraries (subdivided by state) or on the internet. Web publications may be browsed separately from printed ones.
This narrative account of the of Caribbean legal systems and legal research is made available on the GlobaLex site. Links to web resources are provided where possible. The author is Yemisi Dina, Head of Public Services at Osgoode Hall Law Library, York University, Ontario. This updated version was published November/December 2018.
This account of the Indian legal sytem and sources, made available on the GlobaLex site, was written by Dr R.K. Shrivastava, Director at the Supreme Court of India, with assistance from Versha Shah and Megha Srivastava. The latest updated version was published April 2014.
Written by Ramakrishnan Viraraghan, a lawyer practising in Chennai (Madras), this guide covers in some depth the constitutional and legal history of India as well as the present-day legal system and institutions, concluding with a bibliography of the major texts on various aspects of Indian law. This updated version was published on the GlobaLex site, November/December 2016.
Written by Yemisi Dina, John Akintayo and Funke Ekundayo, this GlobaLex guide (updated version published November/December 2015) covers the Nigerian legal system, government bodies and agencies, primary and secondary sources, legal education and legal profession. Links to web resources are provided where possible.
Originally written by Tzi Yong Sam Sim, and first published on the GlobaLex web site in February 2007, this narrative guide to the sources of law and legal system in Singapore provides links to the online sources mentioned. The latest update, from March 2017, is by Chai Yee Xin, a law librarian at Singapore Management University. All previous versions of the guide, including updates in September/October 2007 and July 2008 by Arundhati Ashok Satkalmi, and in January 2013 by Charlotte Gill, may also be accessed.
The web site of M. Hamel-Smith & Co., a Trinidad and Tobago firm of attorneys, contains articles on company law, intellectual property, tax and e-commerce in Trinidad and Tobago, addressed primarily to the business community.
Harneys is a law firm providing international corporate and legal services related to Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Anguilla, Cyprus and Luxemburg. The Insights area of its web site provides articles, legal updates, guides and webinars pertaining to these jurisdictions.
This is the web site of a virtual law firm based in various centres in India and with associates worldwide. As well as online access to the firm’s services and information about these, the web site provides articles on a wide range of topics within Indian law, and “bare” (unamended) Acts which may be viewed in subject groupings or browsed by title.
This database, on the University of Hong Kong Libraries site, gives access to the seven consolidations of the Laws of Hong Kong published between 1890 and 1964, the last being updated to 1989. The consolidations may be searched individually or collectively.
The web site of the Hong Kong Legal Information Institute (HKLII) contains full text judgments of the Court of Final Appeal, 1997 onwards, Court of Appeal, 1946 onwards (except 1949-1960), Court of First Instance, 1946 onwards (except 1949-1967), District Court, 1946 onwards (except 1949-1967), Family Court, 1973 onwards (except 1978-1979, 1982, 1986-1994) and Lands Tribunal, 1982 onwards. The legislation section has all current Ordinances and Regulations. Other resources include the Hong Kong Treaty Series and a database of Practice Directions.
The official web site of the Gibraltar Government provides general introductory material relating to the administration of justice, constitutional history and the work of the various government departments. Legislation is provided via a link to Laws of Gibraltar (see below).
The Hong Kong Bar Association (HKBA) is the professional organisation of barristers in Hong Kong. As well as general information about the Hong Kong Bar aimed at the public, its website features the code of conduct, information on admission and pupillage, events, Bar List, and rules and regulations of the Association.
The Court of Final Appeal (CFA) is the final appellate court within Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, replacing the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Site content includes information on its jurisdiction, constitution and judiciary; procedural rules and practice directions; and details of decided and forthcoming cases. Judgments are available principally via a link to HKLII’s CFA database. There is also a Recent Judgments section, containing judgments which have been handed down within the current or last month and may not yet have been published on HKLII.
Hong Kong e-Legislation (HKeL) is an official electronic database of the legislation of Hong Kong in English and Chinese. It replaced the previous Bilingual Laws Information System (BLIS) and is maintained by Hong Kong’s Department of Justice. It provides current and past (point-in-time) versions of consolidated legislation dating back to 30 June 1997, together with constitutional instruments, various indices and tables of Ordinances, and glossaries of legal terms. Legislation may be searched, or browsed by title. PDF copies marked “verified copy” have official legal status; verification is being carried out progressively, and HKeL will ultimately contain verified copies of all Hong Kong consolidated legislation.
The Hong Kong Maritime Law Association (HKMLA) is an association of Hong Kong lawyers, shipowners and others concerned with maritime law. The web site provides a directory of HKMLA members and details of the association’s meetings and other activities. The principal Hong Kong ordinances relating to maritime law are listed by title with links to full text, and there is also a link to the Hong Kong Judiciary site for judgments in maritime causes.
