Legal Research

Law Guides –

We explain how to navigate our legal materials in our Legal Research library guides (LawGuides).

Researching Maine Law

Each of Maine’s three branches of state government are sources of Maine law.

  • The legislature passes statutes (or legislation)
  • The executive branch (governor) issues proclamations and orders, and approves legislation
  • The judiciary (courts) resolves disputes documented in case law, decisions, and orders.
  • State agencies and local governments are also sources of Maine law.
  • State agencies are authorized by the legislature to make laws called rules or regulations.
  • Local governments such as counties, municipalities, and towns, are also sources of law. Local laws include ordinances, rules and regulations, and specialized courts.
  • Check out our Maine Law Guides for help finding statutes, case law, and other sources mentioned here, as well as state-specific resources that explain the law.

Digital Commons

University of Maine School of Law Digital Commons includes current issues and archives for:

Search Library Catalogs & Databases

Catalogs have information about print and electronic items in the library collection and where to find items in the collection. An A-Z list of all the library resources is available.  The databases are searchable electronic collections. Restricted databases (below) are not included in the catalogs.

LibrarySearch is an online catalog that searches the print and electronic collections of all libraries in the University of Maine system. Limit your search to the University of Maine School of Law collection by using the drop down menu.  On the Reference page you will find information on Using the Online Catalog and Locating Items in the Library.

Restricted Databases

Subscription databases that must be used in the Library include:

 

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