For students doing clerkships in New Jersey or law graduates working for firms and other organizations in the state, there are a number of legal research resources freely available on the internet. Many of the websites listed below are maintained by the state government and other reputable information providers. Maximize your searching skills and minimize the expense of your legal research by making use of these tools before you use Westlaw or Lexis.
CONSTITUTIONS
New Jersey State Constitution: Maintained and updated by the New Jersey Legislature. Provides links to the complete text of the New Jersey State Constitution, a searchable format of the Constitution, and the New Jersey 1947 Constitutional Convention Proceedings. The documents are updated through amendments adopted in November, 2010.
New Jersey State Constitutions: The New Jersey State Library has a very thorough listing of Constitutional documents, including early constitutions of New Jersey, the Constitution of 1947, Governor’s Speeches, proposed amendments, and journal proceedings of Constitutional Conventions.
LEGISLATIVE MATERIALS
New Jersey Legislative History: Published by the New Jersey State Library. Offers legislative history from 1970 to June 1, 2009.
The New Jersey Legislature has put together many legislative resources and their links are provided below.
Legislative Calendars: Published by the New Jersey Legislature and it provides access to calendars from January, 1997 to very recent publications.
Legislative Digest: Provides the current and past editions of the Digest back to January, 1997.
Legislative Reports: Gives full-text reports organized by subject headings.
Public Hearing Transcripts: PDF formatted through 1996-2011.
New Jersey State Statutes: The New Jersey Legislature provides access to a searchable statute site. This is searchable by keyword or title name or number.
OPINIONS
Opinions: Full-text archive of opinions from New Jersey Courts including the Supreme Court from March, 1994 to the present, and the Superior Court Appellate Division and the Tax Court from 1995 to the present. This site is searchable and maintained by Rutgers School of Law.
Recent Supreme and Appellate Opinions: These are the most current opinions available and they can be accessed for 10 business days. The site is run by the New Jersey Judiciary.
Trial Court Unpublished Decisions: Made available for six weeks and have not been approved for publication by the committee on opinions. Cannot be cited as legal precedent pursuant to R.1:36-3.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW
Administrative Code: Published by Michie’s Legal Resources and includes all regulations published through New Jersey Register, Volume 43, Number 9, May 2, 2011.
New Jersey Register: Maintained by the New Jersey State Library. Coverage from 1969-1995.
New Jersey Administrative Reports: Available from the New Jersey Digital Legal Library, Rutgers University. Covers 1979-1991.
Administrative Law Decisions: Published by Rutgers Law Library. Full-text archive dated from 1997.
EXECUTIVE MATERIALS
Executive Orders: Published by the official web site for the state of New Jersey. Lists executive orders given between 1963 and 2011.
FORMS
Appellate Forms: Provided by the New Jersey Judiciary.
Civil Court Forms: FindLaw.
LISTINGS OF STATE AGENCIES
New Jersey Departments and Agencies: The official website for the state of New Jersey.
