Finding Foreign Law  

Starting Points

Searching MNCAT

Subject Collections

LexisNexis and Westlaw 

General Sources and Last Resorts

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Introduction

This guide describes how to find the laws of foreign countries using resources at the University of Minnesota, on Westlaw and Lexis, and on the web. The emphasis is on codes and statutes rather than cases. The guide will also help you find secondary materials that describe other countries' laws. It includes links to websites and to other guides.  This is a  generic guide; if the Library has a more specific guide for the jurisdiction you want (France, Germany, Great Britain, Canada, Sweden, or the Netherlands), use that guide instead of this one.

Although the U of M has a large collection of foreign law, and the internet provides additional resources, it is sometimes impossible to find current foreign law on a topic, particularly in translation.  Very few foreign laws, and even fewer cases, are translated into English.

Citation: The best guide to foreign legal citation is probably New York University's Guide to Foreign and International Legal Citations, Reference Office K89 .G85 2009 . See also Table 2 of The Bluebook (19th ed., 2010).

Database Access Note: access to certain databases linked to in this guide may be restricted to members affiliated with the U of M Law School or the U of M Twin Cities campus. Please see our Databases Directory for further information on access privileges.