A review of the Internet’s best sources for Internet law.
By Erik J. Heels
First published 7/1/1996; Martindale.com “Legal Links”; publisher: Martindale-Hubbell
1. Internet World’s “Law of the Net” Column – Written by Mike Godwin, staff counsel of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, this monthly column on the emerging law of the Internet is must-reading for those in the legal/Internet community. Lawyers and non-lawyers alike can benefit from Mike’s clear, concise, and current commentary. And if you’re feeling buried by net.info.overload, subscribe to the paper version of this magazine. (http://www.internetworld.com/Feb96/law.html)
2. Lyonette Louis-Jacques’s “Law Lists” – searching for “cyberspace” – If you want to find out where the soapboxes are in the marketplace of free ideas, click on this link to search “Law Lists” for mailing lists and Usenet newsgroups related to cyberspace law. Mailing lists are tremendously valuable for legal professionals, and “Law Lists” is the definitive list of law-related mailing lists and Usenet newsgroups. (http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/law-lists?cyberspace)
3. LawSource’s ALSO (American Law Sources Online) – If you know which Federal entity (whether Executive, Legislative, or Judicial) you’re looking for, LawSource’s ALSO is the best place to go to see if that entity is on the Web. (http://www.lawsource.com/also/also_us1.htm)
4. Lawyers Cooperative Publishing’s “The Legal List” – Maybe I’m a little biased since I wrote “The Legal List,” but if you want a list of the nearly 200 Federal entities that are authorized to publish in the Federal Register, here’s where you’ll find it. (http://www.lcp.com/The-Legal-List/Federal/)
5. Findlaw – If you are trying to find law about cyberspace, FindLaw may be the best place to start. FindLaw’s coverage in this and other topics is very broad. (http://www.findlaw.com/01topics/10cyberspace/index.html)
6. Counsel Connect’s LawLinks – From the creator of the largest online service for lawyers, LawLinks is a subject-oriented guide to legal resources on the Net. Counsel Connect’s editors select the best of the Net’s resources for your linking pleasure. Always a great starting point. (http://www1.counsel.com/lawlinks/topics/cyber.html)
7. Richmond Journal of Law & Technology – This student-run law journal was the first to be published exclusively online (on Lexis, Westlaw, and the Web). Well organized with many links to other online journals. One of the truly useful sites from the educational domain. (http://www.urich.edu/~jolt/)
8. Cyberspace Law Institute – A virtual think-tank where many of the heavyweights from the legal/Internet community hang out. Lots of intriguing issues are discussed at the CLI site. The CLI’s co-Directors are David R. Johnson (Chairman of Counsel Connect and former Chairman of the Electronic Frontier Foundation), David Post and John Podesta (Georgetown University Law Center), and Peggy Radin and Carey Heckman (Stanford Law School). (http://www.ll.georgetown.edu/lc/cli.html)
9. Wired’s “The Netizen” Column – Touted as coverage of the 1996 presidential election, the last campaign of the unwired generation. Very interesting nontraditional reading. (http://www.netizen.com/)
10. CyberLaw ™ & CyberLex ™ – Yes, “cyberlaw.com” is taken. This site is an educational service, by Jonathan Rosenoer, a California attorney and a net.veteran. (http://www.cyberlaw.com/)
