Free Legal Information Sources

Justia offers complimentary access to a wide array of legal resources, including case law, codes, and regulations. Users can search for federal cases, dockets, and filings from U.S. District Courts and U.S. Courts of Appeal, with options to filter results by circuit, state, lawsuit type, date, and more. Additionally, Justia features a U.S. Law Schools Center and a comprehensive directory of attorneys throughout the U.S.

The Caselaw Access Project has digitized the complete physical collection of case law held by Harvard Law School Library, converting it into a machine-readable format that is accessible online. This project encompasses an extensive online database containing more than 6 million U.S. court opinions, including all officially published state and federal case law up to the year 2020.

The Legal Information Institute (LII) serves as an excellent starting point for legal research. It offers original content alongside primary sources, addressing a wide range of legal topics. By providing free legal information online, LII supports access to justice initiatives, develops materials to enhance public understanding of the law, and investigates technologies that facilitate easier access to legal information.

FindLaw was established in Silicon Valley in 1995 when its founders created a compilation of legal resources for law librarians in Northern California. Based on the librarians’ feedback, they opted to make this information publicly accessible. FindLaw case law offers users complimentary access to opinions from state and federal courts, statutes, codes, and summaries. Researchers can conduct searches using citations or keywords, or they can browse by legal issue, state, or court. As a business, FindLaw delivers a variety of online legal information, including state laws, case law, codes, legal blogs and articles, a directory of lawyers, and do-it-yourself (DIY) legal products and services.

Access to Justice Issues

Free legal resources for online research are an option, and yet, overall, the reliability of information found on the internet remains questionable. This poses significant challenges for attorneys representing clients and for self-represented litigants navigating the legal system. Many individuals lack a clear understanding of legal processes, resulting in an information gap that complicates their efforts. Access to justice, commonly referred to as A to J in my community, emphasizes the importance of individuals being able to obtain information about state laws and other supportive legal resources, such as Legal Aid. Logan Cornett, director of research at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System (IAALS), notes that financial, employment, and unemployment issues disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, a situation exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The data underscores the persistent inequities within the U.S. justice system, revealing that while access to justice is a widespread societal concern, its repercussions are not felt equally across all demographics.

A transformation is on the horizon, and local librarians will play a pivotal role in facilitating this shift. I hold the view that librarians serve as catalysts and advocates for change. They contribute to the democratization of access to culture, community knowledge, and varied historical viewpoints. Furthermore, librarians can promote sustainability initiatives, reinforcing their position as essential agents of change in society. Through their efforts, libraries continue to enhance access to cultural resources and diverse narratives.

Fee-Based Information Services

Let us shift our focus to fee-based information services. It is crucial to develop structured search strategies before engaging in online legal research to maximize the benefits of these services. Many libraries provide complimentary access to paid subscriptions, making it worthwhile to investigate these resources.

Numerous fee-based information services, such as Westlaw, PACER, Fastcase, and CoCounsel (formerly Casetext), are available for purchase; however, their high costs often deter even legal professionals from acquiring them for their practices. For instance, depending on the required content, Westlaw can incur annual expenses amounting to thousands of dollars.

The same concept is applicable to LexisNexis, which serves as a comprehensive online legal information database. It provides users with a vast array of legal and business resources, facilitating the navigation of complex statutes, case law, and regulations. However, accessing this information can be expensive, with costs potentially reaching hundreds or thousands of dollars annually, depending on the content included in the subscription.

Like Westlaw, LexisNexis offers a variety of online content subscriptions. Additionally, access to PACER, Fastcase, and CoCounsel is also subscription-based. This emphasizes the critical role of law libraries in serving their communities, as access to justice is not always free. Consequently, individuals with limited resources may face significant challenges in understanding legal processes, conducting legal research, or managing pro se litigation.

Narrowing the Information Gap

The issue of access to justice in the U.S. has deep-rooted historical origins. In numerous civil cases within state courts, it is often observed that at least one party is unrepresented by legal counsel, primarily due to financial constraints. This phenomenon, known as the pro se crisis, represents only a fraction of a more extensive systemic issue. Annually, around 15 million cases involve at least one party without legal representation. A notable characteristic of these cases is the frequent opposition between institutional plaintiffs—such as banks, credit card companies, corporate landlords, municipal housing authorities, or various government entities—and individual defendants who lack legal assistance.

Law firms are increasingly adopting innovative service delivery models. They are implementing tiered legal services that offer a DIY option at the base level, paralegal or paraprofessional assistance in the middle tier, and full representation by an attorney at the highest tier. Additionally, many firms are providing unbundled services, allowing clients to handle certain tasks independently. These models enhance flexibility and improve access to legal assistance for low-income individuals and families. Local law libraries play a crucial role by offering resources to help individuals research and comprehend case law, legal terminology, and the language used in legal documents.

Conclusion

Finding reliable free legal information can be challenging, and understanding the language used in case law can be frustrating to a pro se litigant. The free online resources I highlighted—Justia, the Caselaw Access Project, LII, and FindLaw—are just a few suggestions.

Finding legal information through subscription-based resources may be less challenging, but there is a price to pay unless searching through these resources using a law library or local public library. Many libraries subscribe to the resources I mentioned—Westlaw, LexisNexis, CoCounsel, Fastcase, and PACER. It is worth one’s time to find out if their local law or public library has these databases available for legal research.

To reiterate the problem, there is an access to justice gap in the U.S., leading to a pro se crisis. With the development of AI, finding reliable legal information online can be tricky. There are millions of cases in the U.S. in which either the defendant or respondent was without legal representation, and that number is on the rise. Fortunately, with the help and intervention of librarians, the access to justice gap will narrow. Librarians perform many responsibilities that aid in research and preservation, protect civil rights, increase access to vulnerable populations, and improve the operations of the justice system. Libraries connect community members to important legal services and resources. Law librarians have extensive knowledge and background to help patrons navigate the confusing areas of laws. Their understanding of the civil legal justice landscape positions them to be useful resources to those who need it.