New Zealand’s Human Rights Commission was established by the Human Rights Commission Act 1977. It is empowered under the Human Rights Act 1993 to protect human rights in general in accordance with UN covenants and conventions. The Resources section of its web site contains a large collection of downloadable reports, guides and submissions to other bodies.
The India Code site is published and managed by the Indian government’s Ministry of Law and Justice. It permits searching of all Central Acts of Parliament from 1836 onwards by year, number, section number, or word or phrase.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides a useful summary of Indian constitutional and legal history, and the administration of justice at Central and State level. The coverage of online resources is extensive, indicating what material is available on subscription-based services and providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
Indian Courts is a portal giving access to the web sites of the Supreme Court of India, most of India’s High Courts, District Courts and numerous tribunals.
The Parliament of India comprises two houses or chambers, the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People), together with the President of India. Each chamber has its own home page, giving access to (among other things) debates, guides to procedure, bills and information about members.
The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) is the government agency that formulates and administers IP laws in Singapore. Legal resources available on its web site include the relevant Acts and Regulations (PDF), reports and hearings, 1999 onwards, Legislation Update, 2014 onwards, forms, current Compendium of Hearings & Mediation Department practice circulars, and annual reports 2013/2014 onwards.
The focus of this guide, on the GlobaLex web site, is on the small island states of the South Pacific. There are hypertext links to the sources discussed, where possible. Its author is Peter Murgatroyd, formerly Law Librarian of the University of the South Pacific and currently based in Auckland, New Zealand. The current version is dated September/October 2019. Previous versions dated February 2009 and July/August 2014 are also available.
This account, from a historical perspective, of the Malaysian legal system and sources of law was written by Dr Sharifah Suhanah Syed Ahmad, retired Associate Professor of the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, and published on the GlobaLex site. This updated version is dated April 2014.
Jade (Judgments and Decisions Enhanced) is a free current awareness service developed by BarNet, a specialist communications management company providing services to barristers and associated professionals. Decisions of a wide range of Australian Courts and Tribunals are added to the Jade database almost as soon as they are released. It is possible to set up alerts so that decisions of specific courts are delivered by RSS feed. The site provides a sophisticated case citator facility. Jade Library allows users to create and manage their own library of online decisions, while Jademarks lets users add notes directly to an online version of each decision. Some services require registration. Jade also has digitized copies of the Commonwealth Law Reports, 1903-1952.
Electronic journal published by the University of the South Pacific School of Law, 1997 onwards, containing articles, book reviews and working papers.
Judgment Information System provides access to cause lists and judgments of the Supreme Court of India, some of the High Courts of the Indian states, and District Courts. Judgments are searchable. Links to the individual web sites of these and other courts are provided.
The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the court of final appeal for the UK’s overseas territories, crown dependencies (Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man), and military sovereign base areas, and for several Commonwealth countries. This web site, created following JCPC’s move from Downing Street to Parliament Square in 2009, includes details of JCPC’s role and powers; lists of relevant legislation; procedural information (forms, rules and practice directions); details of current cases and future sittings; live television coverage of hearings; and judgments (“Decided Cases”) November 2009 onwards. (For judgments from 1999 to August 2009 and selected key judgments before 1999 see either the BAILII web site (to which a link is provided) or archived content on the Privy Council Office site.)
The Hong Kong Judiciary web site contains judgments which are of significance as legal precedents on points of law, practice and procedure from the following courts, delivered between 1946 and 1948, and from 1966 onwards: Court of Final Appeal [NB established 1997], Court of Appeal of the High Court, High Court, Competition Tribunal, District Court, Family Court and Lands Tribunal. Practice directions, forms and daily cause lists are also available.
The Judiciary’s web site provides information about judges and the magistracy, the Consolidated Orders and Rules of the Supreme Court, Civil Proceedings Rules and Family Proceedings Rules. The index of “Recent Judgments” extends back to 2007, but links to full text are not available for the older cases within this range. The Library databases include index/abstracts of written judgments of the Supreme Court from 1990, entries to the Trinidad and Tobago Law Reports Volume 1 (1893-1910) to Volume 16 (1955-1956), and retrospective index/abstracts of some pre-1990 judgments.
This Canadian government site includes Constitution; Consolidated Statutes and Regulations, texts of which have, since 2009, been deemed “official” and which are updated every two weeks; annual statutes 2001 onwards; Table of Public Statutes updated to December 2020; Table of Private Acts 1867 to December 2020; Consolidated Index of Statutory Instruments to September 2020; also general information on legislative programme.
The official web site of the Lahore High Court contains the sections of the constitution relating to the Court, Rules of the Court, cause lists viewable by judge, information on judges, a searchable database of full text judgments, 2010 onwards (PDF) and forms.
The Law & Justice Commission of Pakistan, also known as the Pakistan Law Commission, was set up in 1979 as a permanent institution for the reform and modernisation of the legal system. It has submitted so far well over a hundred reports to the government, a selection of which are available on this web site, which also contains the annual report, 2012/2014 (current information: June 2020) and reports of ad hoc commissions and committees.
