Cleveland-Marshall College of Law

Business Law Resource Guide

Introduction
Law Library Basics
Laws and Legislation - Federal, State, Local
Administrative Regulations - Federal and State
Court Cases - Federal and State
Major Treatises, Practice Guides, and Form Sets
Ohio Treatises, Practice Guides, and Form Sets
Other Related Resource Guides
Searching Scholar and Ohiolink
Journal Articles
Starting a New Business?
Other Web Resources

 

Introduction

This selective guide highlights major electronic and print resources available to Cleveland State University graduate and undergraduate students researching issues in Business Law or the Legal Environment of Business. LexisNexis Academic is available to CSU students, faculty, and staff, both on campus, and off-campus with a Library PIN. Please note: In using other Resource Guides, any links to LexisNexis or Westlaw require a password issued by those companies and are not available University-wide.

Please contact the Research Services librarians during their regularly scheduled hours, or via email to research.services@law.csuohio.edu for help in locating these or other resources to meet your needs.

 

Law Library Basics

 

Laws and Legislation

U.S. (Federal):

  • United States Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.) (Thomson West), Print:  Reference or 2nd Level KF 62.5 .W45
  • United States Code Service (USCS) (LexisNexis),  Print:    Reference KF 62 .L38
    United States Code Service  (via LexisNexis Academic)  
  • Both publishers' print codes have a multi-volume subject index. Start there and then go to the Title and Section number.  Check the pocket part supplement or pamphlet under the same Title and Section number for updated information -- any amendments to the Code, references to newer court decisions, etc.
  • United States Code     (Via GPO Access)  Unannotated.
  • Legal Information Institute (LII) (Cornell Univ.): Federal Law

Examples:
15 U.S.C.S. § 1644 - Fraudulent Use of Credit Cards; Penalties (Sec. 134 Consumer Credit Protection Act)
15 U.S.C.S. §§ 700-7006 - Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-Sign Act)
15 U.S.C.S. §7201 et seq. - Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

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Ohio:

For annotated versions of the ORC, see the Code from either of the two publishers of the Code:

Ohio General Assembly website - for tracking current legislation
Ohio Legislative Service Commission - for additional information and analyses of legislation

Ohio Capitol Connection (available at the Law Library Legal Research Workstations)

For more descriptive information and additional links, please see the Ohio Legal Research Guide.

Municipal Codes/Ordinances:

 

Administrative Agency Regulations

In addition to researching law, administrative regulations of agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (both Federal and State) may be important to check. 

For more comprehensive information about the following titles - what they contain, how organized, etc., please consult our guide: Administrative Law Research.

Federal Administrative Agency Regulations:

Examples:

  • Board of Governors of Federal Reserve System, Title 12 CFR
    Federal Trade Commission - Commercial Practices, Title 16 CFR
    Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Title 29 CFR §1600 -1691

Note: Frequently a government agency website provides information (and perhaps links to) laws they administer, regulations, possibly policy guidance, possibly agency decisions, possibly explanatory publications.

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Ohio Administrative Agency Regulations

 

Court Cases

U.S. Courts
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Supreme Court Current Opinions; Bound Volumes

Ohio Judicial Structure
Ohio Supreme Court
Ohio Supreme Court Opinions
Ohio Appellate Courts

See Legal Research on the Web for additional links.

LexisNexis Academic - see the resource guide: LexisNexis Academic

To identify significant cases related to a specific law or legal issue, take advantage of annotations following sections of codes, or footnotes in journal articles or in treatises such as those listed below.

Tables of Cases in Digests, such as West's Ohio Digest, or in many legal titles may be an excellent source for citations to cases and/or to specific sections of the treatise where the case is discussed.

West's Ohio Digest (print) / West Pub. Co., 1949 -     Reference & Ohio KFO 57 .W47

For Key Number topical researching of Ohio caselaw.  Start with the Index, then to the volume that includes the topic and subtopic (the key number) to identify court cases on an issue.  Check the pocket part supplement for newer cases.  Check the cases themselves.

