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Federal Administrative Law Research Guide

Basic guide to researching federal administrative law (rules, decisions, other documents, executive orders)

Agency Decisions/Opinions

Use these sources to locate agency decisions/opinions of various types including formal opinions and decisions, interpretive or advisory rulings, memoranda, actions, orders, directives and related documents.  Note:  Table T1.2 "Federal Administrative and Executive Materials" of the Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, 21st edition lists the titles of a number of agency publications.

Sources of Agency Decisions/Opinions

Agency Websites

Many federal agencies publish the various decisions and opinions they issue on their websites. Here are some helpful sources for locating federal agency websites & agency decisions:

Topical Databases

Fee based/subscription databases such as Bloomberg Law, Lexis, and Westlaw offer subject or practice area databases that often contain agency decisions (summaries and/or full-text), as well as other related documents. See the Topical Databases sections of this guide for more information on locating topical databases. 

Looseleaf Services

These publications- typically multivolume loosleaf binders, are another source for locating agency decisions, as well as other related agency documents.  See the Looseleaf Services section of this guide for more information on locating looseleaf services.

Official Reports - Online Sources

Official Reports - Hardcopy Sources

The Library receives official print volumes of federal agency decisions. Consult Table T1.2 "Federal Administrative and Executive Materials" of the Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation.  This table lists the titles of publications published by a number of federal agencies. Use the title to search UMN Libraries Catalog to determine the library's holdings.


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