The Law and Justice Foundation is an independent statutory body which works to improve access to justice for the people of New South Wales. Its web site provides a gateway for legislation, case law and court information, covering the whole of Australia, not only New South Wales. The “Legislation and Parliament” and “Judgments and Courts” sections complement AustLII in that there are links to alternative sources of data. There are also links to decisions of some quasi-judicial bodies not included in AustLII.
This account of the Zambia’s legal sytem and sources, made available on the GlobaLex site, was written by Alfred S. Magagula, a graduate fellow from the University of Swaziland. The latest updated version was published September 2014.
The Law Commission is an independent, government-funded organisation, which reviews areas of the law that need updating, reforming or developing. Its recommendations are published in its report series. Publications, including Reports, 1987 onwards, Study Papers, 1999 onwards and Issues Papers 1987 onwards (called Preliminary Papers up to 2006), may be downloaded from this site as PDF files. There is also news about the Commission’s work programme.
The Commission was established by the Canadian government in 1997 to provide independent advice on the improvement, modernisation and reform of the law of Canada. Its research and findings are presented thematically rather than chronologically and include research papers, final reports and links to relevant resources originating in the various Canadian provinces as well as in foreign jurisdictions. NB: The Law Commission of Canada lost its funding in 2006 and no further publications have been added to the web site; this is an archived version.
The Law Commission of India – a new Commission is appointed every fourth year – has produced over 270 reports recommending the revision and updating of existing laws. These are now available via the web site, which also has information on the history of the Commission and how it functions.
The Law Gazette is the official monthly journal of the Law Society of Singapore, including digests of recent cases and legislation, with archive October 2017 onwards.
This guide, written by Dianne Thompson, Anna Matich and Ruth Bird, and published on the LLRX.com site, provides legal and political background to the jurisdictions concerned, and links to legislation and judgments where available. Also included are treaties and journals of general application to the region. This is an updated version, published July 2008.
The Commission was established in 1980 to make recommendations for law reform in Hong Kong. These are contained in its reports, the first published in 1982, all of which are available here, together with consultation papers, 1993 onwards. The site also provides information on implementation of the Commission’s recommendations, its current projects and membership, and an extensive collection of legal links.
The Law Society is the professional association for solicitors in Hong Kong. Site content includes the Guide to Professional Conduct; the Law List; a collection of directories covering both individuals and firms; and information on how to be admitted, whether as a Hong Kong lawyer or a foreign lawyer.
The Law Society of Singapore is the representative body for all lawyers in Singapore. Its site provides information for and about the legal profession in Singapore, notably a directory covering individual lawyers, law firms, notaries public and commissioners for oaths; practice directions and circulars (in Members’ Library, requiring log-in); calendar of events; annual reports, 2013 onwards; and information on how to qualify and how to set up a legal practice (select “Running Your Practice”). Publications include the Society’s Law Gazette October 2017 onwards.
Lawlex is one of the services offered by SAI Global, a commercial provider of legal and regulatory information. It has some free and some subscription-based elements. All users may search or browse Australian Commonwealth and state/territory legislation and view the full text both as currently in operation, and as in operation at various dates, as provided by the relevant official government publisher. Links to Hansard debates are provided for Acts in some cases. Subscribers have access to additional information such as details of progress of Bills, commencement, amendments since last consolidation and summary of all amendments since enactment. Other SAI subscription services include regulatory newsfeeds and Safety, Health & Environment (SH&E) Monitor.
Lawlink is a network of fifteen New Zealand law firms. Lawyers from member firms contribute articles on various aspects of New Zealand law, published as a collection four times a year. Issues from 2010 onwards are available on the web site.
LawNet is essentially a subscription site, provided by the Singapore Academy of Law. However the “Latest Singapore judgments” section has full-text judgments of the Supreme Court, Family & Juvenile Court and State Courts (formerly termed Subordinate Courts) from the last three months: select Free resources > Case law & Decisions. Judgments are simply listed in reverse chronological order. There is also a link to Singapore Statutes on the Attorney-General’s Chambers site (see below).
This collection of legal materials is provided by the Sri Lanka Ministry of Justice and Law Reforms. Publications available at present are Constitution (and amendments), Consolidated Statutes 1956 (official), Consolidated Statutes 1981 (unofficial), Statutes 1956 to 2006 (by date, official), annual Statutes 2007 onwards, Provincial Council Statutes, reported cases as contained in the Ceylon New Law Reports, 1895-1978 and the Sri Lanka Law Reports, 1978-2005, Conventions and legal articles.
This official Gibraltar Government web site contains all primary and secondary legislation as currently in force, and bills from 2006 onwards, in PDF. Judgments are included in addition to laws. These currently comprise all judgments published in the hard copy volumes of the Gibraltar Law Reports, commencing in 1812, and judgments, decisions and rulings of Employment Tribunals, 1999 onwards.
