Covid-19 - Tests and latest statistics reported

CNN reports the US government will relaunch a program to provide free Covid-19 home tests to Americans as new variants continue to alarm health officials. US households can order four free tests from Covidtests.gov starting Monday. The relaunch of the program comes as Covid-19 hospitalizations have been on the rise in the US since July, with weekly admissions now more than triple what they were two months ago.

Click the text highlighted in color for the most recent COVID-19 data posted on the Internet by NYPPL's COVID-19 consultant Isaac Michaels.

 

New York COVID-19 Data Tracking Report

September 20, 2023

COVID-19 GIS epidemiology communicable diseases

 

United States COVID-19 Data Tracking Report

September 20, 2023

COVID-19 epidemiology GIS communicable diseases

 

N.B.: Michaels updates the analyses routinely as the respective underlying data are updated. His website serves as a valuable resource for those interested in epidemiology and data science.

 

Click HERE to access Michaels' site on the Internet.

 

 

 

Two recent decisions published by the New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings

Decision 1.

New York City Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings [OATH] Administrative Law Judge [ALJ] Kara J. Miller considered the Agency's request that a community coordinator [CC] charged with violating a previously issued warning memo* and making threats of harm or violence to agency staff members be terminated from the position.

Judge Miller found that CC made threatening comments to his supervisors and colleagues, including referencing his access to guns and repeated attempts to find out when an office gathering would take place via emails sent to his supervisors and text messages to his personal therapist, which were subsequently forwarded to the Agency’s Equal Employment Opportunities Office. The text message referenced an upcoming office holiday party, instructed CC's therapist to look for him on the news, and stated, “The System has failed me so it will be punished.”

Finding CC guilty of the charge of making threats of harm or violence toward his co-workers, the ALJ recommend the Agency terminate CC’s employment. 

* ALJ Miller dismissed the disciplinary charge alleging CC violated "a warning memo", finding that the Agency failed to properly introduce the warning memo into evidence and failed to allege specifics as to how CC violated the warning memo.

Click HERE to access the text of Judge Miller's decision posted on the Internet.

 

Decision 2. 

OATH Administrative Law Judge Tiffany Hamilton recommended termination of employment for a correction officer [CO] who engaged in "undue familiarity" with individuals in custody and other related misconduct. 

Judge Hamilton found:

[1] CO passed notes between a male person in custody (BL), and a female person in custody (TG), who occupied holding pens across the hallway from one another;

[2] failed to look inside BL’s holding pen when removing TG from that pen approximately 50 minutes later; and

[3] Failed to submit a report regarding sexual contact between the said two persons in custody; and

[4] CO did not deny the alleged misconduct charged but argued that her actions did not warrant termination.

The ALJ, noting that CO's remorse for her conduct and the absence of CO being the subject of any prior disciplinary action in the record, nevertheless concluded that termination was warranted because CO's conduct demonstrated "several fundamental lapses in judgment, an inefficient performance of duties, and untrustworthiness" and recommended CO impose the penalty of dismissal from service as requested by the Appointing Authority.

Click HERE to access the text of Judge Hamilton's decision posted on the Internet.

 _________________

 A Reasonable Disciplinary Penalty - For information and access to a free excerpt of the material presented in this New York Public Personnel Law e-book, click HERE

 

 

Former employees of a candidate's election campaign organization challenged their termination after the candidate's withdrawal from the campaign

Plaintiffs-Appellants in this appeal to the United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, are fifty former field employees of defendants "Michael Bloomberg and Mike Bloomberg 2020, Inc." [Campaign], which sought to promote and secure the Democratic presidential nomination for Michael Bloomberg.

Plaintiffs contended that Campaign recruited them to the job by promising employment through November 2020, but reneged on that promise when the Campaign dismissed Plaintiffs shortly after Bloomberg withdrew from the race in March of 2020. Plaintiffs, alleging "fraudulent inducement and promissory estoppel", challenged a federal district court’s dismissal of their complaint, with prejudice and without leave to amend.

