Reference sources

Acronym Finder

Directory of more than 750,000 abbreviations and acronymns, mainly from the fields of computing, government, the armed forces, computing, telecommunications, business and finance. Founded by US-based IT consultant and software developer Mike Molloy, the directory is global in scope. Legal researchers may find it useful for political, governmental, education and other non-law abbreviations (for legal abbreviations, see the Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations).

Jurislingue

Jurislingue is a multi-lingual legal glossary, still under development, provided by the Portuguese Attorney General’s Documentation and Comparative Law Office. It includes more than 1000 legal terms, the names of 157 institutions and the titles of 177 treaties. Seven languages are covered: Portuguese, French, English, German, Dutch, Spanish and Italian. For each term, the equivalents are given in some or all of the other languages. Full definitions are also provided for many of the terms, but these are mainly in Portuguese.

Jurist: World Law

The World Law page of the Jurist website offers a set of guides to the legal systems of the world. Each country’s guide covers the Constitution, government and legislation, courts and judgments, human rights, the legal profession and law schools. Links to key websites for each country are also provided. Jurist is a legal education website provided by the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Judgepedia- an interactive encyclopaedia of courts and judges

The Judgepedia website is a wiki focusing on United States courts and judges. Anyone can contribute to the wiki by registering on the site. Judgepedia is sponsored by the Lucy Burns Institute a non-profit organisation concerned with helping people access public records. Information is organised under four main headings: Federal Courts; State Courts; Judicial Selection and Judicial Philosophy. There is also a page of news stories and a Judgepedia community page. Within these sections can be found information about each court, its judges and links to court websites.

Glossary of legal terms

Freely accessible glossary of legal terminology made available on the home pages of Dublin-based barrister Kieron Wood. The glossary is displayed in HTML and arranged alphabetically. The first page includes a shortcut to each letter of the alphabet. Definitions are mostly brief and include terms such as Appellant, Codicil, Estoppel, Garnishee, Inter alia, Locus standi, Novation, Principal, Replevin, Testator, etc. The main pages provide further information about Kieron Wood, Irish law issues and a large collection of links.

ELIXIR

A free online directory providing information about the practice of law and work of the legal profession across Europe. The directory describes training requirements and activities for lawyers, bailiffs and notaries in European countries. Click on the country flag to access. Coverage includes: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and United Kingdom.

Federal Judicial History

Website of the Federal Judicial History Office, part of the Federal Judicial Center in Washington DC. The Spotlight section has articles on federal judicial statutes, Supreme Court meeting places and many other topics. There are also federal court timelines, a monograph called 'Approaches to Federal Judicial History' and a three-volume compilation of historical documents, 'Debates on the Federal Judiciary: A Documentary History'.

Treaty Reference Guide

This reference guide is available free on the website of the United Nations Treaty Collection. Part I explains and defines the different types of international instrument, such as treaties, conventions, charters, protocols, declarations, memoranda of understanding and exchanges of notes. Part II is a glossary of terms relating to treaty actions, such as accession, deposit, entry into force, modification, ratification and signature ad referendum. The guide is in available in English or French; html, pdf or plain text versions are provided.

World Factbook of Criminal Justice Systems

The World Factbook of Criminal Justice Systems is a collection of reports, organised alphabetically by country, containing information about the criminal justice system in operation in each country. The Bureau of Justice Statistics, US Department of Justice, has funded the factbook. Each narrative has been composed by an expert in the field. The factbook is aimed at giving scholars, researchers and criminal justice practitioners a better understanding of the various systems in operation in each country in an attempt to help them in their work, especially in the area of transnational crime.

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