Law, Maritime & Law of the Sea Guide Ask Us

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

If you need to know the meaning of a legal word, use a legal dictionary. Legal dictionaries are available online and in print:

• Barron's Canadian Law Dictionary
  • Lexis+ (law students only)
  • Lexis Advance Quicklaw (available to all students)
  • In print on the reference desk
  • In print in the reference section
• Dictionary of Canadian Law
  • In print on the reference desk
• Black's Law Dictionary (American)
  • Westlaw Edge (law students only
    • Go to Westlaw US via the International tab and start typing the title
  • In print on the reference desk

Words & Phrases

Words and phrases differ from dictionaries, as they show what the courts have said about a particular term. A words and phrases source will show how courts in different jurisdictions (federal, provincial, international) have defined this term. Online words and phrases include links to these cases so you can see the definition in context.

There are a few words and phrases to choose from:

• Words & Phrases Judicially Defined in Canadian Courts and Tribunals (Canadian Abridgment)
  • Westlaw Edge (law students only)
  • In print in the reference section
• Canadian Legal Words & Phrases
  • Lexis+ (law students only)
  • Lexis Advance Quicklaw (available to all students)
• Sanagan’s Encyclopedia of Words and Phrases
  • In print on the reference desk

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. CED is available in WestlawNext Canada (law students only), while Halsbury's is available in Lexis+ (law students only; non-law students can access the campus-wide version of Advance Quicklaw via UNB Libraries).

In addition, the Max Planck Encyclopedias of Public International Law (MPEPIL), "the most trusted reference work in international law," is available through UNB Libraries. MPEPIL contains over 1,700 peer-reviewed articles on public international law and includes a section on Law of the Sea.

Canada

Canadian Encyclopedic Digest

• Available via Westlaw Edge (law students only) and in print in the reference section (available to all students)
• Helpful titles include:
  • Maritime Law:
    • Shipping
    • Carriers
  • Law of the Sea:
    • International Law
•  How to start your research with the Canadian Encyclopedic Digest (5:58)

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:
  • Maritime Law:
    • Maritime
    • Transportation (Carriage of Goods)
  • Law of the Sea
    • Public International Law
•  Halsbury's Laws of Canada - Lexis Advance Quicklaw (1:45)

International

Max Planck Encyclopedias of Public International Law

• Available via UNB Libraries to all students.
• Includes a section on Law of the Sea (use filters on the left to narrow subjects further or search within the results)
•  How to Use the Max Planck Encyclopedias of International Law (7:22)

Books & eBooks

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.

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.

Some key texts:

Maritime Law

• Canadian Maritime Law, 2nd ed (2016), edited by Aldo Chircop et al (print and eBook)
• Maritime Law Handbook (loose-leaf; last updated 2006) by Hans-Christian Albrecht (print only).
• Maritime Law, 4th ed (2018), by Yvonne Baatz (print only).

Law of the Sea

• Definitions for the Law of the Sea: Terms not Defined by the 1982 Convention (2012) edited by George K. Walker (eBook only).
• Kindred's International Law, Chiefly as Interpreted and Applied in Canada, 10th ed (2025), edited by Phillip M. Saunders and Robert J. Currie (print only).
• Making the Law of the Sea: A Study in the Development of International Law (2011) by James Harrison (print only).
• Selected Contemporary Issues in the Law of the Sea (2011) edited by Clive R. Symmons (print and eBook).
• The International Law of the Sea, 3rd ed (2023) by Donald R. Rothwell and Tim Stephens (print only).
• The International Law of the Sea, 4th ed (2023) by Yoshifumi Tanaka (print only).
• The Law of the Sea, 4th ed (2022) by Robin Churchill, Vaughan Lowe, and Amy Sander (print and eBook).
• UNCLOS and Ocean Dispute Settlement: Law and Politics in the South China Sea (2012) by Nong Hong (eBook only).
• United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982: A Commentary (7 vols; 1985–2012) edited by Myron H. Nordquist (print and eBook).

Legislation: Canada

Key Databases & Websites

The following databases and websites provide access to Canadian legislation.

• Lexis+ (law students only)
  • Non-law students: use the campus-wide version of Quicklaw
• Westlaw Edge (law students only)
• CanLII  
• Justice Laws   (federal legislation)
• LEGISinfo  
  • Includes information on federal bills, including status, speeches, links to Hansard debates, full-text versions of bills, and more from 35th Parl, 1st Sess (January 1994) to the current session

Statutes

• Canada Marine Act, SC 1998, c 10.  
• Canada Shipping Act, 2001, SC 2001, c 26.  
• Federal Courts Act, RSC 1985, c F-7  (defines maritime law and sets out jurisdiction).
• Marine Liability Act, SC 2001, c 6.  
• Marine Transportation Security Act, SC 1994, c 40.  
• Pilotage Act, RSC 1985, c P-14.  

Case Law: Canada

Key Databases & Websites

The following databases and websites provide access to case law.

• Lexis+ (law students only)
  • Non-law students use the campus-wide version of Quicklaw
• Westlaw Edge (law students only)
• CanLII  

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.

Two important case digests are the Canadian Abridgment Digests and the Canada Digest.

Canadian Abridgment Digests

• Available via Westlaw Edge (law students only) and in print in the reference section (available to all students)
• Useful titles include:
  • Maritime and Admiralty Law
  • International Law
• How to start your research with the Canadian Abridgment Digests (5:39)
• How to search the Canadian Abridgment Digests (4:33)

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 Maritime and Admiralty Law Digest
  • Canada International Law Digest
• Canada Digest – Lexis Advance Quicklaw (2:09)

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is an international treaty that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. You can find a lot of materials about UNCLOS, including the full text of the convention, freely online (but you should still look for other secondary sources like books and articles!).

United Nations

• United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea  (full-text of the convention) 
• United Nations: Oceans and Law of the Sea  
  • United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982: Overview and Full Text  (includes the full text of the convention, a historical background, and other related documents)
• United Nations: International Maritime Organization  
• United Nations Digital Library  (contains UN documents, votes, publications, and more) 
• United Nations Treaty Collection  (searchable UN treaty database)

Canada

• Canada Treaty Law Division  
  • Includes a searchable Treaty List and browseable Treaty Series
• Law of the Sea: United Nations Convention  (via Environment and Climate Change Canada)
• Sovereignty and UNCLOS  (via Fisheries and Oceans Canada)
• Government of Canada Publications  (online database of over 474,200 digital publications)

The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea

The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) is an independent judicial body established by UNCLOS that has jurisdiction over any dispute concerning its interpretation or application.

The ITLOS website contains cases, a Digest of Jurisprudence (case summaries), and other helpful documents.

You can also find materials on ITLOS through UNB Libraries, including:

• The Contribution of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to the Rule of Law: 1996–2016 (2018) (eBook only).
• International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea: Basic Documents (2009) edited by C. Tofan and S. Strambu (print only).
• The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea: Law, Practice and Procedure (2018) by P. Chandrasekhara Rao and Philippe Gautier (eBook only)
• International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea: Reports of Judgments, Advisory Opinions and Orders (2016) (eBook only).
• Provisional Measures in International Law: The International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (2005) by Shabtai Rosenne (print and eBook).
• Yearbook: International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (Vol. 1 [1996/97]–present)