The Circuit Court said it reviewed de novo "both the district court’s dismissal under Rule 12(b)(6) and its denial of the request to amend [the complaint] on the basis of futility," citing Chambers v. Time Warner, Inc., 282 F.3d 147,  and Panther Partners Inc. v. Ikanos Commc’ns, Inc., 681 F.3d 114.

Concluding that "(1) Plaintiffs are unable to prove the reasonable reliance required for their claims because of the at-will nature of their employment agreement,* and (2) Plaintiffs would not be able to survive dismissal even if granted leave to amend", the Circuit Court sustained the district court's ruling.

* A footnote, Footnote 4, in the Circuit Court's decision notes Campaign's offer of employment letter states “[t]he nature of your employment at the [Campaign] is and will continue to be ‘at will,’ as defined by applicable law, meaning that either we or you may terminate your employment at any time, with or without notice and with or without cause, for any reason or for no reason.” Further, observed the court, Campaign's employee handbook states “[y]our employment with the [Campaign] is ‘at will,’ which means that it is for no definite period of time, and may be terminated at any time by either you or the [Campaign], with or without cause, notice or procedural requirements.”

Click HERE to access the text of the Circuit Court's decision posted on the Internet.

 

A Veterans’ Day 2023 advisory memorandum has been issued by the New York State Department of Civil Service

The Department of Civil Service has issued Attendance and Leave Advisory Memorandum 2023-04 addressing Veterans’ Day, November 11, 2023, noting that a number of State Departments and  agencies have inquired about Veterans’ Day, which this year will fall on Saturday, November 11, 2023. 

The Department reports that it has been advised by the Office of Employee Relations that another day will not be designated to be observed as a holiday by State employees in lieu of November 11, 2023.

The text of Advisory Memorandum 2023-04 is posted on the Internet at: https://www.cs.ny.gov/attendance_leave/AdvMemo23-04.cfm

The Department of Civil Services has made a version of Advisory Memorandum 2023-04 available in PDF for those wishing to print it.

Click HERE to access the PDF version of Advisory Memorandum 2023-04 posted on the Internet.

Earlier Attendance and Leave bulletins issued by the Department of Civil Service are posted on the Internet at https://www.cs.ny.gov/attendance_leave/index.cfm .

 

 

 

Private entities and employees of private entities are typically not within the ambit 42 U.S.C. §1983 for the purposes of filing violation of civil rights complaints

The Plaintiff in this action appealed a federal district court’s dismissal of her 42 U.S.C. §1983 civil rights complaint. Plaintiff had sued a private hospital and a number of its employees [Respondents] for allegedly for violating her constitutional rights while involuntarily hospitalizing and medicating her.

A federal district court had dismissed Plaintiff's amended complaint as she failed to plead that Respondents were acting under color of state law and denied further leave to amend her complaint as futile.*

Reviewing a dismissal of a cause of action for failure to state a claim the Second Circuit Court of Appeals said it assumed "all well-pleaded allegations in the operative complaint are true and draw every reasonable inference in the plaintiff’s favor," citing N.Y. Pet Welfare Ass’n, Inc. v. City of New York, 850 F.3d 79. 

Further, observing that Plaintiff brought this action pro se, the Circuit Court pointed out that although pro se filings “must be construed liberally and interpreted to raise the strongest arguments that they suggest,” a pro se complaint "must still state a 'plausible claim for relief' to survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss."

Agreeing with the district court that Plaintiff’s complaint, which was premised on alleged constitutional violations by private parties, failed to demonstrate that Respondents were acting under color of state law, the Circuit Court explained that state action “requires both the exercise of some right or privilege created by the State and the involvement of a person who may fairly be said to be a State actor.” As a result, opined the Circuit Court, "a §1983 claim against a private actor will usually fail because private actors do not act under the color of state law, no matter how 'discriminatory or wrongful' their conduct might be."

