Legal Dictionaries/Words & Phrases
Legal Dictionaries / Words & Phrases
Legal dictionaries and Words and Phrases can help you research the meaning of legal terms and the legal interpretation of legal words and phrases. This can help when you’re trying to interpret a statute for which there is no clear case law or if you’re trying to discern the meaning of a word in a key legal document, such as a contract or a will.
Legal Dictionaries
Legal dictionaries define common legal words and terms. The entries are alphabetical and may include references to case law.
Barron's Canadian Law Dictionary
Dictionary of Canadian Law
Black's Law Dictionary (American)
Words & Phrases
Words and phrases sources provide the meanings of words as defined by the courts. They also provide references to statutes or case law where words or phrases are defined. These definitions can have legal authority because they have been defined in the courts.
Words & Phrases Judicially Defined in Canadian Courts and Tribunals
Canadian Legal Words & Phrases
Sanagan’s Encyclopedia of Words and Phrases
Legal Encyclopedias
Legal Encyclopedias
Legal encyclopedias contain narrative summaries of the law supported by references to case law and statutes. They are often the best place to start to gain a general understanding of the law in a particular area.
There are two main legal encyclopedias in law: the Canadian Encyclopedic Digest (CED) and Halsbury's Laws of Canada (Halsbury's). CED covers federal, western, and Ontario jurisdictions, and Halsbury's covers all provincial and federal jurisdictions. Both are available in print in the Law Library in the reference section on the first floor.
Electronically, CED is available in Westlaw Edge, while Halsbury's is available in Lexis+.
Canadian Encyclopedic Digest
- Available via Westlaw Edge (law students only) and in print in the reference section (available to all students)
- Helpful titles in print include Labour Law (vols. 35 and 36 in print)
- Electronically, the Labour Law topic is broken down by jurisdiction, namely: Federal, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Saskatchewan.
Halsbury's Laws of Canada
- Available via Lexis+ (law students only), the campus-wide version of Quicklaw (available to all students), and in print in the reference section (available to all students)
- Helpful titles include Labour (2020 Reissue)
Books
Books
To search for books at UNB Libraries, use UNB WorldCat. UNB WorldCat contains records of materials held at the Harriet Irving, Science and Forestry, Engineering, Hans W. Klohn, and Law libraries.
If you would like to browse the Law Library shelves, the following call number ranges may contain useful texts:
- KF 3389–3435 (collective bargaining)
- HD 7300 – 8847 (labour law)
- KF 3301–3450 (labour law)
- K1702–1841 (international law)
Items shown as LAW-RESERVE may be requested at the circulation desk on the first floor of the Law Library. Bring the book's call number with you to the desk. Items shown as LAW-STACKS are on the second floor, and LAW-REF materials are on the first floor in the reference section.
You can also find eBooks on Labour Law in LabourSource (law students only; non-law students can use the campus-wide version of LabourSource).
Journal Articles & Databases
Journal Articles & Databases
If you already know the journal title, year, volume number and page number for an article, you may be able to access it electronically by searching for the journal's title in the UNB e-journals database. If we have the journal electronically or in print, it will be listed. You can also look up the journal title in UNB WorldCat.
Keep in mind that it can be best to start with an index rather than a full-text database. An index is essentially a list of articles by topic. Sometimes the article will be available full-text, but often you'll just be given a citation that you can use to track it down somewhere else.
Key indexes and databases
If you need help locating an article, contact Nikki Tanner, Reference/Instruction Librarian, for assistance.
Case Law
Case Law
Finding case law
To find relevant case law, the first thing you should do is consult a secondary source on your topic, like a book, article, legal encyclopedia, or case digest.
Cases digests
Along with searching the databases mentioned above, you should use a case digest to find case law. A case digest service indexes cases by topic, and each topic is broken down into several subtopics. With a case digest, you might find ten, twenty, or hundreds of cases on your research topic, saving you hours of time.
Canadian Abridgment Digests
- Available via Westlaw Edge (law students only) and in print in the reference section (available to all students)
- Useful titles include Labour and Employment Law (vols 62–75 in print).
Canada Digest
- Available via Lexis+ and the campus-wide version of Quicklaw (available to all students)
- Click Case Summaries > All Canada Digests for a list of topics
- Useful titles include
- Canada Labour Arbitration Digest
- Canada Labour Digest
Key databases and websites
If you already know the name of the case you need, use one of the databases or websites below to find it.
Legislation
Legislation
Key statutes
Finding legislation
To find relevant legislation, the first thing you should do is consult a secondary source on your topic, like a book, article, or legal encyclopedia.
If you already know the name of the statute, etc., you need, use one of the databases or websites below to find it.
Key databases and websites
Government Documents
Government Documents
Government documents, like publications, Hansards, and committee reports, are useful for background information and when researching legislative intent.
The Law Library's collection of printed government documents is located on the library's third floor. Use UNB WorldCat to search, or ask a library staff member for help.
The Harriet Irving Library also has government documents, which can be located through UNB WorldCat.
For government documents that are available online, try using UNB Libraries' Government Documents Search.
Note: if you include site:canada.ca (and/or site:gc.ca) and filetype:pdf in a Google search, you will retrieve PDF documents from Government of Canada websites. This is a good way to find government reports, as they are usually in PDF format.
Government Publications
Federal
New Brunswick
Hansards/Debates
Federal
New Brunswick
- Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick Hansards
- Current Legislature only online
- Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick Hansards (print in Law Library)
- 1931–1979, 1980–1995/1996, 2002/2003–present: third floor, government documents section
- 1896–1930 (also called Synoptic Reports): Rare Books Reading Room
Journals/Votes and Proceedings
Federal
New Brunswick
Committee Reports
Federal
New Brunswick
Websites & Blogs
Websites & Blogs
Websites
Blogs
There are many blogs maintained by lawyers and law firms, and you can find many of them at lawblogs.ca, an open directory of Canadian blogging lawyers, law librarians, marketers, IT professionals, and paralegals. There are several blogs listed in the labour and employment law category that might be helpful.
Last modified on September 16, 2024 12:00
Share