Legal Research - Subject Guide RED TABS: Sourcing Case Law

Famous cases

For famous cases, such as the AAP Case, Engineers Case, Mabo Case, Seas & Submerged Lands Case and the Woollen Underwear Case, start by search legal encyclopaedias and case citators (they are often referred to by their common names):

•  Halsbury’s Laws of Australia via Lexis Advance
• The Laws of Australia via Westlaw AU 
• Justcite (for UK cases from the English Reports, or Balfour v Balfour [1919] 2 KB 571)

Cases often asked for:

Associated Minerals Pty Ltd v NSW Rutile Mining Company Pty Ltd [1962] ALR 236; (1961) 35 ALJR 296
A citation often supplied for this case is (1961) 35 ALJR 256

• The citation is incorrect
• Volume and ALJR are correct, but the page number is incorrect
• Search for the case on JADE to find it referred to in another case - this time with the correct page number

Atkins v Egypt Holdings Pty Ltd (unreported, SCWA, 10 July 1987)

• Lexis Advance  >  Cases Search Template  >  Case Name:  Atkins AND Egypt Holdings  +  Jurisdiction: Western Australia

Crocker Consolidated v Willie [1988] WAR 187

• Westlaw AU  >  Cases Search Template  >  Citation:  [1988] WAR 187

A series of court reports officially approved by the judiciary or government is known as an authorised or official series of reports.

In each jurisdiction only one series is designated as authorised.

Cases which enunciate a general principle or point of law are usually included in the authorised series of reports.

Australia

New Zealand

England & Wales

The Law Report Series had several title variations between 1866 and 1891.

Since 1891 the following have been established as the current Law Reports Series:

Northern Ireland

Scotland

Canada

United States of America

Western Australian Reports

Western Australian Reports 1983+ - Westlaw AU

Western Australian Reports 1959-1982 - print only - Murdoch Law Library

Western Australian Law Reports 1898-1958 - AustLII

There is an ongoing copyright dispute over the WAR 1959-1982, so they are not available online until this is resolved.

​View these step-by-step instructions for sourcing terms that have been considered in cases (judicial consideration) using specific databases:

Sample search string for definition of slavery:

(character* OR compris* OR defin* OR describ* OR discuss* OR element* OR expla* OR interpret* OR mean* OR phras*) /15  slave*

General search instructions

In each database:

• select Cases search template
• select relevant jurisdiction
• complete the Legislation name and provision text boxes
• select relevant Court, if required 

View these step-by-step instructions for sourcing cases considering Acts using specific databases:

Find more information on : Judicial consideration of legislation

General search instructions

In each database:

• select Cases Advanced Search
• search by case name or citation 
• select Cited by

View these step-by-step instructions for sourcing cases citing cases (judicial consideration) using specific databases:

Find more information on : Judicial consideration of cases

General search instructions

In each database:

• select Journals Advanced Search
• search by case name or citation 
• select Journals referring to this case

View these step-by-step instructions for sourcing cases considered in journal articles using specific databases:

Court Annotations

The following is list of annotations used by the court in the subsequent appeal proceedings or in the subsequent case where the primary case has been judicially considered.

• Applied A principle of law articulated in the primary case is applied to a new set of facts by the court in the subsequent case.
• Approved The court in the subsequent case has approved the way the court in the primary case, being a court of inferior jurisdiction, has articulated a principle of law.
• Cited The primary case is merely cited by the court in the subsequent case, without comment.
• Considered The legal principles articulated in the primary case are considered or discussed without adverse reflection in the subsequent case.
• Disapproved The decision in the primary case is criticised by the court in the subsequent case.
• Distinguished The court in the subsequent case holds that the legal principles articulated by the primary case (usually otherwise persuasive or binding authority) do not apply because of some essential difference between the two cases in fact or law.
• Explained The decision reached in the primary case is justified by the court in the subsequent case, drawing attention to some feature of the primary case that may not be immediately obvious on its face.
• Followed This annotation is similar to ‘applied’, but is used in circumstances where the facts in the primary case resemble reasonably closely the facts in the subsequent consideration case.
• Not followed The court in the subsequent case has declined to apply the principles of law articulated in the primary case.
• Overruled The legal principles articulated in the primary case are held to be incorrect by the court in the subsequent case, which is a court of superior or equivalent jurisdiction.
• Questioned The court in the subsequent case has expressed doubt about the decision in the primary case, but does not actually determine that the principles of law in the primary case are incorrect.

The Appeal proceedings section of the CaseBase entry has the following annotations used by the courts:

• Affirmed The decision in the primary case is upheld on appeal.
• Reversed The decision in the primary case is overturned on appeal.
• See The decision in the subsequent case relates in some way to the primary case, but the court in the subsequent case is not assessing the merits of the related primary decision.
• Varied The decision in the primary case is only partly reversed or partly affirmed by the subsequent case. It is particularly used in circumstances where the court in the subsequent case has altered the quantum of damages awarded or the sentence imposed in the primary case.
• Related The decision in the subsequent case relates in some way to the primary case, but the court in the primary case is not assessing the merits of the earlier related decision.
• Special Leave Granted Special leave to appeal the decision in the primary case to the High Court or Privy Council has been granted. There is, therefore, an opportunity for the case itself to be overturned.
• Special Leave Refused Special leave to appeal the decision in the primary case to the High Court or Privy Council has been refused. Therefore, the case is considered good law.

What do the colours mean?

The colours merely highlight and draw attention to the particular types of treatment.
They do not change or add to the meaning of the annotation.

• Positive treatments are coloured green. e.g. followed, applied, approved or affirmed
• Treatments indicating caution required are coloured amber. This can be everything from a distinguishing or explaining treatment (indicating that the law is still good but does not apply in the circumstances), to a varying treatment to a questioning (sometimes called a 'doubting') treatment.
• Negative treatments are coloured red. e.g. disapproved, not followed, overruled or reversed
• Neutral treatments are coloured black. e.g. considered or cited

Source: LexisNexisAU Help

See how to Source legal forms from Lexis Advance

See how to Source legal forms from Lexis Advance

View these step-by-step instructions for sourcing legal forms using specific databases:

International Case Law

Judicial

BAILII - British, Irish, EU case law, legislation and law commission reports

HeinOnline - English Reports (1220-1867) + US material

ICLR - Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales, full text authorised case law database (best source for UK and EU cases)

Westlaw UK - UK and EU case law

CommonLII - Case law from 60 Commonwealth and common law jurisdictions

JustCite - Citation and abstract of UK, Irish, EU, Singaporean and other international case law.

Justis - full text of UK, Irish, EU, Singapore and other international case law (judicially considered legislation)

LawCite - a free, automatically generated Australian and international legal case and journal article citator.

Oxford Reports on International Law - full text of public international law decisions

TR Westlaw - full text of international legal resources, includes UK, Canada, US and EU Case Law

Westlaw China - Chinese legal information including Case Headnotes in English, full text in Mandarin.

WorldLII- global international law, broad coverage.

Subject

American Maritime Cases - Maritime decisions rendered by US (Federal and State courts), legislative action, administrative law and arbitration decisions and Maritime Law Association of the U.S. source material.

i-law.com - Maritime and related commercial information, includes Lloyd's Law Reports

Investment Claims - Arbitral cases, international law.

Kluwer Arbitration - decisions and awards on UNCITRAL Model Law, Arbitration