The Circuit Court's decision notes that Plaintiff did not allege that the Defendants were state actors and "did not press any meaningful argument to that end on appeal". Although Plaintiff focused on the alleged severity and illegality of the Respondents' alleged misconduct, the Circuit Court said "even egregious acts cannot form the basis of a §1983 claim unless the defendant is also acting under color of state law."

Accordingly, the Circuit Court held the district court correctly dismissed Plaintiff's complaint and so doing "with prejudice" was also proper.

 * See Alicea v. Yang, No. 21-CV-1638 (KAD), 2022 WL 2527994.

Click HERE to access the Second Circuit Court's decision posted on the Internet.

 

New York Public Personnel Law e-books

NYPPL's Public Personnel Law e-books, described below, may be ordered from BookLocker, Inc. and other fine book stores.

The Discipline Book - Click HERE to access a free excerpt of the material presented in this e-book and other information.

A Reasonable Disciplinary Penalty - Click HERE to access a free excerpt of the material presented in this e-book and other information.

The Layoff, Preferred List and Reinstatement Manual - Click HERE to access a free excerpt of the material presented in this e-book and other information.

Disability Leave for fire, police and other public sector personnel - Click HERE to access a free excerpt of the material presented in this e-book and other information.

Justia's list of the most popular New York Law Blawgs "for all time"

Justia's lists 2,321 lawblogs in the United States, which includes 296 New York lawblogs. Justia's September 16, 2023 national rank of the 20 most popular New York's lawblogs for "all time" are shown below: 

Real Estate Law Blog [Feed]

Includes news, cases and commentary on real estate and property law in New York and nationwide. By Newman Ferrara LLP.

Last Updated: September 15, 2023 - Rank this Week: 5

http://www.nyrealestatelawblog.com/

 

New York Supreme Court Criminal Term Library [Feed]

News and information gateway to web based services provided by the New York State Supreme Court Criminal Term Library in New York County.

Last Updated: December 14, 2010 - Rank this Week: 26

http://crimlawlib.blogspot.com/

 

New York Public Personnel Law [Feed]

Provides summary and commentary on selected court and administrative decisions and related matters affecting public employers and employees in New York State. By Harvey Randall, Esq.

Last Updated: September 15, 2023 - Rank this Week: 36

https://publicpersonnellaw.blogspot.com/

 

New York Attorney Malpractice Blog [Feed]

Covers legal malpractice basics, cases and news. By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone.

Last Updated: September 15, 2023 - Rank this Week: 125

http://blog.bluestonelawfirm.com/

 

New York Criminal Lawyer Blog [Feed]

Covers New York criminal law topics such as criminal procedure, DWI and traffic offenses, drugs and narcotics, fraud related offenses, and violent crimes. By Jeremy Saland.

Last Updated: August 5, 2023 - Rank this Week: 142

http://www.newyorkcriminallawyer-blog.com/

 

Copyright Litigation Blog [Feed]

Review of copyright law, copyright litigation, art litigation and relevant current events. Discussions of recent case law and federal rules of civil procedure. By Ray Dowd.

Last Updated: July 11, 2020 - Rank this Week: 151

http://copyrightlitigation.blogspot.com/

 

Criminal Law Library Blog [Feed]

Covers criminal law, information technology and news for law librarians. By David Badertscher.

Last Updated: September 15, 2023 - Rank this Week: 165

http://www.criminallawlibraryblog.com/

 

Clancco: Art & Law [Feed]

Covers the relationship between art and law with a focus on intellectual property, nonprofit tax-exempt organizations, free speech, and contemporary art. By Sergio Muñoz Sarmiento.

Last Updated: March 28, 2022 - Rank this Week: 182

http://clancco.com/wp

 

Coverage Counsel [Feed]

Covers New York insurance coverage cases and issues. By Roy A. Mura.

Last Updated: June 29, 2023 - Rank this Week: 244

http://nycoveragecounsel.blogspot.com/

 

New York Law Notes [Feed]

Provides a summary of an Appellate Division case of special interest to New York practitioners.