Shepards (via LexisNexis Academic via OhioLINK) can be used to check a citation for newer cases citing your case. Shepards may also list Law review articles citing your case.

Ohio Supreme Court and Ohio Appellate Court Opinions from the Ohio Supreme Court website (note that only recent years are included) Search in a specific Court of Appeals by selected that court in the Source dropdown menu at the top left.

Docket Information - see Resources for Online Court Dockets

 

 

 

Major Treatises, Practice Guides, and Form Sets

General Titles:

American Law Reports (ALR) Start with ALR Index ( Reference KF 132.6 .I53) under such topics as Credit and Finance Companies, etc. Then go to the specific ALR series -4th, 5th, Federal, etc., in the Reference Area nearby, then to the volume number, and then beginning page number. Check the volume's supplement for newer information.

  • Examples:
    173 ALR Fed 613 - "What Constitutes Violation of §134 of Consumer Credit Protection Act (15 U.S.C.A. §1644), Prohibiting Fraudulent Use of Credit Card."
    24 A.L.R. Fed. 2d 239 - "First Amendment Protection for Accountants Subjected to Discharge, Transfer, or Discipline Because of Speech"
    29 A.L.R. Fed 2d 519 - "Construction and Application of Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-Sign Act), 15 U.S.C.A. §§ 7001 to 7006"

American Jurisprudence (Am Jur) Legal Forms 2d / West / KF 170 .A542 Example: Commercial Transactions

Topical Titles (selected):

Business Entities:

  • Corporation : Covering Corporation Practice, Procedure, Law / Aspen Law & Business, 1997 -      8 vols.     KF 1414 .C67
  • Corporation Law / Franklin A. Gevurtz / West Group, 2000. (Hornbook Series)  KF 1413 .G49 2000

Commercial Law

  • Brady on Bank Checks - The Law of Bank Checks, rev. ed. / Henry J. Bailey; Richard B. Hagedorn / Arlington, VA: Warren, Gorham & Lamont Banking, A.S. Pratt & Sons, 1997 - . 2 vols. KF 960 .B3 1997
  • Consumer Banking and Payments Law - Credit, Debit & Stored Value Cards, Checks, Money Orders, E-sign, Electronic Banking and Benefit Payments, 3rd ed. / Mark Budnitz, Margot Saunders / Boston, MA: National Consumer Law Center, 2005 - . KF 974 .B83 2005 (one of a number of useful titles from the National Consumer Law Center)
  • The Law of Modern Payment Systems and Notes, Practitioner's ed. / Fred H. Miller, Alvin C. Harrell / St. Paul, MN.: West Group, 2002. (Practitioner Treatise Series) KF 957 .M55 2002
  • Lawrence's Anderson on the Uniform Commercial Code, 3rd ed. / Lary Lawrence / St. Paul, MN: West Group, 1981 - . Multi-volume looseleaf set. KF 879.514 .A53 1981 (Westlaw - ANDR-UCC)
  • Securitizations : Legal and Regulatory Issues / Patrick D. Dolan, C. VanLeer Davis III. / Law Journal Press, 2000-  1 volume looseleaf. KF1050 .D65 2000
  • Uniform Commercial Code, 5th ed. / James J. White, Robert S. Summers / St. Paul, MN: West Group, 2002 - (Practitioner Treatise Series) Multi-volume, supplemented. KF 890 .W45 2002
    When complete will replace the 4th ed. KF 890 .W45 1995
  • Williston on Sales, 5th ed. / Samuel Williston, Deborah L. Nelson, Jennifer L. Howicz / Deerfield, IL: Clark Boardman Callaghan, 1994 - Mult-vol., supplemented. KF 915 .W5

