You will want to find digitized materials as PDF images of the original or official document when you can, so you can be sure that the text and page citation of the original matches the citation you are checking, and so you can save and share the document. PDF images of original documents are the best sources for authenticity, page numbers, and checking quotations. Not every resource is available online, and those that are may not be available in page image formats. But some of the sources for PDF documents are:
Published Opinions
Dockets
Journals
Government Documents
Newspapers
Historical Materials
Treatises
Many of Emory's ebook databases have books and treatises in PDF or other image formats. Find them by searching titles in Emory Libraries Search (the catalog)
Bloomberg Law: Searchable federal dockets and court documents from PACER. You can search dockets by keyword, court, party, judge, docket number or date, by chapter or nature of suit. If the document is listed for "view," it is already available. If it is listed as "request," Bloomberg will retrieve the document for you. For large dockets, you can search within the docket for specific documents. Note that Bloomberg Law now has caps on federal docket usage by academic accounts.
CourtLink on Lexis also has searchable dockets and court documents. CourtLink doesn't offer retrieval of documents from PACER, but some documents will be available to download, listed as "free."
Court Listener RECAP Archive is a free source for PACER dockets and documents provided by users, most from major cases in the news.
Lexis Briefs, Pleadings, and Motions has selected court documents, including briefs, motions, and pleadings.
Westlaw databases include Dockets and Trial Court Orders. Advanced search in Dockets offers field searching for participant name, docket number, key search terms, key nature of suit, and filing date, and results may include trial court documents and briefs.
Legal newsletter articles on cases in Law360 and Bloomberg Law attach dockets, orders, and other court documents related to the article.
Federal court websites may include documents for major and newsworthy cases.
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Student Research Question?
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