Best of luck with your exams

Posted on May 7, 2021 by zszabo2014

As exams are fast approaching, we would like to help your preparation by sharing a few links to law databases and e-book collections. So, if you still need some revision, please check out the resources below.

© CollegeDegrees360. Licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

DATABASES

Westlaw database

Westlaw provides full text access to UK case law, legislation, and legal journals. The database also provides full text access to 374 e-books. Current Awareness on Westlaw UK enables you to stay up to date with the very latest developments. Unfortunately, we do not have a subscription to Practical Law.

Please read our library guides to learn more about the database:
Westlaw UK – quick guide
Westlaw UK – cases
Westlaw UK – legislation
Westlaw UK – UK and international journals

Lexis Library

Lexis Library is an important source of full text legal information. It provides access to UK, EU, US and international case law, legislation, and law journals. The News section of the database gives access to a wide range of national and regional newspapers including Scottish newspapers.

Our library guides:
Lexis®Library – key features
Lexis®Library – searching for case law
Lexis®Library – searching for articles in UK and international legal journals
Lexis®Library – searching for newspaper articles

HeinOnline database

HeinOnline is a particularly useful source of older journal articles, old English cases, U.S. and other international resources and materials on Scottish Legal History.

Library guide: HeinOnline – quick guide

NOTABLE E-BOOK COLLECTIONS

University Press Scholarship Online – UPSO

UPSO is a cross-searchable library which offers quick and easy access to the full text of titles published by internationally significant university presses including OUP, Yale, Stanford, Fordham, Chicago, and many others.

Click on the title to go to the collection. Under the logo, University Press Scholarship Online (in the top left corner), you will find Browse by Subject. Click on the arrow and select Law. On the left-hand side of the screen, you will find filters to narrow down your choices. Select Unlocked and Free titles from the Availability section. Your search will return with 2138 titles. You can further narrow down the results by choosing Subject on the left hand-side of the screen.

SpringerLink

Springer’s collections include access to the full text of thousands of sciences, medical and social sciences e-books. Please note, we do not subscribe to every title in this database. The green square next to the item indicates if we have full text access to it.

After opening SpringerLink, on the left-hand side of the home screen, you can browse by discipline. Click on Law to navigate to the law subject page. Please do not forget to deselect the ‘Include Preview-Only content‘ box to limit your search to subscribed titles. Still on the left-hand side of the screen, you can find more filters, like Content Type, Language, Subdiscipline, etc. We advise you to select Book from Content Type box to get access to 2178 full text e-books.

Ebook Central

Ebook Central is one of the biggest e-book collections we have access to. It contains more than 180,000 authoritative, copyrighted books supplied by over 180 leading scholarly publishers. The titles cover many different subject areas, from Social Sciences, Law, Medicine, Science, and Computing to Education, Fine Arts and History.

Click on the title Ebook Central to link out to the collection. On the home page, under the Search box (in the middle of the screen), click on Browse by Subject, then select Law. You will be directed to the Law subject page from where you can get access to 8314 full text e-books.

We hope, you will find the right resources which can help your preparation. For more information on library services and resources, please follow the link here.

We wish you all the very best with your exams.

Taylor Library Team
lawlib@abdn.ac.uk

Tips for new postgraduate law students

Posted on February 6, 2020 by zszabo2014

Are you a new postgraduate law student at the University of Aberdeen? Do you have assignments to submit?

Here are some practical advice before submission:

Be careful when you cite others’ thoughts, ideas or work. To avoid plagiarism, you always have to acknowledge your sources. Follow the hyperlinks to read more about Plagiarism, Citing the law or the Code of Practice in Student Discipline.
The School of Law expects every student to use OSCOLA (Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities) citation style. If you want to cite international law sources, please see OSCOLA International guide (2006).
Law Library Guides can also help you with citation or using legal databases:
You will need a pink cover sheet for your printed essay. We have them in Taylor Library, check the Photocopy Area (opposite the Issue Desk).
Finally, please remember that staff at our Help Desks are always available to help you.

Good luck with your assignments.

Taylor Library Team
lawlib@abdn.ac.uk

New Look Westlaw UK is live

Posted on August 12, 2019 by rossjmcc

Westlaw UK has recently undergone some major interface changes, refining many features and bringing the general look and feel in line with Westlaw International.

As before you should access Westlaw UK via Primo, our resource discovery tool. Users familiar with the previous Westlaw UK interface will have no trouble locating cases, legislation and articles etc, as the content header tabs are similarly displayed at the top of the page in the collections navigation bar. Clicking on any of the main content tabs opens up a second layer of tabs, providing in depth searching and browsing options. You can also search across all collections or browse by topic right from the home page. The Options button allows you to select specific collections to search across.