Last Updated: September 14, 2023 - Rank this Week: 250

http://drdiekman.podbean.com

 

New York Personal Injury Law Blog [Feed]

Covers the civil justice system, New York Courts, injury law cases and news. By Eric Turkewitz.

Last Updated: June 18, 2021 - Rank this Week: 286

http://www.newyorkpersonalinjuryattorneyblog.com/

 

Sui Generis--a New York law blog [Feed]

Offers commentary on civil rights issues, recent decisions and other areas of interest to New York civil litigators and criminal practitioners. By Nicole L. Black.

Last Updated: September 12, 2023 - Rank this Week: 290

http://nylawblog.typepad.com/suigeneris/

 

CFTC Law [Feed]

Covers futures, commodities and forex regulation. By Shipkevich Law Firm.

Last Updated: September 13, 2023 - Rank this Week: 345

https://www.cftclaw.com/

 

Securities Law Blog [Feed]

Features news, commentary and thoughts on the law of the securities markets. By Mark Astarita.

Last Updated: September 15, 2023 - Rank this Week: 354

http://seclaw.blogspot.com/

 

Whistleblower News [Feed]

Cover qui tam law and the process of bringing a case. By Getnick & Getnick.

Last Updated: September 15, 2023 - Rank this Week: 370

http://getnicklaw.com/category/whistleblower-news/

 

Immigration News Blog [Feed]

Covers immigration law, news and commentary. By Matthew L. Kolken.

Last Updated: April 11, 2019 - Rank this Week: 423

http://kolken.blogspot.com/

 

New York Business Divorce [Feed]

Covers dissolution and other disputes among New York corporations, LLCs and partnerships. By Peter A. Mahler.

Last Updated: September 11, 2023 - Rank this Week: 445

http://www.nybusinessdivorce.com/

 

NY Divorce Attorney Blog [Feed]

Covers New York divorce law. By David Centeno.

Last Updated: May 11, 2023 - Rank this Week: 452

https://nyuncontesteddivorceattorney.com/blog/

 

Restaurant Worker News Blog [Feed]

Covers employment law issues in the restaurant industry. By Berke-Weiss & Pechman LLP.

Last Updated: December 22, 2017 - Rank this Week: 458

http://waiterpay.com/blog/

 

New York Criminal Lawyer Blog [Feed]

Covers criminal law topics. By Stephen Bilkis & Associates

Last Updated: October 8, 2019 - Rank this Week: 461

http://www.nycriminalattorneyblog.com/

 

Click HERE to access the complete list of "New York Blawgs" listed by Justia.

 

 

 

 

Attorneys invited to consider a career in public service with the State of New York

The New York State Department of Civil Service invites attorneys to consider a career in public service with the State of New York. 

For information about current employment opportunities click HERE.

Municipal and School Audits released by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli

On September 14, 2023, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli announced the following local government and school audits were issued.

Click on the text highlighted in color to access an Executive Summary of the Audit Report and a link to the complete text of the Audit Report

 

East Hampton Union Free School District – Network and Financial Application Access and Information Technology (IT) Contingency Planning (Suffolk County)

School district officials secured user account access to the financial application but did not secure user account access to the network or develop an IT contingency plan. This increases the risk of unauthorized access, lost data, and inability to recover from a network disruption. In addition, the district’s use of two central network management tools for over 10 years has created security concerns due to lack of monitoring of all accounts on both tools. Also, auditors found 91% of the district’s enabled network user accounts were not logged into in the last six months. Accounts grant access to sensitive information, and unneeded accounts should be disabled to protect data. Lastly, officials also did not provide IT security awareness training to district IT users.

 

Dutchess Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) – Electricity Contract Monitoring and Billing (Dutchess County)

BOCES officials did not monitor electricity rates to ensure they were at the lowest possible cost or ensure that invoices for electricity usage were accurate. Had officials monitored the electricity rates and ensured the utility bills were accurate, officials may have reduced BOCES electricity supply expenses by almost 50%, or approximately $172,000, during the 28-month audit period.

