In law, “law new” is a term to describe something that is new or changing. It can refer to new laws, a new case, a new procedure or a change in the way a court treats a particular issue. It could also refer to a new piece of legal scholarship. This page includes a link to the weekly issue of law new, which provides an overview of recent developments in the law and other interesting news in the field.
Constitution: A central document of a country that establishes its creation, character and organization; describes the main powers of the government and the main rights of the people; and sets out the rules and principles by which those power and rights are to be exercised.
Civil rights: The right of a person to fair treatment and equal protection under the law by governmental agencies, private individuals and other entities, including organizations.
Evidence: Proof that supports or refutes a claim, such as photographs, written reports and interviews. Generally, the more reliable the evidence, the stronger the argument.
Docket number: A number that identifies a specific court case. In the Supreme, County and City courts, the first two numbers show the year the case was filed; the next letter indicates the county (N=New York; K=Kings; Q=Queens; X=Brooklyn; R=Richmond; and C=Midtown Community Court). The last six numbers indicate the specific case.
Law school: An institution of higher learning where students study to become lawyers.
Law professor: A college or university teacher who teaches the law and is qualified to advise students on law-related matters.
Licensed to practice: A title given to a lawyer who has been approved by the state bar or equivalent authority to practise law in that jurisdiction.
Litigation: A legal dispute between two parties in which one party seeks to enforce a judgment or to get something from another party.
Precedent: A rule or decision made by a previous court case that is used as a basis for arguing a point in a current case.
The New York State Administrative Code is a collection of regulations and other directives governing various aspects of the state’s operations. It is available online through Westlaw. You can search by keyword and browse the entire code or individual sections of it. The site also contains a helpful tutorial on legislative history. If you don’t have access to Westlaw or if the documents you want to use are outside the time frame of that database, the NY-LH collection is an excellent alternative.
