Macdonald-Kelce Library: Law &amp; Legal Studies: Specialized Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, Reference

Specialized Information

Sometimes you need a definition, or statistic, or basic fact for you paper that you can't find in a scholarly article. What can make this doubly frustrating is that sometimes you can find the fact in Wikipedia, but you cannot use Wikipedia in your paper. (See Using Wikipedia for more on how to use this popular resource effectively.)

Here are some of the specialized dictionaries and encyclopedias you can find:

Black's Law Dictionary
Search for legal definitions. Available from Thomson Reuters Westlaw.
American Jurisprudence
AmJur, a comprehensive legal encyclopedia.
Corpus Juris Secundum
C.J.S., a national legal encyclopedia. Covers state and federal legal topics. Available from Thomson Reuters Westlaw.

Britannica Academic This link opens in a new window
Offers the complete Encyclopedia Britannica online as well as Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus.
Oxford Reference This link opens in a new window
Access all Oxford's dictionaries, companions, and encyclopedias in one place.
Oxford Reference is a multi-disciplinary database that features a range of short entries, timelines, quotations, and lengthy in-depth reference articles on all topics. Browse by subject or enter a keyword in the search box.