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Self Paced Lesson - Migration Case Law - Subject Guide: 10: Source Journal Articles about a Case

CaseBase

CaseBase records for a case also include links to Publications referring to this case, which lists the journal articles that make reference to the particular case at which you are looking.

If the article is on Lexis Advance you can click on the blue underlined citation to go straight to the article (clicking on the article title will take you to the CaseBase Journal Articles entry). If the article is not available here you should:

  1. Click on the article title to open the article record. This will give you an indication of how useful it will be to you.
  2. If you decide you need to read the article click on the Help button at the top right of the screen to find the name of the journal that the abbreviation represents.
  3. Open the Library Catalogue to see if the journal is in the Library or can be linked to online. Work through with your citation to find the article.

FirstPoint

FirstPoint records for cases sometimes have links to Noted in Journals.

These list articles which examine the case you have found.

If the article is in blue it means it is available in full text under the Westlaw AU Journals heading. Check the title you want is listed. We subscribe to most, but not all, of their journals.

Click through the title to the journal article you have found.

LawCite

LawCite lists Law Journal Articles Referring to this case at the bottom of the results page.

You can also find them through the search function, by using what you learnt in previous topics or, if you know the journal article or subject, by typing a phrase into the Article Title field. 

Sourcing Articles by Citation:

  • Step 1: Solve the abbreviation of the journal title into full using Cardiff Index to Legal Abbreviations
  • Step 2: Search for the full title of the journal using Library Search
  • Step 3: Source the journal on the correct database (eg HeinOnline, Informit, Lexis Advance, WestlawAU) or Library shelves (eg Law Quarterly Review)
  • Step 4: Browse by volume, then page number to source the article

What if I can't find the Full Text of the Journal Article?

In some instances, when you search a particular database for journal articles considering a case you won't be able to access the full text of the article. However, as long as you have a citation you will be able to search the Murdoch Library Catalogue to see if you can access the full text.

You can follow the below steps to find the full text of a case or journal article when you have the citation.

Step 1:

To find the full text of a journal article, you must first determine the journal that it comes from.

Many citations for journal articles can appear like those in case law: in an abbreviated form. For example:

(2010) 17 Aust ILJ 89 for a journal

There are a number of tools that you can use to determine the meaning of an abbreviation given in such a citation. These are listed in the Legal Citation Lesson. You can use these sources to find either the unabbreviated case report series or journal title.

You can use these to find:

Aust ILJ is the abbreviation for the Australian International Law Journal

Step 2:

Once you have determined the full title of the journal, search the Library Catalogue by title.

Searching the Murdoch University Library Catalogue will show you that:

The Australian International Law Journal is held both in print and electronically

Step 3:

To find the specific article, you must extract the information you need from the citation you have been given.

  • For the journal article: (2010) 17 Aust ILJ 89
    • Locate the Journal in print or online and find the volume or volumes for the year in question, in this case 2010.
    • Find volume 17
    • Turn to page 89, or locate the article that starts on page 89.
    • You will find this article:
      • Sadhana Abayasekara, 'A Dog without a Bark: A Critical Assessment of the International Law on Language Rights' (2010) 17 Australian International Law Journal 89.

But what if Murdoch University Library doesn't hold the full text of the case or article?

If a particular book, journal article, case or other resource is not held in the University Library, you can request it from another library using our free services:

  • Document Delivery - allows you to request material from other libraries
  • In person - borrow books from other university libraries in Western Australia