Reference Materials
Reference materials are sources that provide general information about a topic. Resources include dictionaries, encyclopedias, and almanacs. Also included in this category are sources that explain how to conduct legal research or describe the basic elements of civil procedure. In many cases, they provide an excellent starting point for research, legal or otherwise.
Basic Resources
Nolo’s Encyclopedia of Everyday Law (Nolo)
Researching Texas Law (W.S. Hein & Co.)
Texas Jurisprudence III (Thomson Reuters)
Black’s Law Dictionary (Thomson Reuters)
Legal Research: How to Find & Understand the Law
Legal Research in a Nutshell (West Academic)
Online
Free Law Dictionary FREE Black's Legal Dictionary Online - Free Law Dictionary
Glossary (American Bar Association) Glossary (americanbar.org)
Glossary of Legal Terms (United State Courts) Glossary of Legal Terms | United States Courts (uscourts.gov)
Law.com Legal Dictionary Legal Dictionary | Law.com
Merriam-Webster’s Law Dictionary Merriam-Webster's Law Dictionary: Legal Terms in Plain English (merriam-webster.com)
Wex (Legal Information Institute) Wex | Wex | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute (cornell.edu)
More In-Depth Resources
Garner’s Modern English Usage (Oxford University Press)
The Greenbook: Texas Rules of Form (University of Texas School of Law)
A Layperson’s Guide to Legal Research and Self-Help Law Books (New England LawPress)
The Legal Researcher’s Desk Reference (Infosources Pub.)
Roget’s International Thesaurus (Collins)
Represent Yourself in Court: Prepare and Try Winning a Civil Case (Nolo)
The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation (Harvard Law Review)
Burton’s Legal Thesaurus (McGraw Hill Education)
The Cybersleuth’s Guide to the Internet: Conducting Effective Free Investigative and Legal Research on the Web (Internet for Lawyers)
Dahl’s Law Dictionary Spanish-English/English-Spanish (W.S. Hein)
Garner’s Dictionary of Legal Usage (Oxford University Press)
Online
TexasCourtHelp.org
TexasLawHelp.org