Westlaw UK new look homepage: The collections Navigation Bar, Options button and Browse by Topic highlighted

Cases

The Cases tab opens up to Cases Home in the second layer of tabs giving you the option to search for specific cases by Free Text, Subject/Keyword, Party Names or Citation. The next two tabs in the second layer provide browsing options, so you can browse by court or by law report series title. The fourth tab allows you to search for Quantum Reports. This one is a new addition, stay tuned for updates.

Westlaw UK Cases Home page: Second layer of tabs highlighted at the top, and More Options for advanced searching

Legislation

Clicking the Legislation tab takes you to Legislation Home and allows access to a complete collection of consolidated UK, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish Acts and Statutory Instruments which you can browse or search directly. Clicking More Options at the bottom of the search box enables you to search across historical and prospective legislation. The rest of the second layer of tabs provides options to browse organized lists of:

UK Primary & Secondary legislation
UK Bills & Drafts
Policy & Guidance
Latest Legislation
Key Legal Concepts

Journals

The Journals tab is where you can find full text UK legal journal articles from major publishers such as Sweet & Maxwell, Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press. You can also link to over half a million article abstracts from UK and EU legal journals.

Within any collection search page you can open up collection-specific advanced searching facilities by clicking on More Options at the bottom of the search box. This way you can refine your search to show only the most relevant results.

Westlaw UK’s document display pages include smartly organised links to a variety of supporting materials in the menu bar to the left of the display window. To the right of the display window are various Delivery options that allow you to email, print, download, you will also find options to organize documents using the Personalisation Tools:

Personalisation Tools

At the top of the Westlaw UK interface there are some features that allow you to personalise your research experience, such as: Favourites, Folders, History and Alerts. To make the most of the personalisation tools click on User Guides in the grey footer at the bottom of Westlaw UK and click Personalisations in the menu on the left side of the page for step by step instructions.

For more information and help using the database, Westlaw UK has a comprehensive User Guides section which you can access from within Westlaw via the link in the grey footer at the bottom of the page.

Our detailed library guides on Westlaw UK will be going live on the University Website later this week. And once term starts there will be regular library workshops on how to make the most of this resource.

Law databases

Posted on February 1, 2019 by zszabo2014

Are you searching for dissertation topics? Or, just need some legal resources? Before you begin your research and get lost in the rising sea of information, let us help you with a few useful links.

Check out what the law electronic databases can offer to you. These are excellent tools, and no matter what stage your studies are at, you can rely on them.
Please, find the mainstream legal databases and their training materials here:

Westlaw UK

Westlaw International

Westlaw International User Guide

Lexis®Library

HeinOnline

HeinOnline Help & Support
Training videos
Library guides
- HeinOnline – quick guide

Taylor Library Team
lawlib@abdn.ac.uk

Tip of the Day: finding e-books via Westlaw UK

Posted on November 17, 2017 by eleni boro

1) List of books on Westlaw UK

To access books on the legal database Westlaw, go to the Library home page at www.abdn.ac.uk/library/ and type ‘Westlaw UK’ into the Search Our Collections box. Follow the link to Westlaw UK from the results screen on Primo and you will be prompted to log in with your University computer username and password through the Shibboleth authentication route.

There are 8 different tabs on the Westlaw UK website; go to Books. Westlaw will present you with a list of text books that we have access to in full text. Significant titles in the collection include:

Anton’s Private International Law 3rd edn.
Archbold Criminal Pleading Evidence and Practice 2018 edn.
Davidson: Arbitration 2nd edn.
Macphail’s Sheriff Court Practice 3rd edn.
Palmer’s Company Law
Redfern & Hunter: Law and Practice of International Commercial Arbitration 6th edn.
Renton and Brown Criminal Procedure 6th edn.
The Law of Contract in Scotland 3rd edn.

Westlaw e-books

Click on a title and you will be given the choice to use the Free Text search box to a keyword search within the book, or to browse its contents through Mainwork.

2) If you come across an e-book while searching Primo…

Often a book can be available in different editions and different formats. These books are identified in Primo with the notation ‘multiple versions found’.

To understand this option, try the following search:

Go to Primo and enter the following keywords into the search box under the Books+ tab:
law contract Scotland McBryde
Primo will find 2 records containing those words. The record for: The Law of Contract in Scotland by William McBryde appears to include multiple versions.
Open the View 4 versions link.
The results are ranked chronologically with the newest edition at the top.
Underneath the top entry you will see the words: Online Access. This means that the book is available electronically. To access and read it, click on either the View Online tab or the book title. You may be asked to log in with your University computer username and password. Clicking on the title will take you to the Browse and Search screens within the book.

multiple versions

Note: To obtain this book in paper format click on Availability. This will give you information about the location and availability of the item.