This resource, made available by the Ministry of Legal Affairs of Grenada provides, in chapter (i.e. alphabetical) order, laws currently in force: both Acts and subsidiary legislation made under Acts.
Laws of South Africa is a project of the Oliver R Tambo Law Library, University of Pretoria, in partnership with SAFLII (Southern African Legal Information Institute) and the Constitutional Court Trust, the aim of which is to consolidate the South African legislation (Acts of Parliament) and to supply this information free to the public. In addition, the database includes point-in-time or historical versions of the Acts. The database was launched in September 2013 and currently represents a work in progress; coverage is not yet comprehensive.
The Legal Information Institute of India is an international standard, free-access, non-profit, comprehensive online collection of Indian legal information, formally launched in March 2011. It is a joint project of four Indian law schools, with initial technical development from AustLII, and is a member of the Free Access to Law Movement. Contents include legislation (the India Code from 1836, some state legislation, and commentary on legislation), case law (over 300,000 cases in full text from the Supreme Court, most High Courts, and tribunals), the Indian Treaty Series (bilateral treaties 1947 onwards), law reform reports (from the Law Commission), legal scholarship (six law journals to date, with scholarship repositories, books and judicial scholarship still to be developed), cases concerning India in international courts and tribunals, and cases concerning India from the pre-1873 English Reports.
Written by Omar Sial, partner in the law firm of Omar Sial & Associates, this is a narrative account of Pakistan constitutional development, legal system and legal research, with many links, at the end, to sources of law. This updated version, produced in collaboration with Farah Khan, was published on the GlobaLex site in January 2018.
This is a large-scale portal site for Malta law, finance and business, some parts of which are still under development. Key features include law directories, articles, and links to ministries, departments and other officially appointed bodies.
The LegalB database is one of a range of services provided by a firm of compliance specialists based in Johannesburg. It provides information on South African national legislation, 1994 to date. For each Act there is an overview giving the long title of the Act and listing its sections (including details of insertions and repeals), a list of amending Acts and links to the text of the Act, as passed and as amended. Amended versions of Acts are available to subscribers only. There are lists of Acts for the period 1910 to 1994 and background information about sources of South African law from all periods.
Legaltree is a collaboratively built web site combining two elements: a very extensive collection of “Research links and resources” (compiled by the site administrators), and “User contributed content” in the form of research articles, news and books.
This is a new (March 2020) website of the Maltese Government, replacing Laws of Malta. It contains all the consolidated chapters of the Laws of Malta, including their subsidiary legislation. The content is consolidated within 5 working days from the date of publication in the Government Gazette. The “Publications” section of this website includes Acts, Legal Notices and Bye-Laws from the Gazette, and provides access to Bills, 1992 onwards via a link to the Parliament website.
St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha are internally self-governing Overseas Territories of the United Kingdom. This Legislation section of the St Helena Government website contains the latest edition of the Revised Laws for each of the three territories, all dated 2017. Individual laws are available in PDF.
The Legislative Council (LegCo) is the legislature of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The “Council Meetings” section of its web site, within “LegCo Business”, includes Bills, Hansard and subsidiary legislation for the current Council. Select “Current and Past Meeting Records” for earlier sessions. This section also has reports of sittings of the former (colonial) Legislative Council, 1858-1997.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides a useful summary of Malaysia’s constitutional and legal history, legislative process and the administration of justice at Federal and State level. There is extensive coverage of online resources, the compilers indicating what material is available on subscription-based services and also providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
The Malaysian Bar is the professional body for all lawyers in Malaysia. Its web site provides information on how to qualify as a solicitor/advocate in Malaysia, legislation governing the legal profession, practice directions, membership directory and news relevant to the profession.
The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) is the regulator of financial services in Malta. Its web site contains Maltese legislation and guidance regarding companies, trusts, credit & financial institutions, insurance, investment services and taxation. Other resources include the Listing Rules and recent annual reports.
The Maori Law Review is a monthly publication edited by Carwyn Jones and Craig Linkhorn with associate editor Toni Love. Coverage includes all reports of the Waitangi Tribunal and relevant decisions of a number of other courts and tribunals. Issues from December 1993 onwards are available on the web site. Initially free, it is now subscription-based, but selected content is available gratis.
This official government web site gives information on the court system and the work of the legal departments and officers of Jamaica. Laws can be searched via the “Laws of Jamaica” menu at the foot of the home page. Court of Appeal Rules and Civil Procedure Rules are also available from the home page.
The responsibilities of New Zealand’s Ministry of Justice include courts, tribunals, crime prevention and electoral reform. Information for legal professionals (within About > Lawyers & Service Providers) includes forms and information on legal aid. Within Decisions is to be found Judicial Decisions Online, a searchable database of judgments of the Supreme Court (all), Court of Appeal (2003 onwards) and High Court (2005 onwards).
