Identify the issues - Secondary research - BUAD 209 Business Law

Identify the issues

Read secondary research (legal commentary published in journals, newspapers etc.) to define and understand the issues you will be researching. Secondary research will often point you in the direction of useful case law and applicable legislation.

The following resources provide legal commentary. You can search these resources using the keywords you generated from your facts, and they will point you towards "legal terminology," case names, legislations and other resources.

Journal Articles - Provide an in-depth analysis of an issue.

Law Firm Newsletters - Provide comments for the lay person on recent legal developments.

Newspapers/Magazines - Report on current events including legal cases.

Current Awareness

Free online sources

The following sources may be used to find articles or blog posts about recent legal issues and cases. Many law firms publish blogs which discuss recent cases.

Slaw - Canada's online legal magazine
Browse recent posts, or look under Categories for topics. Check out "Case commentaries" under Categories for discussion of recent cases.
CanLII Connects
Browse for recent posts, or search using keywords.
Supreme Court of Canada Cases in Brief
"Short summaries of the Court’s written decisions drafted in reader-friendly language, so that anyone interested can learn about the decisions that affect their lives."
Lawblogs
A directory of law blogs. Categorized by province or topic. Look under 'Selected law blogs' for highlighted blogs.
Clawbies
Canadian Law Blog Awards. A good place to browse for law blogs with quality content.

Library databases

Search in library databases for legal news.

Quicklaw This link opens in a new window
Quicklaw contains cases and commentary. Search for a topic, then click on Secondary Sources. Lawyer’s Daily or Lawyer’s Weekly is a good secondary source for recent case law. There is also a 'current awareness' section that you can search – it will limit the search to specific resources related to different law topics.
Canadian Major Dailies This link opens in a new window
Articles from the major Canadian newspapers including the National Post, the Globe & Mail, Montreal Gazette, and the Vancouver Sun. Search for your topic keywords and words related to law.
This database will time-out after 30 minutes of inactivity. To avoid losing your research, please save your results within that time period. Browsing/marking results does not constitute activity.
CPI.Q (Canadian Periodical Index) This link opens in a new window
This database includes full text for a number of Okanagan newspapers, such as the Kelowna Capital News, Salmon Arm Observer, Penticton Western News, and the Vernon Morning Star, if you are looking for local news.

Maclean's
News weekly published in Canada. Search for your topic of interest and words related to law.

Legal Blogs, Websites

Library Databases

Quicklaw This link opens in a new window
Resources to support Canadian legal research. Materials covered are statutes, regulations, journal articles, case law, tribunal decisions, and legal commentary.
Canadian Major Dailies This link opens in a new window
Coverage from 1985-Present. Articles from the major Canadian newspapers including the National Post, the Globe & Mail, Times Colonist, Montreal Gazette, and the Vancouver Sun. Usually a 2-7 day delay in newspaper article updates.
This database will time-out after 30 minutes of inactivity. To avoid losing your research, please save your results within that time period. Browsing/marking results does not constitute activity.