 

Town of Venice – Supervisor’s Financial Records and Reports (Cayuga County)

The supervisor’s accounting records were not complete, accurate or up to date. Of the 39 cash receipts totaling $6.1 million, and 36 cash disbursements totaling $124,391 reviewed: 20 cash receipts totaling $3.1 million either did not match bank deposits or lacked adequate support documentation, 25 cash receipts totaling $4.8 million were not recorded on time in the supervisor’s accounting records, 11 disbursements totaling $39,038 were not recorded in the accounting records, and eight disbursements totaling $33,021 lacked adequate support documentation and were not board approved. Furthermore, bank reconciliations for 15 of the 36 months reviewed were not performed, and the town’s 2020 required annual update document (AUD) was filed 310 days late. The 2021 and 2022 AUDs were not filed. The supervisor also did not present financial records and reports to the board for audit, as required.

 

Onondaga County – Sexual Harassment Prevention (SHP) Training (S9-23-8)

SHP training was provided to employees and elected officials. However, of the 250 total individuals  tested (227 selected employees and all 23 elected officials), 14 employees, or 6%, of employees tested did not complete the annual SHP training.

 

Town of Southold – Sexual Harassment Prevention (SHP) Training (Suffolk County)

SHP training was provided to employees and elected officials. However, of the 45 total individuals tested (26 selected employees and all 19 elected officials), six employees and 10 elected officials did not complete the annual SHP training. Additionally, of the 423 total town employees and elected officials tested, 10 justice court employees, 38 police department employees and the town historian were excluded from the SHP training.

 

Town of New Hartford – Sexual Harassment Prevention (SHP) Training (Oneida County)

SHP training was provided to employees and elected officials. However, of the 20 total individuals tested (11 selected employees and all nine elected officials), three employees and six elected officials did not complete the annual SHP Training. Additionally, the town excluded new hires at the highway department who started after April’s scheduled session from SHP training.

 

Village of Lynbrook – Sexual Harassment Prevention (SHP) Training (Nassau County)

SHP training was provided to employees and elected officials. However, of the 35 total individuals tested (28 selected employees and all seven elected officials), six employees (21%) did not complete the annual SHP training.

###

Resources provided via the New York State Law Reporting Bureau's Legal Research Portals

A listing of the New York State Law Reporting Bureau's legal research portals.

Click on the text in COLOR to access the site posted on the Internet.

New York State Court Resources

NY State Law Reporting Bureau

Comprehensive and searchable collection of state court decisions and motions dating from 2000

---

NY Court of Appeals

The past and present of New York's high court along with recent decisions

---

NY State Court of Claims

Cases against the State of New York

---

Office of Court Administration

Court information, rules and publications, featuring E-Courts case searching and tracking

---

Library and Information Network

Catalogs of court libraries, records & briefs, trial transcripts

---

Criminal Jury Instructions & Model Colloquies

Criminal charges to New York State juries and baseline colloquy scripts

---

Guide to New York Evidence

A compilation of New York's existing evidentiary rules.

---

Historical Society of the Courts of the State of NY

Large library of NY judiciary historical documents, biographies of Judges, and profiles of state courts

---

Forms

Forms for various state actions and proceedings

---

New York State Agency Resources

 

New York Codes, Rules and Regulations

Complete unofficial NYCRR

---

New York Codes, Rules and Regulations Digital Archive

Fully searchable archive of NYCRR dating 1945 through 2001

---

NY State Government Information Locator Service

Access to a variety of state government information including agency publications

---

Access to State Government

Links to many state agencies

---

NY State Library

Home of Excelsior, an exhaustive catalog of state government documents

---

New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (19 NYCRR 1219.1)

Including the 2015 International Codes:  Residential, Building, Existing Building, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Fire, Property Maintenance and Energy Conservation Codes and Additional Uniform Code Provisions (19 NYCRR parts 1220-1228)

---

NY State Register

New York administrative rules from 2003

---

NY State Department of State Local Laws Search

Local Laws adopted by the legislative body of a local government (county, city, town or village) are filed with the Department of State pursuant to section 27 of the Municipal Home Rule Law. The NY Department of State maintains an electronic database of local laws and county codes filed after 1998 and 2015, respectively.