The web site of India’s Ministry of Law and Justice includes the Indian constitution and text of most Indian Acts in force, 1836 onwards via the India Code site. It also links to the sites of Government legal departments.
The “Information” section of Guyana’s Ministry of Legal Affairs and Attorney General’s Chambers web site provides the Laws of Guyana in PDF format, listed in chapter order.
The revised edition of the Laws of Trinidad and Tobago is made available here on the Ministry of Legal Affairs web site: see under Departments> Law Revision Commission. Laws currently updated to 31 December 2016.
Mourant is an offshore law firm with offices in the British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Guernsey, Jersey, Hong Kong and London. The site’s “News & Views” section includes various guides and updates on matters relating to the offshore jurisdictions.
The Canada Gazette is the official publication in which Acts of Parliament, subsidiary legislation and government notices appear. This project of Library and Archives Canada (the Canadian national library) aims to provide a searchable database of the entire archive of issues from 1841 to 1997, based on digital scans of the original paper parts or of the microfilms. Searches can be narrowed to specific types of Gazette issue, for instance annual indexes.
This site is a division of the Republic of Mauritius portal, although access from that site is not obvious. It includes Hansard, Bills and Acts 2009 onwards, Standing Orders and Rules, 1995 revised 2017, and a directory of members of the Assembly.
The Debates and Proceedings section of the Zambian Parliament’s web site (within Publications) provides access to the verbatim reports of parliamentary debates, 2001 onwards, while the Constitution and Laws section has the Laws of Zambia in force 1996, in 26 volumes. Each Act is a separate PDF file. Annual Acts, 1997 onwards, and Bills before Parliament are also available.
The National Assembly’s web site has pages relating to the Senate (upper house) and House of Representatives (lower house), each providing information on members and committees. “Parliamentary Documents” contains Votes and Proceedings (a verbatim report of each day’s business) 2003 onwards. Bills and Acts are provided from 1999 onwards, and Hansard from 1999 onwards (House) and 2000 onwards (Senate).
Neocleous is the web site of Andreas Neocleous & Co., a law firm with offices in Limassol, Nicosia and Paphos, which gives information about the firm’s services. The “Publications” section includes downloadable articles and book chapters on various aspects of Cyrpriot law written by members of the firm.
The New Zealand Law Society is the representative body for barristers and solicitors, and makes rules under which lawyers practise. The relevant legislation, the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006, is available on the web site (see For Lawyers > Regulatory Requirements), as are other guidelines, practice notes and court notices. The register of New Zealand lawyers holding current practising certificates is searchable online. Links are provided to many other sites, notably those providing legislation and case law.
New Zealand Legislation is an initiative of the New Zealand Parliamentary Counsel Office. It provides free access to public, local and private Acts, and Legislative Instruments (formerly termed Statutory Regulations) as currently in operation. Alternatively, Acts from 1841 to 2007 as enacted, and the 1908 Consolidation, are available in PDF format, as provided by NZLII. Historical Statutory Regulations, 1936-2007 and Historical Bills, 1854-2008 were added in 2016. Current bills are also available. Texts, which are (with certain exceptions) official, can be browsed by title or searched.
The “Parliamentary Business” area of the New Zealand Parliament site provides Bills and Select Committee reports, papers and petitions, and information on progress of legislation. Hansard is available from 1854 onwards, “Current” Papers presented to Parliament, 2002 onwards and Research Papers, 1996 onwards are also available. The earlier volumes of Historical Hansard (i.e. 1854-1987) are hosted by HathiTrust Digital Library.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides useful summary of New Zealand constitutional and legal history, legislative process and the administration of justice. The coverage of online resources indicates what material is available on subscription-based services as well as providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
NZLII – the New Zealand Legal Information Institute – is a joint project of the University of Otago, the Victoria University of Wellington, the University of Canterbury, the New Zealand Law Foundation and AustLII. Primary materials include Supreme Court judgments 2004 onwards, Court of Appeal judgments 1888 onwards (early years very incomplete), and High Court judgments 1847 onwards (early years incomplete). Decisions of many tribunals and other quasi-judicial bodies are also available. New Zealand Acts and Regulations are listed both alphabetically and chronologically, with full texts provided in PDF format. Articles from the law reviews of the universities involved in the project, and from other journals, are reproduced. Other content includes law reform materials and the New Zealand Treaty Series, 1944 onwards.
The Chief Registrar’s Office is responsible for the administration of the courts in Malaysia. Its web site provides information on the Federal Court, the Court of Appeal and the High Court, and includes cause lists, court rules, practice directions and biographies of senior judiciary. There are also links to mini-sites relating to the subordinate courts in the various Malaysian states. Much of the content of these is in Malay only.
The law firm Ogier has offices in various locations including Jersey, Guernsey, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and Hong Kong. Information on legal developments particularly in the first four of those jurisdictions is provided in the News & Publications section of the site, mostly in the form of case summaries and client briefings.