Employment Law

  • Employment Coordinator / multi-volume looseleaf set providing an overview of numerous topics / KF 3315 .E46
  • Employment Discrimination Coordinator / multi-volume looseleaf set / KF 3464 .A6 E47
  • Employment Discrimination Law, 4th ed. / Barbara T. Lindemann, Paul Grossman et al. / BNA Books; American Bar Association, Section of Labor and Employment Law, Equal Employment Opportunity Committee, 2007. 2 vols. KF 3464 .L56 2007 `
  • Employment Discrimination: Law and Practice, 4th ed. / Charles A. Sullivan, Lauren M. Walter / Aspen, 2009. 2 vols. KF 3464 .S93 2009

Other:

  • The ABA Guide to International Business Negotiations: A Comparison of Cross-Cultural Issues and Successful Approaches, 3rd ed. / James R. Silkenat, Jeffrey M. Aresty, Jacqueline Klosek, eds. / Chicago: ABA Section of International Law, 2009. K 1005.2 .A22 2009
  • Advanced Licensing Agreements / Practising Law Institute, annual. KF 3145 .Z9 A375
  • The Global Subprime Crisis: Issues You Need to Know / Practising Law Institute / K 1100 .G56 2008
  • Annual Institute on Privacy and Security Law - Pathways to Compliance in a Global Regulatory Maze / Practising Law Institute, 2007 - . Annual. KF 1263 .C65 A155
  • The Practitioner's Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act / American Bar Association, Section of Business Law, 2004. 3 vol. KF 1446 .A312002 P73 2004
  • Sarbanes-Oxley Act in Perspective / Thomson/West, 2002 - . Annual. KF 1423 .Z9 S25
  • Treatise on the Law of Securities Regulation, 5th ed., Practitioner's ed. / Thomas Lee Hazen / Thomson/West, 2005 - KF 1439 .H39 2005
 

Ohio Treatises, Practice Guides, and Form Sets

General:

  • Ohio Jurisprudence 3d / West Group, 1977 -   Ohio's legal encyclopedia -- Start with the index to this multivolume set.   Reference and Ohio Room KFO 65 .O3543  

Selected Topical Titles:

Business Entities:

  • Blackford Business Organizations, 2nd ed. / Jason C. Blackford / Thomson/West, 2004  -- 3 vols. KFO 205 .B53 2004    
  • Anderson's Ohio Business Entities Handbook / Anderson Pub. Co., current year.  KFO 205 .O35     
  • Anderson's Ohio Corporation Law / Anderson Pub. Co., 2000 -  Annual.   Current.  KFO 213 .A65 S43   
  • Cavitch & Cavitch, Ohio Business Entities 2d ed. / Lexis 2005 - . KFO 210 .A65 C38 2005
  • Ohio Business Filings Forms - see the Ohio Secretary of State's Office website. Includes fee information.
  • Ohio Securities Law and Practice, 3rd ed. and Ohio Securities Law and Practice Handbook / Howard M. Friedman /LexisNexis, 2005 -  KFO 179 .F75 2005

Consumer:

  • Ohio Consumer Law / West, annual. KFO 230 .O35
  • Anderson's Ohio Creditors' Rights Manual / James P. Botti / Newark, NJ, annual. (Anderson's Ohio Practice Manual Series) KFO 220 .B67 1993

Employment:

  • Ohio Employment Practices Law - A Practical Guide for Employers and Their Legal Counsel / Cleveland: West Group, 1997 - . Annual KFO 334 .S54
  • Ohio Workers' Compensation Law, 3rd ed. / Philip J. Fulton / Newark, NJ: LexisNexis Matthew Bender, 2008. KFO 342 .F84 2008
  • Ohio Workers' Compensation Law / Cleveland, OH: West, 2004 - . Annual. KFO 342 .W372

Taxation:

  • Baldwin's Ohio Tax Law and Rules, rev. ed. / Thomson/West, 2005 - KFO 470 .A6 B323
  • Ohio Tax Reporter / Commerce Clearing House. Looseleaf service. Ohio Room KF 6285 .O55

Forms:

