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International Law
Prof. E. Burelson
February 7, 2007
Guide for finding sources at the George T. Potter Library
Irene Kuchta
ikuchta@ramapo.eduor x7577
Leigh Keller
lkeller1@ramapo.edu or x7316
- Library Homepage
- Find Books
- Reference Material
- Find Articles (Databases)
- Interlibrary Loan/Journal Finder
- Bibliographies
- Websites
- Provides access to the catalog (OPAC), databases, interlibrary loan forms, etc.
II. Finding Books at the Potter Library
- Catalog: use this to find books, journal titles NOT ARTICLES, government documents, reserve items, music,and movies owned by the Library. You may limit a search by language, year(s) of publication, type of material, etc. This may take a few seconds to load.
- Search the catalog using Keywords to find material
- For example: search for law reviews or international environmental law to locate a broad range of material and look for ideas for your project
OR
Search the catalog using Subject Browse feature ONLY if you know the Library of Congress Subject Headings
- For example:
- Start with broad searches. It is much easier to discard too much rather than start with too little.
- If you don't know the Subject Heading, use the Related Records tab located on the top of a catalog record to get to the headings. This will help you focus in on more relevant material.
- Can "virtually" browse the shelves by clicking on the call number in a record.
Law Reviews
Environmental Law, International
Treaties
Tips
III. Reference Material
- The reference stacks are located on the 3rd floor (this is also the library's entrance).
- Some useful materials for your projects:
Treaties and Alliances of the World |
Ref JX 4005.T72 2002 |
| International Environmental Law | Ref K3585 .K57 2004 |
| International Law: a dictionary | Ref KZ1161 .B63 2005 |
| World at Risk: a global issues sourcebook | Ref JZ1242 .W67 2002 |
Tips
- Use reference books to browse for project ideas and to get started on your research.
- Use the Bibliographies at the end of encyclopedia entries to find more information on your topic.
IV. Electronic Resources
- Some useful Databases for your projects:
| Westlaw | To find law reviews, check off the "Journals and Law Reviews" button |
| Lexis-Nexis | Choose "Legal Research" on the left side to find law reviews. |
| Treaties in Force 2006 | use this State Department site to locate treaties. Use Google to find the text of your treaty. |
(Scholarly/Peer Reviewed/Refereed articles have been reviewed by a selected panel of experts in the discipline covered by that journal).
Tips
- Always switch to the Advance Search page in a database. This will give you more control over your results.
- Always use Boolean Operators-AND, OR, NOT when running a search. For Example: suburbs and "united states" and culture
- Always check your Spelling if the database results are Zero.
.
V. Interlibrary Loan
Both of these links can be found under QUICK LINKS on the library's homepage.
- Interlibrary Loan: allows students to borrow a book or article that the Potter library does not own. There is a link from the Journal Finder page.
- Journal Finder: this provides information regarding if a journal is available full-text online, in print in the library, or available on microfilm.
VI. Bibliographies
- Use Basic Legal Citations for examples of how to cite legal material
- Use the Citing Sources for non-legal citation styles.
VII. Web Sources
- Evaluating Websites: to determine if the site is authoritative enough to use in your paper.
Top of Page
Need more help? Visit or call the Reference Desk: 201.684.7574 Use QandA NJ a 24/7 virtual chat with a reference librarian.