This scholarly journal has been published by Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Toronto, since 1958. The web site contains a complete archive of previous articles in PDF. These are browsable by volume, and there is an advanced search facility.
Published on the GlobaLex site in its current revised form in June 2016, this guide was written by Shaikh Mohamed Noordin, law librarian, and Shanthi Supramaniam, partner in the Kuala Lumpur law firm Belden Advocates & Solicitors. It has sections on the sources of law, ministries, government departments, regulatory bodies and the legal profession.
The Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute (PacLII) provides legislation and case law from 20 jurisdictions throughout the Pacific including the Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. There is also a brief outline of the legal system in each jurisdiction.
The Australian Parliament site contains Bills 1996 onwards and Bills digests 1976 onwards, Hansard (for both the Senate and the House of Representatives) 1981 onwards, and Committee Hansards (Senate, House and Joint) mid-1990s onwards. Coverage dates of the latter vary according to the Committee. The Parliamentary Library section includes an index of Parliamentary Papers, 1992 onwards (under “Key Internet Links”); within “Research Publications” there are Bills digests, 1976 onwards and Background Notes (formerly E-Briefs: background documents on current issues, including links) 1999 onwards.
The Canadian Parliament web site includes current Bills, which can be tracked using the “LEGISinfo” facility; also Hansard, substantive reports of committees, information on Senators and MPs and on the history and procedure of Parliament. Coverage is from 2001 onwards for Hansard and 1994 onwards for LEGISinfo.
The Parliament of Malaysia consists of a Senate and a House of Representatives, together with the King as the Head of State. Its web site includes Bills (in English), directories of members of the two chambers, and Hansard, which is currently in Malay only. Some of the considerable archive is (despite appearances) available in English, or a mixture of Malay and English.
The Singapore Parliament’s site includes text of Bills, 2006 onwards, Debates (“Reports”) covering the entire history of the Parliament including its predecessor the Legislative Assembly, and Standing Orders. Other content includes information on the roles of the various officers of Parliament and lists of members of current and previous Parliaments from 1965 (i.e. 1st Parliament) to date.
The South African Parliament in its present form dates from the Constitution of 1996, and is made up of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces. The web site provides information on the functions and membership of both Houses, Hansard, minutes of proceedings, Acts, 1993 onwards and Bills currently before Parliament.
The Publications menu of the Trinidad and Tobago Parliament’s site includes Bills, 1998 session onwards; Acts, 1999 onwards; Hansard (debates for both Houses), July 1990 onwards; Committee reports (House of Representatives and Senate), 1999 onwards; and constitutional documents.
Polity is a large-scale news/gateway site maintained by publishing company Creamer Media, carrying extensive news coverage and comment on economic, legal and political matters. Resources include Acts 1993 onwards, Bills 1995 onwards, Regulations 1996 onwards, Notices 1998 onwards and policy documents 1996 onwards. The home page provides links to the latest cases in the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court of Appeal, High Courts and Magistrates’ Courts, and to new legislation. These documents are available to download. The site also provides information on government departments, and has many links to web sites of government departments, statutory bodies and provincial legislatures.
This Pakistan government web site contains Punjab laws, 1860 onwards, as amended. Laws may be listed alphabetically or chronologically; alternatively there is an advanced search facility.
This is the gateway web site of the Government of Mauritius, divided into four sub-portals intended for specific user-groups. “Legislations” in the main menu links to laws in force arranged alphabetically, and annual laws 2009 onwards, on the web site of the Attorney General’s Office.
This is a narrative guide to Australian legal research, written by law librarians Nicholas Pengelley and Sue Milne and published on the LLRX.com site in its current revised form in January 2014. It includes hypertext links to the sources mentioned.
Researching Canadian Law is a narrative account of Canadian legal systems and legal research, with hypertext links to the sources mentioned, provided on the GlobaLex web site. The original author is Ted Tjaden. The latest version was published February 2019, with updating by Kim Nayyer, Associate University Librarian (Law, Legal Research & Writing Program) for the UVic Libraries and an Adjunct Associate Professor for the Faculty of Law at the University of Victoria in Victoria, British Columbia.
Originally written by Amanda Barratt and Pamela Snyman, both of the University of Cape Town Law Library, this is a narrative account of the South African legal system and legal research, with links to the sources mentioned. A revised edition was published March 2005, and the latest update, by Salona Lutchman, was published here on the GlobaLex site March 2018.
SAFLII is the Southern African Legal Information Institute. Its web site provides free access to primary legal materials from South Africa and fifteen other countries in Southern and East Africa. The following South African case law is available: Constitutional Court, 1995 onwards, Supreme Court of Appeal, 1971 onwards (very selective before 1984), Labour Court, 1997 onwards, Land Claims Court, 1996 onwards, and a good many other specialist courts. Also available are judgments of various Provincial Divisions of the High Court. Legislation is available in current and (for selected Acts and Regulations) historic versions. Links are provided to South African Law Reform Commission publications.