  • Ohio Forms Legal & Business / West . Current. KFO 68.O35 Multi-volume set of practice-oriented forms Example: Business Transactions Chapter 40.
  • Ohio Transaction Guide - Legal Forms . Matthew Bender, 1975 - . KFO 213 .A65 O35 - A 14-volume looseleaf set. Example: Chapter 144 - Sales of Goods; Corporations in vols. 1 & 2
  • Ohio Forms and Transactions : OFT / Thomas R. Swisher/ West Group, 1989 -   3 vols. KFO 68 .S94    
 

Other Related Resource Guides

Other related Resource Guides: Please note that links to Westlaw and LexisNexis databases require a law password issued by those vendors.

 

Searching Scholar and Ohiolink

Search SCHOLAR (our online catalog) or OhioLINK (the statewide consortium of libraries) under the following subject headings:

 

Journal Articles

See Finding Articles in Law Reviews, Journals and Other Legal Periodicals for an explanation of the legal periodical indexes and databases available to Cleveland-Marshall College of Law students and the CSU community.

Although there are a few law reviews specifically designed to cover business law issues (see below), many more "general" law reviews also contain articles on pertinent issues. You are strongly encouraged to start with an index to identify articles, and then go to the full text of the articles.  There are two major indexes:

  • Index to Legal Periodicals (1981 - current) and Index to Legal Periodicals Retrospective (for earlier coverage) are available electronically via WilsonWeb only in the Law Library, including at the Legal Research Workstations in the Reference Area. Print: Reference Area  KF 8 .I54

Selected Journals:

  • Business Law International. London: Section on Business Law, International Bar Assn. K 2 .U765 Available via HeinOnline
  • The Business Lawyer. Chicago: American Bar Association, Section of Corporate, Banking and Business, Vol. 1 (1946) -    . K 2 .U82.     Available on HeinOnline.    The most recent 2 issues available online from the ABA Section of Business Law  
  • Corporate Governance / Practising Law Institute, 2004. KF 1422 .A15 C67
  • Debt [cubed] Chicago, IL: Commercial Law League of America, 2004 - Continues Commercial Law Bulletin. KF 862 .C65
  • Delaware Journal of Corporate Law  / Wilmington: Delaware Law School of Widener College, Vol. 1, 1976 - K 4 .E38    Available via HeinOnline   Vol. 1 - .
  • DePaul Business & Commercial Law Journal. DePaul University College of Law and the Commercial Law League of America, 2002 - K 4 .E63 and via HeinOnline  
  • Duquesne University Business Law Journal. Pittsburgh, Pa.: Duquesne University School of Law, v.1(1999) - . K 4 .U658 and via HeinOnline
  • Entrepreneurial Business Law Journal. Columbus: The Ohio State University. Via HeinOnline.
  • Fordham Journal of Corporate & Financial Law   (Electronic - CSU via EbscoHost   - 2001 - present) 
  • The Journal of Law and Commerce . University of Pittsburgh School of Law, 1981 - . K 10 .O87083 and via HeinOnline.
  • Uniform Commercial Code Law Journal.  Boston: Warren, Gorham and Lamont, v.1(1968/1969 - . K25 .N42

    University of Miami Business Law Review. K 25 .N662. Via LexisNexis Academic.
 

Starting a Business?

Find out about the necessary legal basics as you plan and operate your new business:

 

Other Web Resources

News articles, whether from direct electronic sources or via LexisNexis Academic, ProQuest, etc., or from print newspapers or newsletters, can frequently give clues to facilitate your research on legal issues - names of parties in a court case, date of decision, which court, judge's name, some words or phrases which may be useful for a full-text search, etc. Check Journal Finder from the Law Library or University Library's home page for a link to a specific newspaper title.

Legal Information Institute (Cornell): Commercial Law

Hieros Gamos Commercial Law

Jurist Law Guides: Commercial Law

The Law and You / Ohio State Bar Association
(Chapter 7: Business Transactions and Organizations)

 

MR 9/22/08, 9/22/09


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