Legal Research – Page 31 – Know How, the blog of the Great Library

Primer, Please

For those diving into new and unfamiliar areas of law, tackling often sizable and complex loose-leaf sources can feel like an intimidating task. While loose-leaf materials are a vital tool within the arsenal of the effective legal researcher, working with these materials may prove more manageable if you first develop a certain degree of context. When seeking materials that provide foundational information in legal research, primer materials can save the day.

Prohibited Pets and Where to Find Them – Researching Municipal By-laws

Can my neighbour keep ferrets as pets, and if so how many? This question about what animals are permitted as pets in the City of Toronto recently led us into the world of municipal by-law research.

Here Comes Santa Claus(e)

Digital legal research is amazing but the hype – particularly around AI – is a bit like Christmas magic. It involves a lot of wishing.

As the Great Library’s staff heads off to spend the holidays with family and friends, and the doors close for the year, I can sneak in this guest post unobserved, like a night-time intruder in a chimney flue. As visions of sugar plums dance in my head, I can’t help wonder if the AI in legal publishing research databases dreams of Santa. Or if it’s not quite clear on the concept. Sometimes Santa’s little legal research helpers need a bit of guidance.