---

New York State Legislative Resources

 

New York State Assembly

Check bill text and status of current state bills

---

New York State Senate

Senate information, current legislation, Senate Rules, NY Constitution

---

Laws of New York

Browse or search New York laws courtesy of the State Legislature

---

Bill Jackets/Veto Jackets

Files, or “jackets,” dating from 1995-present, which document the Governor’s legislative decision-making process on bills that have been signed into law or vetoed by the executive

---

Historic New York Session Laws

New York Session Laws dated between 1800 and 1922 preseved on HathiTrust by the University of Iowa

 

New York City and Other Local Sites

Official NY City Website

General information on NY City; links to city agencies. (read more)

---

Administrative Code of the City of New York and NY City Charter

Follow instruction to navigate to searchable Code and Charter.

---

Rules of the City of New York (RCNY)

Browse and seach the Rules of the City of New York on the website of the City's official rule publisher.

---

NY City Local Laws

Searchable full text of NY City Local Laws, Introductions and Resolutions since 1998

---

NY City Zoning Resolution

Current NY City Zoning Resolution and Maps

---

NY City Department of Education Chancellor's Regulations

Regulations covering a wide range of policies including student-related issues and employee issues

---

The City Record Online

Database of notices published in the City Record newspaper which includes: public hearings and meetings, public auctions and sales, solicitations and awards and official rules proposed and adopted by NY City agencies.

---

NY Municipal Codes

Extensive collection of Municipal Codes

---

Ethics Resources

NY State Bar Assn Ethics Opinions

Advisory opinions issued by NYSBA Committee on Professional Ethics

---

New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics

Advisory Opinions from 1988 to date

---

NYC Bar Assn Committee on Professional and Judicial Ethics

Opinions from 1986 to date

---

Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics

Browse or search the committee's ethical opinions

---

New York Rules of Professional Conduct with New York State Bar Association Commentary

Read the Rules of Professional Conduct and commentary

---

AMA Code of Medical Ethics

Policy positions of the American Medical Association

 

Federal Legal Resources

Congress.gov

Federal bills, Congressional Record, treaties, committee reports

---

Table of Popular Names of Federal Statutes

The Office of the Law Revision Counsel's Popular Name Tool enables you to search or browse the United States Code Table of Acts Cited by Popular Name

---

US Government Printing Office

Free online access to official publications from all three branches of the federal government. United States Code, Code of Federal Regulations, Federal Register, Hon. Gerald Lebovits, A Collection of Works on Legal and Judicial Writing, United States Court Decisions, Compilation of Presidential Documents, Congressional Bills, Congressional Documents, Congressional Hearings, Congressional Record, Congressional Reports, Economic Indicators, Public and Private Laws, Additional Government Publications

---

US Supreme Court

Opinions, dockets, argument transcripts, argument audio, free online access to the US Reports and the Preliminary Prints that precede bound volume publication

---

GovTrack.us

Easily track the status of federal legislation, find information about the activities of Congress generally and specific members, and more

---

Federal Courts Finder

Comprehensive listing of federal courts

---

FedWorld

US Commerce Department's access point for federal information; 20 searchable databases. (read more)

---

The White House: Presidential Actions

Includes Executive Orders, Presidential Memoranda, and Proclamations (January 2009-present)

---

National Archives

Codification of Presidential Proclamations & Executive Orders (1945-1989), Executive Orders Disposition Tables Index (1937-2012)

---

Library of Congress

US Constitution & Bill of Rights; Congressional Bills (House 1799-1873, Senate 1819-1873); Congressional Committee Reports (US Serial Set 1833-1917); Congressional Debates (1789-1877); documents from the Continental Congress & Constitutional Convention; US Treaties (1795-1945) and Other International Agreements (1950-1982)

---

Founder's Constitution

Provides links to historical documents related to the development of the Constitution

---

Yale Law School's Avalon Project

Large compilation of historical documents, e.g., Federalist Papers, presidential papers, early state constitutions

---

US Department of State

Congressional testimony transcripts by Department of State officials appearing before Congress, Treaties in Force, and Texts of International Agreements (TIAS) to which the US is a party (1996-2015)

---

US Department of Labor

Information about many of the major laws administered and enforced by the US Department of Labor

Free access to the Department of Labor's Wirtz Labor Library, providing the general public with a wealth of labor resources

---

US Patent & Trademark Office Patent Search Tutorial

Learn how to conduct a preliminary patent search using a video tutorial.

