Comparative Constitutional Law: Research Path

• Find a good topic. A crucial step in the writing process, topic selection merits careful consideration. Methods for identifying topics include reviewing:
  • the table of contents of your course text book
  • news sources - Example: Constitutions in the News from ConstitutionNet
  • journals 
    Search for recent articles or review recent issues of a journal like the International Journal of Constitutional Law
    See the 2021 Global Review of Constitutional Law, which describes major constitutional developments in countries around the world. (The summary section might be the easiest starting place.) 
  • websites of professional organizations and advocacy groups
  • books
• Map out a tentative research plan that includes possible search terms and sources. Revise it as you learn more about your topic.
• Document what you've tried and record citations for any information found.
  • Take advantage of folders and personal logins. SuperSearch and most other library databases allow you to save searches and results.
  • Consider using a citation management database.
  • Take advantage of Word features to insert footnotes and identify supras.
• Start with the big picture. Find a current, short introduction to your topic such as:
  • A short introductory book or book chapter (can be located via the SuperSearch catalog; see the books tab in this guide for subject heading suggestions).
  • Information from a blog or website from a reputable scholar, organization, or news outlet.
  • An article (or segment thereof) that provides an overview (try SSRN for forthcoming articles; search for articles using SuperSearch or resources suggested on the articles tab of this guide).
• Use secondary sources to enhance your knowledge and to research sub-topics and legal issues you've identified as relevant. Options include:
  • Law review articles, which provide in-depth analysis of narrow issues and contain footnotes that lead to primary sources (SSRN, Lexis, Westlaw, and the Index to Legal Periodicals will help with this; be mindful of whether you are searching an index or a full text source).
  • Book chapters, especially in books where each chapter is an essay written by a distinct scholar (use SuperSearch or Google Scholar to find these; see hint on linking the Drake libraries to Google Scholar).
• Research guides are a type of secondary source that will familiarize you with sources and strategies for a particular topic or country. Try these approaches to identify them:
  • Run a Google search for <keywords representing your topic or jurisdiction> research guide (e.g. South Africa legal research guide or comparative criminal procedure research guide).
  • Access a guide through a portal like GlobaLex, the Library of Congress' Guide to Law Online: the Nations of the World, or ECOI.net.
• Identify full text sources for the cases and legislation that are cited in the articles and books you've found. Have realistic expectations about what you'll be able to find translated into English. Take a look at a research guide about the country to identify available sources or talk to a librarian.
• Law review articles commonly analyze the significance of a single case or statute, so look for articles that explain how your case or statute impacts the legal landscape. If articles aren't available, try looking at news coverage for a more succinct summary of the law or case's importance.
• Consider interdisciplinary resources. For example, if you are examining the impact of religion or social mores on abortion rights in other countries, you will likely find useful information in databases that focus on religion or sociology as well as in legal databases. Note that SuperSearch includes many interdisciplinary sources, but the search capabilities are more limited than if you directly search another database. 
• Research isn't linear. As you work through these steps, you'll likely discover additional sub-topics or legal issues you need to explore. Loop back through the process until you have examined all potentially relevant angles.
• Don't hesitate to reach out to a librarian. You can use your Drake email account to email us a request for reference assistance. Choose the link corresponding to your device:
  • PC/Mac/Android reference request link 
  • iPhone/iPad reference request link

Foreign law refers to the laws of individual foreign countries.

Comparative law compares aspects of the laws or legal systems of two or more countries.

Public international law governs legal relations between countries, referred to as nation-states or states, and other international entities.

Private international law concerns laws related to private persons (e.g., individuals or companies) in situations that cross country borders.

Widely recommended books for law students writing papers are: