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General Legal Research: Court Rules

Information on basic primary and secondary legal sources.

Court Rules

Federal Rules

Examples include:

  • Circuit Courts Rules
  • Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
  • Federal Rules of Evidence

Federal rules are included in the U.S.C., although they are printed separately and are not part of any of the 51 Titles.

You can find federal rules anywhere you can locate U.S.C. text, including Westlaw, Lexis, and in print. 

Many of the court rules can be found on individual court websites or as separate print publications.

Visit the United States Court website for Federal Rules & Forms in Effect and Local Court Rules for FREE, electronic access.


State and Local Court Rules

Similar to the federal rules, state court rules can be found within the state statutory code, published as separate volumes.  They should be available electronically wherever you find a state's annotated code (such as Westlaw and Lexis).  Also visit state and local court websites for FREE, electronic access to current rules.