---

US Department of Housing and Urban Development

Access to Housing Handbooks, forms, and publications.

---

Law Librarians' Society of Washington, D.C. Legislative Source Book

Compilation of links to federal research guides, tables of information, and out-of-print sources.

 

International Legal Resources

International Legal Research Tutorial

A collaboration between Duke University School of Law and University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, this tutorial teaches research strategies and methodology for research print and electronic sources of international legal materials.

 

Comprehensive Legal Services

FindLaw

Free access to a range of federal and state resources and materials from other countries; also offers forms for purchase. (read more)

---

Justia

Free access to a range of federal and state resources.

---

LexisNexis Legal Newsroom

Sign up for access to legal blogs, top cases and more.

---

Harvard Law School Free Legal Research Guide

Collection of some of the best resources for free legal research on the web. Contains links for Primary Federal Law, Primary State Law, U.S. and International Treaties, Foreign and International Law, Secondary Sources, and Empirical Sources.

---

George Mason University School of Law Free Legal Research Sites

Organizes free legal research websites, search engines and databases.

---

DRAGNET: Search of Free Legal Databases

DRAGNET stands for "Database Retrieval Access using Google's New Electronic Technology," a specialized search engine that enables users to "drag the net" through a group of free law-related Web resources.

---

Cornell's Legal Information Institute

Full-service federal and state site with comprehensive Supreme Court collection. (read more)

---

WashLaw WEB

Comprehensive site of national and state material; fine selection of Law Journals

---

Georgetown Law Library Tutorials

Free video tutorials for conducting legal research, including Administrative Law, Legislative History and Treaty Research.

---

Thurgood Marshall Law Library Guide to Legal Research

Guide to general legal research prepared by the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law.

---

ECOLEX

Information service on environmental law that includes information on treaties, international soft-law and other non-binding policy and technical guidance documents, national legislation, judicial decisions, and law and policy literature. Users have access to the full text of most of the information provided.

---

American Law Sources On-Line

Links to freely-accessible online sources of law for the US and Canada.

---

Digital Commons Network-Law Commons

Free access to over 400,000 law articles.

---

Law Technology Today

Free full-text online law review/journal search.

---

Legal Scholarship Network

Database containing scholarly working papers and articles recently accepted for publication.

 

Miscellaneous Resources

State Phone Directory

Searchable phone directory of state employees (provided by the Office of Information Technology Services)

---

New York State Bar Association

Includes Opinions issued by the NYSBA Committee on Professional Ethics

---

NY City Green Book

Official Directory of the City of New York

---

Medicare/Medicaid Manual

From the US Department of Health and Human Services

 

Legal Writing Resources: 

Clarity, Plain English, Grammar, Punctuation, Diction

Practice Law Institute, Thinking Like a Writer: A Lawyer's Guide to Effective Writing and Editing, The Principles of Super-Clarity

---

Federal Register, Drafting Legal Documents, Principles of Clear Writing

---

Federal Register, Drafting Legal Documents, Preferred Expressions

---

Hon. Gerald Lebovits, A Collection of Works on Legal and Judicial Writing

---

U.S. Securities and Exchange Comission, A Plain English Handbook: How to Create Clear SEC Disclosure Documents, Writing in Plain English (Aug. 1998)

---

William Strunk, Jr., The Elements of Style (1999), portions available on Bartleby.com

---

---

Capital Community College Foundation, Guide to Grammar and Writing

---

Purdue University, The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)

---

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary