Journals and Periodicals – Why Search for Periodical Literature?
Legal journals are an excellent source of scholarly literature with a particular focus on discrete areas of the law.
- Due to their currency, periodical articles are especially useful when you are researching a relatively new or emerging legal issue.
Moreover, journal articles often refer to and comment on relevant court cases and legislation. As such, they will help you locate relevant primary material. They may also interpret or summarize lengthy judgments. And while an author's interpretation is never authoritative, a case commentary will often provide a unique perspective on the topic being researched and may help you to better frame your arguments.
Lastly, with thousands of legal journals issuing publications on an annual, quarterly, or monthly basis, there is an impressive amount of periodical literature covering every facet of the legal world. So, even if your research topic is relatively obscure, there is almost certainly an article (or two) which will be of use!