General Instructions for Learning Activities
- Read/watch all assigned materials listed for the week in Overview.
- Refer to assigned course materials, cases, and/or statutes to support conclusions.
- Review the grading rubric.
- Put your name on your file.
- Save your work in Word (.doc or .docx), RTF, or PDF format.
- Submit your work to the correct week’s Learning Activity link in the Assignment Folder.
Learning Activity due 11:59 pm ET Saturday
Background: Chang is working with a new LCA consulting client who is seeking to streamline research costs without compromising quality. Chang tasks you with researching several cases using no-cost research resources and reporting to her before her next meeting with the LCA client.
Instructions:
1. On Westlaw, locate the U.S. Supreme Court opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Incorporated, et al. Cite the case in Bluebook format. (Tip: Remember that the Bluebook requires a citation to the official reporter only.)
2. U.S. Supreme Court opinions are available on many websites. Visit the following websites and provide the requested URLs. You may copy and paste the URLs, but pay attention to what you’re viewing. Make sure that the URL you copy leads directly to a page that contains the specified materials.
a. Go to www.scotusblog.com and provide the full URL for the Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. case page on SCOTUSblog.
b. Go to the official U.S. Supreme Court website at https://www.supremecourt.gov/ and provide the full URL for the page there that provides the text of the Court’s opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
c. Go to the Findlaw Legal Professionals page at https://lp.findlaw.com/. Provide the full URL for the page there that provides the text of the Court’s opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.
d. Go to Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com/) and provide the full URL for the for the page there that provides the text of the Court’s opinion in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. Tip: Select “Case law,” then click on “Select Courts.” Restrict your search to Federal Courts → Supreme Court before searching for the opinion.
3. Maryland appellate court opinions also are available on many websites. Explore some features of these sites by answering these questions.
a. Go to Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com/). Select “Case law,” then click on “Select Courts.” Restrict your search to Maryland Courts and click “Done.” In the resulting search box, enter: Coburn v. Coburn. Select the first result. Does the opinion provide enough information to cite the case in Bluebook format? Explain why or why not, supporting your answer with relevant descriptive detail from the opinion page. Before moving on to Question 3b, take note of the deciding court and the year of the decision. (A citation is not required.)
b. Go to the Maryland Appellate Court Opinions page on the Maryland Courts website at: gov/opinions/opinions” target=”_blank”>https://mdcourts.gov/opinions/opinions. Using the information about the Coburn case found in in 3a., retrieve the Coburn opinion. Tip: the “Filing Year” is the year of the decision (i.e. when the deciding court filed the case decision with the Clerk’s Office). Does the opinion provide enough information to cite the case in Bluebook format? Explain why or why not, supporting your answer with relevant descriptive detail from the opinion page. (A citation is not required.)
4. Free websites do not have all the features found in fee-based subscription services. Let’s compare results.
a. Go to Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com/). Select, “Case law” and enter this partial citation in the search box: 938 A.2d 863. What is the name of the case that’s retrieved and what court issued the opinion?
b. Next, enter the same partial citation, 938 A.2d 863, in the GSB in Westlaw. Compare the Google Scholar and Westlaw results. What important information does Westlaw provide near the caption (area with the case name and publication data) that Google Scholar does not?
Links to this weeks study material:
Guide to Law Online: https://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide.php
Using Google Scholar: https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-6195
Evaluating Internet sources: https://www.library.georgetown.edu/tutorials/resea…
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