This is an online IBC (International Business Companies) registry set up with the backing of the St Lucia government. The major Acts governing financial services are available to download together with regulations made under each, and amending legislation.
The Laws of Sarawak and Laws of Malaysia sections of this government site provide lists, by English title, of both Sarawak (i.e. state) and Malaysian (i.e. federal) legislation. This allows users to see which matters are legislated for by the state legislature and which by the federal. A link to the Sarawak LawNet System site (also maintained by the Sarawak State Attorney General’s Chambers) provides access to texts (PDF) of Laws of Sarawak 1932 onwards.
The Legislative Framework section of the Securities Commission web site reproduces the Acts relating to investment funds and the securities industry in the Bahamas, and the Regulations made thereunder. Texts are for information only, not official. Forms will be found in the Licensing and Registrants section.
This section of the Sierra Leone Web provides the full texts of Acts, 1960 onwards in chronological order. A separate link (see “Colonial Ordinances” within “Legal”) gives access to pre-independence Ordinances, in chapter order.
SierraLII (Sierra Leone Legal Information Institute) is a legal gateway site which subscribes to the principles of the Free Access to Law Movement. It provides access to selected judgments of the Supreme Court, 1941 onwards, plus a few judgments for earlier years, Court of Appeal, 1919 onwards (very incomplete pre-1999), High Court, 1972 onwards and Special Court for Sierra Leone, 2004 onwards. Also provided are Consolidated Acts, which may also be displayed by year of enactment, and Statutory Instruments 2003 onwards (very incomplete).
Singapore Law Watch is a service offered by the Singapore Academy of Law. Judgments are available from 2000 onwards (for High Court and Court of Appeal) and from January 2018 onwards (for Intellectual Property Office and Personal Data Protection Commission). Legislation published in the last 3 months appears on the site and is initially hyper-linked to the PDF on the e-Gazette site. Commentary on recent cases and other legal news also appears.
Provided by the Attorney-General’s Chambers, this site provides full text of all current Singapore Acts and Subsidiary Legislation.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides a useful summary of Singapore constitutional and legal history, sources of law, legislative process and the administration of justice. The coverage of online resources indicates what material is available on subscription-based services as well as providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
This guide from the Library of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (University of London), although to a certain extent relating to the Library’s own holdings, nonetheless provides a useful summary of South African constitutional and legal history, sources of law, legislative process and the administration of justice. The coverage of online resources indicates what material is available on subscription-based services (in fact, not a great deal) as well as providing links to free resources. Much of the advice given on legal research methods is transferable to other other library collections.
The “Documents” section of South Africa’s official government web site includes the 1996 Constitution, Acts 1991 onwards, Bills 1996 onwards, White Papers 1994 onwards and Green Papers 1995 onwards. Other content of legal interest includes information on South Africa’s courts and justice system, within the section “About Government”.
The South African Institute of Intellectual Property Law (SAIIPL) represents nearly 190 patent attorneys, patent agents and trade mark practitioners. Its web site provides a brief outline of the main aspects of South African intellectual property law, a directory of members and firms, the SAIIPL Code of Ethics, and the Institute’s newsletter, IP Briefs, 2014 onwards.
The South African Law Reform Commission (SALRC), formerly called the South African Law Commission, exists to make recommendations for the development, improvement, modernisation or reform of South African law. It publishes annual reports, bulletins, media releases, issue papers, reports and research papers. Publications from 1996 onwards are available on the web site.
The Sovereign Base Areas Administration (SBAA) is the civil government of the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia. These are portions of Cyprus which were retained as UK military bases when the Republic of Cyprus achieved independence in 1960 and form a British Overseas Territory with its own administration and laws distinct from those of Cyprus and the UK. This official web site contains an index of SBA legislation in force, including details of related/amending legislation. Links to full texts are provided for legislation, original or amending, as published in the Sovereign Base Areas Gazette. See Law and Justice>Attorney General Legal Advisor. Elsewhere there are brief accounts of the organisation and procedure of the courts.
This guide, on the GlobaLex web site, covers the legal and colonial history of Sri Lanka, the court system, case law and legislation. This revised edition by Thamil Venthan Ananthavinayagan is dated October 2016. The original version, written by Aquinas V. Tambimuttu and dated January 2009, is also available.
The Sabah State Attorney-General’s Chambers web site incorporates Sabah LawNet, which provides the full text of treaties, Sabah Constitution, Sabah laws (ordinances and enactments), subsidiary legislation and local authority by-laws; also the Federal (Malaysia) Constitution.