If you have any problems using Westlaw UK, please speak to a member of our team or email us at lawlib@abdn.ac.uk.

Taylor Library is open 9:00-22:00 most days. For more details see our opening times page.

Thomson Reuters Westlaw: the platform for US and International legal materials – main features

Posted on April 19, 2016 by eleni boro

Thomson Reuters replaced their Westlaw International service with a more user-friendly platform which contains all material previously accessible through Westlaw International.

There are two libraries on this platform; one containing United States material, one containing international material. You can navigate between the two libraries.

Access to Thomson Reuters Westlaw is still from Westlaw UK via Primo:

Go to Primo and type Westlaw into the search box.
Click on the blue link or on View Online, then log in to Westlaw UK with your university username and password.
Click on the Services tab at the top of the Westlaw UK screen.
Select International Materials – you will be taken to the International Materials Collection.

Search rules

You can search Thomson Reuters Westlaw in the same way as you search Westlaw UK:

Use AND (or &) and OR to link your search terms.
Enclose phrases in quotation marks “ ”.
Use the root expander ! to retrieve all possible endings to a root, eg. pollut! will look for pollution, pollutants, polluted.
Use connectors to specify the relationship between your search terms: you can ask Westlaw to look for your search terms to be in the same paragraph /p or sentence /s. For example “environmental protection” /s regulat! will look for the phrase ‘environmental protection’ in the same sentence as regulation (or regulations or regulate).

Your searches during a session will be under History at the top right of the screen. History will display all documents opened and searches made.

US material

To access material from the US click on Thomson Reuters Westlaw at the top left or on the Home link. Use the browse option to navigate to different types of content from a number of collections. The search option at the top of the screen searches across all collections of US material.

US Westlaw

For cases:

From the All Content menu open Cases. From there you can search for All Federal or All State Cases, search for Federal Cases by Court or Circuit, or search by State or other Jurisdictions. You can also search by Topic.
Open the advanced search option next to the search bar to perform a search with specific terms and/or to provide a date range, party names or citation. Notice the useful list of connectors and expanders on the right hand side.

For journals:

From the All content menu open Secondary Sources. From the Publication Type menu you can refine your search to Law Reviews and Journals.

To better search Law Reviews and Journals click on advanced and enter your search terms in the search boxes like you do when you search Westlaw UK. For even better results, use connectors and phrase marks.

Note: Notice how the search box tab changes names depending on the collection your search is in.

International material

To search the international materials collection (includes Canada, EU, UK, Commonwealth, other jurisdictions) click on International Materials on the right hand side of the Thomson Reuters Westlaw home page.

Important links here: International Materials Index and World Journals (right hand side of screen). Click on International Materials Index to browse individual titles and jurisdictions.

International Westlaw

For legislation and treaties:

Go to the International Materials Index then click on International Legal Materials.
Within the collection enter search terms in quotation marks.
Search within results to narrow your search further

For all journals:

Click on World Journals to see titles of all journals. This will include US.
Click on a jurisdiction to see all journals listed for the country.

Document management

Click on the title to open a document and move around in it by using the arrows in the control panel.
You can change the font size, go to a specific section in the document, change the screen mode or click on the download arrow for email/print/download/send to Kindle options.
For more options and features and to increase your skills in using this new platform see Thomson Reuters’ own video: Introduction to Thomson Reuters Westlaw or read their user guides.

Remember to Sign Off!

If you have trouble using this database, please come and see us at the Taylor Library or contact:

Janet MacKay
T: 01224 273892
E: j.i.mackay@abdn.ac.uk

*******

Eleni Borompoka
Taylor Library

Finance (No.2) Act 2015

Posted on December 4, 2015 by University of Aberdeen Library, Special Collections and Museums

The Finance (No.2) Act 2015 is now on Westlaw UK with all amendments and commencement information.

Westlaw UK aims “to publish all new legislation the morning after publication, with new amendments highlighted within 48 hours. Case digests are written for the most influential cases on the day the judgment is delivered, with Status Icons of all the affected cases updated within 24 hours.”

Elaine Shallcross
Information Consultant, Law & Business
e.shallcross@abdn.ac.uk

New platform launched for Westlaw International materials

Posted on November 5, 2015 by University of Aberdeen Library, Special Collections and Museums

Thomson Reuters have announced the launch of a neater, more user-friendly platform called WestlawNext to replace its Westlaw International service.

To use the new service look for the ‘International Materials’ link in the Services menu on Westlaw UK.

The new platform will be available alongside the original Westlaw International service until 18 December 2015, when the ‘Westlaw International’ link will be turned off.

Training materials are available from Thomson Reuters:

Getting Started with WestlawNext video
Getting Started with WestlawNext user guide

If you have any questions about the new platform please contact the Taylor Library or Elaine Shallcross.

