HLS home > library > services > research > guides
Library

Getting Ready for Summer

Welcome to the "Getting Ready for Summer" series of research guides. We've written these guides especially for Harvard students working as summer associates. They are designed to perform under pressure -- giving you quick answers and “cut to the chase” advice on starting a research project.

We recommend using these guides in two ways. First, familiarize yourself with the content of these guides before you start at your firm (or other legal employer), or during the slow periods that are common at the beginning of your summer position. Second, take just five to ten minutes before you begin any research project to review the appropriate guide(s): even if you’ve done research in the area before, they will serve to remind you of sources and techniques that you may otherwise overlook. You'll find that the five minutes you spend may save you hours of unnecessary work -- keeping your assigning attorneys happy, and your clients' costs down.

Because they are designed to quickly help you get started on your projects, these guides do not provide coverage of the entire universe of available research sources. For detailed advice on your specific research issues, contact a research librarian.

Legal Research Basics

This subset of guides provides a quick review of the basics you learned (or didn't) about legal research in your first year of law school.

Specialized Legal Research

These guides provide advice about specialized areas of legal research.

State Legal Research

These four guides offer specific advice on researching the law in New York, California, and Massachusetts, as well as a guide to the best ways to get started researching the laws of other states, or to begin a 50-state survey.

Legal Research Strategies

This group of guides sets forth various options for research that are likely to be available to you in a firm (or public interest) setting. The Checklist is a useful tool when starting any legal research -- reminding you of the most common places you might search for information.