Preemption Checks for Law Reviews

A preemption check involves searching to see whether someone else has already written an article on the same topic you would like to write your article on, and which develops the same thesis you would like to develop with the same focus you would like to take. For help and advice specific to your research, contact one of the reference librarians or call the reference desk at (415) 422-6773.

Warning About "Full Text" Law Reviews on Lexis & Westlaw

Beware of the so-called "full text" law review databases on Lexis and Westlaw.

Don't rely on solely on the Lexis and Westlaw "full text journal sources ("Journals & Law Reviews⁄JLR" on Westlaw and "US & Canadian Law Reviews, Combined" on Lexis) for your preemption check; they aren't truly full text. Here's why:

• Some law reviews are not on Lexis or Westlaw at all.
• Of the law reviews that are on Lexis and Westlaw, not every article from every issue appears.
• Only a handful of law reviews are available on Lexis and Westlaw before the early 1980s. Most law reviews aren't available before the mid-1990s.

These shortcomings mean you can't count on these sources alone for preemption checking. You could miss plenty of preempting articles unless you use other article-finding tools too.

Preemption Checking Step-by-Step

The key throughout the preemption-check process is to use a variety of tools and a variety of search techniques.To perform a thorough preemption check, follow these steps.

For search advice specific to each of the article-finding tools mentioned below, see the separate "cheat sheets" that the Zief Library has prepared for each tool

1. Search for books at USF or other academic libraries

Use both key word and subject searching to look for books that treat an area broadly, and that might contain a chapter or section devoted to your topic. Use Ignacio (http://ignacio.usfca.edu/) to search the USF libraries.

To search even more libraries, try WorldCat. If you have a San Francisco Public Library card you can connect to WorldCat from the link in the Literature and Books section of the SFPL's list of online research tools. You can also search a free (but not as powerful) version of WorldCat.

To search books in full text, try Google Book Search.

[Tips for Searching Ignacio]

2. Search for journal articles from all years

Searching for articles always involves searching "periodical indexes" as well as "full text" sources. (Periodical indexes tell you whether or not articles on certain topics or by certain authors exist, and they give complete citations to these articles. Indexes generally do not contain the full text of articles, but do cover almost all articles from all United States law reviews and journals.

1. Search both Index to Legal Periodicals ("ILP") and Legal Resource Index/LegalTrac.

These are the two major periodical indexes for American law. Each covers some law reviews the other does not cover, so you need to check both for a thorough preemption check. Both are on Lexis and Westlaw from about 1980⁄81 to the present.

LegalTrac has a separate web version that also goes back to 1980, and ILP has a web version that goes back to 1918. (If your topic deals with anything before 1918, you must use the print version of ILP, which goes back to 1770.)

[ILP on the Web "Cheat Sheet" - ILP on Lexis & Westlaw "Cheat Sheet"]
[LegalTrac on the Web "Cheat Sheet" - Legal Resource Index on Lexis & Westlaw "Cheat Sheet"]

2. Check other indexes as appropriate.

   If your topic involves researching foreign law or international law, or if your topic involves academic disciplines other than law, you may want to check these article-finding tools:

1. Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals

   Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals covers non-U.S. periodicals from 1960 to the present in print. The online version of Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals (for USF faculty, students and staff) covers 1985 to the present. The print version is shelved at K 33 .I52 Law Reference.

2. Periodical Indexes in Disciplines Related to Law

   There are many other periodical indexes for finding articles on subjects other than law. Reference librarians at the Zief Library or Gleeson Library can help you select the right one for your project. At USF these indexes are available —

• among Westlaw's non-legal databases (for USF law students and faculty)
• among the tools for researching journal articles that USF's Gleeson Library links to in its Start Your Research pages (http://www.usfca.edu/library/research/).
• in print at Gleeson Library.

3. Search "full text" article sources

   1. Journals & Law Reviews (JLR) on Westlaw

   2. U.S. & Canadian Law Reviews, Combined (LAWREV;ALLREV)) on Lexis

   3. The "Law Journal Library" from HeinOnline

      (HeinOnline's "Law Journal Library" has the largest number of full-text law reviews, but its search engine is not as sophisticated as the Lexis and Westlaw search engines.)

   4. Working papers from Legal Scholarship Network and the bepress⁄Berkeley Electronic Press Legal Repository

      (Working papers are drafts that have not yet been published.)

   5. Google Scholar

      (As another source for finding interdisciplinary articles.)

3. Find the newest articles with Current Index to Legal Periodicals ("CILP").

Current Index to Legal Periodicals ("CILP") is a weekly topical list of citations to new law review articles. Use it to find articles right after they are published and before they show up elsewhere.

[CILP "Cheat Sheet"]

4. Check CILP regularly as your research progresses.

Since CILP is issued weekly, it will publish information about new articles as your research and writing progress. To become aware of possibly relevant articles, check the print issues of CILP weekly, or set up a WestClip search on Westlaw to run a search for you automatically every week. The Zief Library's cheat sheet on using CILP includes instructions on how to set up a WestClip search.

Go to Finding Law Review Articles

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