You will usually wish to find a case by party names (case name), by citation, or by subject.

There are a number of ways to do this both online and in the Library using printed sources.

By Party Names (case name)

e.g. Campbell v Mirror Group Newspapers

You can search for a case by party names (case name) by entering these in the 'Parties' box.

Select the 'Search' button.

A list of results matching your search will be displayed.

Tip: For cases where one of the parties is 'His/Her Majesty's Advocate', use the search term Advocate (not HMA or Her Majesty's Advocate).

By Citation

e.g. [2004] 2 AC 457

You can search for a case by citation by entering this in the 'Citation' box.

Select the 'Search' button.

A list of results matching your search will be displayed.

Tip: You can search by either the traditional citation to a series of law reports (e.g. [2004] 2 AC 457 or [2004] 2 All ER 995) or the 'neutral citation' (e.g. [2004] UKHL 22).

By Subject or Free Text Term

e.g. Media and entertainment; Breach of confidence; Privacy; Supermodel

You can search for a case by general subjects or a more specific keywords by entering these in the 'Subject/Keyword' box.

You can search for a case by any term occurring in the text  by entering these in the 'Free Text' box.

Select the 'Search' button.

A list of results matching your search will be displayed.

Tip: 'Subjects' (e.g. media and entertainment) and 'keywords' (e.g. breach of confidence) are added by editors at Westlaw and describe the general subjects covered by a case.  'Free text' terms (e.g. supermodel) are any occurring in the full text of a case document - they may help find a specific case, but may not be relevant to the main legal issues considered in the case.

By Legislation Cited

e.g. Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995, s.47

By selecting 'More options' you can use additional boxes to search for cases which cite a section of an act or other piece of legislation.

Enter the title of the act in the 'Legislation Title' box and then select the provision type (section, regulation etc.) from the 'Legislation Provision No.' dropdown and enter the number in the box.

Select the 'Search' button.

By Case Cited

e.g. Cadder v HM Advocate [2010] UKSC 43, 2011 SC (UKSC) 13

By selecting 'More options' you can use additional boxes to search for cases which cite  another earlier case.

Enter the party names (case name) in the 'Cases Cited (Party)' box or enter the citation in the 'Cases Cited (Citation)' box.

Select the 'Search' button.

A list of results matching your search will be displayed.

Tip: You can also find later cases which cite a particular case by finding the known case using a Cases Search and then, from the 'Case Analysis', looking under 'Primary References' to find 'Key Cases Citing' and 'All Cases Citing' .

A list of results matching your search will be displayed.

Tip: You can also find cases which cite a section by finding the legislation/provision using a Legislation Search and then looking under the 'Primary References' to find 'Key Cases Citing' or 'All Cases Citing'.

vLex Justis

You can select the main 'Search' option and enter search terms.

Alternatively for a more refined search you can select 'Advanced' and then  select the ‘Cases’ link in the bar across the top of the advanced search page. Options for searching include:

• Party Names: use the ‘Parties’ field in the Cases search.
• Citation: use the ‘Citation’ field in the Cases search.
• Subject: use the ‘Full Text’ field  in the Cases search.

The search results list displays records matching your query. Follow the link to individual records. To view the full text of the report, from the record select the ‘Full Text’ or 'Citations and Reports' link. If the full text is not available on vLex then you may be able to follow links to the full text on other sources (e.g. Westlaw or Lexis Library).

HeinOnline: English Reports, Full Reprint (1220 - 1865)

On the Welcome page under ‘Subscribed Libraries’, select ‘English Reports’, then ‘English Reports, Full Reprint (1220-1867)’. You can then choose to perform a simple ‘Case Locator’ search or ‘Browse’ the reports. Case Locator search options include:

• Case Name (Bradshaw)
• English Reports Citation (77 Eng Rep 1283)
• Nominative Citation (2 Wils KB 137)
• Key Word Search

BAILII

To look for cases, select the ‘Case Law Search’ link.

• Party Names: use the ‘Case name’ field.
• Citation: use the ‘Citation’ field.
• Subject: use fields ‘All these words’, ‘Exact phrase’, ‘Any of these words’, or ‘Advanced query’.

Curia

By following the link to ‘Case law: Search form’, you can search by ‘Names of parties’, ‘Case number’, and ‘Words in the text’.

HUDOC

By following the links to ‘HUDOC database’, then ‘Advanced Search’, you can search by ‘Case Title’, ‘Application Number’, ‘Text’, and ‘Keyword’.

By Citation

Cadder v HM Advocate 2011 SC (UKSC) 13

1. Find out which series of reports the legal abbreviation refers to (N.B. neutral citations do not refer to a series of law reports). For example, SC (UKSC) is Session Cases (UK Supreme Court) cases:

2. Go the relevant series of reports (in the alphabetical sequence on level 5), e.g. Session Case (UK Supreme Court).

3. Look for the relevant year and/or volume, e.g. 2011.

4. Look up the page on which the report begins, e.g. 13.

By Party Names (Case Name)

Cadder v HM Advocate 2011 SC (UKSC) 13

Current Law Case Citator

In the Citator cases are listed alphabetically with their citations. The Citator is comprised of several volumes, each covering a separate period of time.

1. Look up the case by first party name in the alphabetical list:

• Begin with the earliest volume (1948-1976) and work through each volume until you find the case (if you know the year the case was reported you can go straight to the volume covering the relevant period)

• If it is a Scottish case make sure you look in the Scottish sequence at the back of the Citator (if unsure of the jurisdiction look in both parts)

• If it is a case within the last year, look in the ‘Cumulative Table of Cases’ in the most recent issue of the Current Law Monthly Digest.

2. Take a note of the citation(s) listed beside the case name (e.g. 2011 SC (UKSC) 13);

3. Use the citation(s) to find the case on the Library shelves (see 'By Citation').

N.B. For cases reported before 1948 you may need to use other digests in the law reference section (e.g. the Faculty Digest).

By Subject

Textbooks

Use textbooks or encyclopaedias in a relevant area of law - these usually contain references to major cases. Case citations may be found in footnotes and in the Table of Cases (at the front of a textbook). use SUPrimo to find textbooks:

Current Law Year Book

Use the Current Law Year Book to look up case summaries in the index:

• refer to each year’s volumes separately;
• for cases within the last year, use parts of the Current Law Monthly Digest;
• in the index cases are referred to by year and paragraph number e.g. 93/459;
• look up the case summary (by paragraph number) this contains a full citation.

By Legislation Cited

Children (Scotland) Act 1995, s 11

Current Law Legislation Citator

Start with the volume covering the date of your act and trace forward in time. Find the act by year and chapter / asp number (pre-1707 Scots Acts and asps appear towards the front of each volume.)

The entry for each act lists notable cases which considered individual sections reported during the period covered by each volume.