Queensland judgments are published on the web site of the Supreme Court of Queensland Library (SCLQ), with new ones added within 24 hours. The archive goes back to 1992 for Supreme Court (Court of Appeal) judgments, to 2000 for Supreme Court (Trial Division) and District Court, and to 2006 for Magistrates Court. Other services provided by SCLQ for legal practitioners include the UCPR Bulletin, indexing cases that have considered the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules; the weekly Queensland Legal Updater current awareness service; and biographical information about Queensland’s judiciary: Supreme Court, District Court and magistrates. Queensland Statutes (1962 reprints) are available in PDF.
The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) of South Africa, successor since 1996 to the Appellate Division, is South Africa’s second highest court after the Constitutional Court. Its web site contains judgments, 1999 onwards, information on the history and background of the court, judges’ CVs, court rules, practice directions and a quarterly bulletin giving details of reserved judgments and cases enrolled for hearing.
The Supreme Court of Canada was established in 1875. Its web site gives an account of the history, role, composition and administration of the court, information on pending cases and the full text of the Court’s rules. Canada Supreme Court Reports are available from 1876 onwards (NB: the first volume bears the publication date: 1878), and judgments in leave applications from 2005.
The official web site of India’s Supreme Court features the rules of the Court, cause lists, biographies of the judges and information on jurisdiction. A searchable database of judgments (1950 onwards) is provided via a link to the Judgment Information System web site.
The Supreme Court’s official web site provides access to the judgments of the District and Intermediate courts, Industrial Court and Court of Rodrigues, 2018 onwards; also cause lists. The “Legislation” section includes Acts, Bills and Regulations, 2018 onwards.
The official web site of the Supreme Court of Pakistan contains the Rules of the Court, updated to November 2017, the current cause list, forms, biographies of the judges and (under “Judicature”) the sections of the Constitution relating to the Court. “Latest Judgments” covers the last two months. The coverage dates for judgments in general are not apparent.
This collection of Supreme Court decisions dating from 1878 and from 1895 to 2012 is available on the CommonLII web site and uses data provided by LawNet, a Sri Lanka Government project. Case reports are taken from the Ceylon New Law Reports, the later Sri Lanka Law Reports. New decisions from 2009 onwards are based on data obtained directly from the Supreme Court website.
This site provides selected full-text judgments of Jamaica’s Supreme Court, 1996 onwards (plus a very small number from earlier years), and links to legislation on the Ministry of Justice and Parliament sites.
The Singapore Supreme Court’s site offers information on the composition of the court, and contacts. The “Practice Directions” section contains the current version of the Supreme Court of Judicature Act and the Rules of Court, consolidated Practice Directions, and Registrar’s circulars 1999 onwards. Judgments, termed “Recent” but in fact extending back to 2000, are available within “Information for Lawyers” in the drop-down menu on the right of the homepage.
The Sydney Law Review is the quarterly journal of the University of Sydney Law School. The current issue is available via the home page, and previous issues from 1953 onwards can be viewed in their entirety in PDF via a link to the AustLII site. The collection of case comments submitted by academics, entitled “Before the High Court”, are are a regular feature of the journal.
This is a narrative research guide to Trinidad and Tobago law, with extensive links to sources, written by Catherine A. Deane, Bay Area Research Specialist for Shearman & Sterling LLP, and published on the GlobaLex site. The current version is dated January/February 2020: earlier versions dated November 2009 and April/May 2015 are also accessible.
The Conference was founded in 1918 to harmonize the laws of the provinces and territories of Canada, and where appropriate the federal laws as well. It also makes recommendations for changes to federal criminal legislation based on identified deficiencies, defects or gaps in the existing law, or based on problems created by judicial interpretation of existing law. The site contains proceedings of all annual meetings (proceedings from before 1994 are in a separate database), study papers, discussion documents and a selection of uniform statutes recommended for enactment by the provinces, territories and sometimes the federal government. Uniform statutes that have been adopted are set out in tabular form.
The Waitangi Tribunal is a permanent commission of inquiry charged with making recommendations on claims brought by Maori relating to actions or omissions of the Crown which breach the promises made in the Treaty of Waitangi. It does not itself settle claims. Its recommendations to the government are contained in its reports. These are available on the web site, arranged chronologically, 1978 onwards. There is in addition ample information about the background, composition and procedures of the Tribunal.
Walkers is an offshore law firm with offices in the Cayman Islands (where the firm was founded), British Virgin Islands, London, Guernsey, Jersey, Dubai, Dublin (Ireland), and Singapore. The “Insights” section of its web site contains articles on a wide range of subjects written from the perspective of those jurisdictions.
ZambiaLII is part of the Free Access to Law Movement. It provides access on this site to Laws consolidated to 2006 and subsequent annual laws (Acts and Statutory Instruments). Judgments are available as follows: Supreme Court 1974 onwards, Court of Appeal 2017 onwards, High Court 1931 onwards (some years incomplete or lacking), Industrial Court 2011 onwards, and Constitutional Court 2016 onwards,
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