Elaine Shallcross
Information Consultant for Law and Business

The benefits of creating a Westlaw UK profile

Posted on October 30, 2015 by eleni boro

Westlaw can help you to better organize your research. With a Westlaw profile
you can:

add documents to folders
email/print/download documents
create alerts
and use the Linkbuilder tool.

You can still access, email, print and download individual documents or result lists without a profile, but if you are planning to use Westlaw a lot, you will definitely benefit from the extra features that a profile offers.

Important:
Access to Westlaw UK should always be through Primo whether you are creating a profile or not. Login to Primo and go to the Find Databases tab at the top. Click on ‘W’ and scroll down until you reach Westlaw UK. Click on the link. The database might ask you to provide your University username and password, a process also known as
Shibboleth authentication.

To create a profile:

Once you are linked out to Westlaw (through Shibboleth authentication) you will see a smaller window with the heading ‘Log in to My Westlaw UK Profile’ prompting you to Log In or Skip.

1) Click on Create Profile. Provide your first name, last name and your email address and click on Create.
2) Go back to your email to obtain your password. Login to your profile will be by providing the email you registered with (as your username) and a password.
3) Enter your username and temporary password. When you sign in to My Westlaw UK for the first time, you’ll be asked to change your password to something more memorable. This needs to be between 6 and 25 digits long.

Next thing you will see is this screen:

When you have finished setting up your profile and Log In, your name will appear at the top blue line. Westlaw will always suggest that you log in to your profile.

The benefits:

Adding documents to folders

When you find a case, journal article or piece of legislation that is of interest to you, save it in a folder so you can go back to it later. How? Simply click on the Add to Folder icon on the right of the light blue line across the top of the screen. An Add to Folder menu will open. You can save the document in one of your existing folders, or, for first-time users: create a new folder by typing a name in the box and clicking on New Folder. Next time you login to Westlaw, you can visit your folders from the My Folders link at the very top of the screen (dark blue line). All of your saved documents will be there. A great way of organizing your findings!

Creating alerts

If a specific case is of particular interest to you, you can create an alert for it and thus be informed of any changes; e.g. when its status changes, or when it gets referenced in a journal article, when it’s cited by another case, or when another case has been heard between the same parties on a different point of law. To create a Case Alert, go to the Case Analysis document, the full text or Graphical History and click on the Create Case Alert link at the top right hand corner of the screen. (Looks like an alarm clock.) You can also create an alert for a list of results from a specific search.

Click on Alerts (blue line at the top) to go back to your saved alerts and run a search again or edit it, or to change the way your alerts are set up!

And…

The Linkbuilder tool

This feature allows you to create direct links to material on Westlaw UK. The links can include authentication; meaning that upon clicking on them, users will have to provide their University username and password. You can create and send links to result pages, individual documents or search templates.

To use this feature you need to have a profile with Westlaw. Next step is to contact Westlaw UK Customer Support Team on 0800 028 2200 or by email at: customer.service@westlaw.co.uk and request access to the Linkbuilder tool.

To create a link:

1) Navigate to the document and click the Build Link icon on the top right hand corner of the screen. You will be presented with a link creation screen. (The Linkbuilder screen.) You can choose your method of authentication here:

2) For the University of Aberdeen authentication is via the entityID URL for Shibboleth. (Deselect the Save sponsor code option.)
Enter the following in the entityID URL box: https://shibserv.abdn.ac.uk/shibboleth and make sure the Save entityID URL box is ticked.

3) Click Copy to Clipboard at the bottom of the screen. The link is now ready to be pasted into any document. Remember that you can also ‘hide’ links under citations or words (in other words, linkify words or parts of text) if you are creating and publishing
material online.

Read this guide to find out more about the Linkbuilder tool.

Tip: If you skip logging in to your profile and later decide that you would like to use the extra features that a profile offers, the way to log in is by clicking on the Westlaw UK icon at the top left hand corner, then clicking on MyWestlaw to bring up the log in window! Your name will appear at the start of the blue ribbon at the top.

Remember to Log Out!

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For more information on using Westlaw UK, find our Library guides here.
Come and see us in person if you need help with Westlaw or any other legal database!

Eleni Borompoka
Taylor Library & EDC
01224 272601
eleni.boro@abdn.ac.uk
lawlib@abdn.ac.uk

Legal databases

Posted on September 22, 2015 by zszabo2014

Are you just beginning your legal research and getting lost in the rising sea of information? Or just need some inspiration?

Check out what the law electronic databases can offer to you. These are excellent tools, and no matter what stage your studies are at, you can rely heavily on them.
Please find all the mainstream legal databases and their training materials here:

Westlaw UK