Almost everything a lawyer pays for, you can read for free. Federal statutes, state statutes, court opinions, regulations, agency rules. All of it is published by the government, indexed by Cornell, and searchable in plain text. Nobody tells most readers these tools exist. Lawyers still pay for Westlaw because the bells and whistles save them time, not because the underlying law is locked behind a paywall.

If you are researching your own legal situation, drafting a contract, prepping for small claims, or just trying to read the actual statute someone is quoting at you, this page is the starting point. Use the same sources legal aid attorneys and law librarians use. They are free for the same reason public libraries are free. Access to the law is not optional in a country that expects citizens to follow it.

Federal Law & Statutes

The U.S. Code is where every permanent federal statute lives, organized into 54 titles by subject. The Code of Federal Regulations is where the rules issued by federal agencies live. Cornell's Legal Information Institute is the most readable free version of both. Same content as the official sources, better navigation. GovInfo is the official version, the one to use when you need an authenticated copy for filings or citations.

Case Law & Court Opinions

Court opinions are where the law actually gets applied. A statute tells you what is prohibited. The case law tells you how courts have interpreted those words in real disputes. CourtListener and Google Scholar are both free, both searchable by case name or full text, and both go back decades. If you have a citation already, paste it into either one and the case will come up.

Court Forms & Self-Help Resources

Filing your own case is harder than it should be, but it is doable for simple matters like small claims, name changes, basic uncontested divorces, and debt-collection responses. The federal court forms are standardized. State forms vary by jurisdiction. Most states publish self-help packets specifically for people without lawyers. Legal aid organizations, listed below, are the next step if you need actual guidance and cannot afford counsel.

Search by State

Select your state to find state-specific public records resources.

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I find free copies of federal laws?

The most user-friendly free source is Cornell's Legal Information Institute at law.cornell.edu, it provides the full U.S. Code, Code of Federal Regulations, and the Constitution in a searchable, hyperlinked format. GovInfo.gov provides authenticated official versions of all federal legal documents. Congress.gov is best for tracking current legislation.

How do I find a court opinion for a specific case?

If you have the case name or citation, Google Scholar and CourtListener both allow free full-text searches. For federal opinions, the court's own website (accessible through uscourts.gov) may also have recent opinions. For Supreme Court cases, supremecourt.gov has all opinions going back to 1937 and Oyez.org has oral argument audio.

What legal research tools do lawyers actually use?

Attorneys primarily use Westlaw and LexisNexis, which are expensive subscription services. For free research, law professionals also rely heavily on Cornell LII, CourtListener, Google Scholar, and GovInfo. Most of the actual source documents, statutes, regulations, court opinions, are available free; the premium services add organizational tools and enhanced search features.

Can I find state laws online for free?

Yes. Every state legislature publishes its statutes free online. Cornell LII links to all 50 state codes at law.cornell.edu/states/listing. State supreme court opinions are freely available on state court websites. The challenge is that state laws vary enormously, always verify you are looking at the current version of the statute for your specific state.

Are legal forms from the internet reliable?

Forms from official court websites (uscourts.gov for federal; each state court's website for state proceedings) are reliable. Generic forms from commercial sites may be outdated or jurisdiction-specific in ways that are not clearly marked. For anything involving significant rights or deadlines, evictions, custody, bankruptcy, have a legal aid attorney or law librarian review the form before filing.