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Evidence: Secondary Sources

Resources available at LaValley Law Library relating to the area of Evidence.

Treatises Available at LaValley Law Library

Dictionaries / Encyclopedias

Black's Law Dictionary (Westlaw Edge - need logon)

Black's Law is the most widely used law dictionary in the United States. It was founded by Henry Campbell Black. It is the reference of choice for terms in legal briefs and court opinions and has been cited as a secondary legal authority in many U.S. Supreme Court cases.


American Jurisprudence 2d (AMJUR) (Westlaw Edge - Need logon)
American Jurisprudence 2d (AMJUR) (Lexis Advance - Need logon)

Comprehensive legal encyclopedia contains textual statements of law alphabetically arranged in more than 400 topics. A to Z text statement of American Law, both state and federal. The articles collect, examine, and summarize the broad principles of American law and, at the same time, provide direct leads to supporting cases, related annotations, forms, proofs, and trial techniques. 


American Jurisprudence Proof of Facts (Westlaw Edge - need login)

Written by well-known judges, attorneys and experts in technical, scientific and medical fields. Explains how to determine quickly and confidently the facts essential to winning a case, and how to prove them for a wide range of civil litigation and selected criminal defense topics, including: personal injury/torts, employment litigation (discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination), real estate litigation, business torts, and commercial litigation. Also highlights which cases to avoid due to difficulties or failures in proof. Includes strategies and aids that cover every stage of trial preparation.


American Law Reports (ALR) (Westlaw Edge - need login)
American Law Reports (ALR) (Lexis Advance - need login)

The ALR database contains the full text of the annotations included in the Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Federal, Federal Second, and Federal Third Series of the American Law Reports (ALR), all published by West, a Thomson Reuters business.


Corpus Juris Secundum (Westlaw Edge - need login)

A national legal encyclopedia, covers state and federal legal topics from A to Z. General rules of law are summarized in blackletter law headings and expanded upon in the text. The book also provides the limitations and exceptions to the rules where appropriate. The citations and the supporting cases involve both state and federal courts, allowing the user gets a full perspective of the law in a local jurisdiction as well as across the country.


Ohio Jurisprudence 3d (Westlaw Edge - need login)

A current and comprehensive encyclopedia of Ohio law, containing an analytical treatment of all law established in Ohio courts and by acts of the legislature.

Lexis+ Secondary Resources

Arkfeld on Electronic Discovery and Evidence

Arkfeld on Electronic Discovery and Evidence is a comprehensive treatise that addresses all the key aspects of the discovery and admission of electronic evidence, within the context of relevant statutes, regulations, and federal and state case law. 

Arkfeld's Best Practices Guide for Electronic Discovery and Evidence

The Electronic Discovery and Evidence Best Practice Guide has been revamped and updated to offer an overview and workbook for the myriad of legal and technology issues that need to be addressed whether you are requesting or producing electronically stored information (ESI). This workbook will provide a plan and pretrial steps in discovering and disclosing ESI. It sets forth the key legal and technology issues you will encounter as you discover or produce ESI, cross-referenced into the main treatise for an in depth look at the various issues. Besides the substantial update, and based upon survey results, a 15-page meet and confer planning guide has been developed and included with the Guide. This planning guide provides the key topics and questions that a party must address with their client and adversary as they prepare for, and participate in, a pretrial conference involving electronically stored information (ESI).

Courtroom Criminal Evidence

Conduct a winning case knowing all the rules governing admissibility and sufficiency of the evidence with Courtroom Criminal Evidence. Thousands of lawyers refer to this popular resource for expert guidance on criminal evidence issues. Written by a team of four leading attorneys with years of combined expertise in evidence law, this resource presents an analytical framework that simplifies evidence law and helps you understand the issues. With a wealth of information packed into more than 30 chapters, this is one resource you can count on for quick reference and expert advice anytime.

Evidentiary Foundations

This popular resource covers all major evidentiary doctrines, providing for each doctrine: * A brief description of the pertinent Federal Rules of Evidence and the most recent leading cases construing the Rules * A list of foundational elements-the events and facts you need to lay a complete foundation * An illustrative foundation showing how each question relates to a particular element of the foundation Evidentiary Foundations features an analysis of statutory developments, notably the 2003 amendment to Federal Rule 608 and the proposed amendment to Rule 408. It also discusses significant new cases, and reviews relevant new technical developments, such as the ascendance of short tandem repeat(STR) DNA analysis. There is a new foundation for STR testimony.

Exculpatory Evidence: The Accused's Constitutional Right to Introduce Favorable Evidence

Exculpatory Evidence, Third Edition offers a comprehensive study of the evolution of case law defining the scope of the constitutional right to present exculpatory evidence, which has been used to override virtually every type of evidentiary exclusionary rule. The authors point out incisive constitutional arguments and effective trial defense strategies to foil evidentiary privileges and put the prosecution on guard. Don't rely on the exclusion of prosecution evidence to earn an acquittal. Your client's future depends on your ability to present the best possible defense. That means offering all the favorable evidence you can - even evidence that is technically inadmissible under exclusionary rules or privileges.

Eyewitness Testimony: Civil and Criminal

Eyewitness Testimony uses psychological principles to examine the potential for erroneous eyewitness testimony, and applies them practically to the entire life of a lawsuit, from witness interviews, through discovery and motions practice, and all stages of trial, to closing arguments and the verdict.

Federal Courtroom Evidence

Federal Courtroom Evidence is a familiar sight in the federal courtroom. Attorneys and judges rely on this resource for instant access to the law including rules, advisory committee notes, and case annotations. Federal Courtroom Evidence is organized for deeper analysis and quicker access to the desired information. In many cases, more subsections of text discuss each rule, so that each subsection addresses more specific issues. This allowed more detailed analysis of evidentiary issues and made it possible to cite fewer opinions for each proposition of law without reducing the richness of the authority provided in this edition. All of the chapters have been updated with the latest evidence cases.

Federal Evidence Courtroom Manual

Federal Evidence Courtroom Manual (FDEVCM), a companion to the state courtroom manuals, is more than a handbook but not as cumbersome as a multi-volume treatise. Keyed directly to the Federal Rules of Evidence and reflecting their organizational scheme, Federal Evidence Courtroom Manual offers judges and practitioners many trial-tested features that not only provide fast, accurate answers to evidentiary questions, but also guide the user to the underlying authorities and secondary sources. 

Federal Evidence Practice Guide

Some of the country's leading trial lawyers provide thoughtful, practical guidance on crucial evidentiary matters from pre-trial gathering of the evidence through summation. With explanatory material and clear examples of testimony, each chapter of the Federal Evidence Practice Guide (FEDPRG) offers specific guidelines for effective use and management of evidence. Included are the authors' recommendations and commentary regarding successful techniques for offering or opposing evidence. 

Federal Evidence Tactics

Tracking the Federal Rules of Evidence, this easy-to-use publication is designed to help counsel strategically analyze the issues involved in the introduction of and objection to particular evidence. Federal Evidence Tactics (EVIDTC) is an excellent tactical companion to Weinstein's Federal Evidence, Second Edition

Federal Rules of Evidence

Federal Rules of Evidence Manual (FREMAN) is the most concise and authoritative reference interpreting the Federal Rules. Used often as a coursebook for state and national Continuing Legal Education programs in evidence, the Federal Rules of Evidence Manual provides the following for each Rule: the complete, current text; a current explanation by experts on federal evidence rules; comprehensive descriptions of salient cases; and the relevant legislative history. This essential resource offers the most current and comprehensive treatment detailing the effects on the hearsay rules of Crawford v. Washington, in which the Supreme Court completely changed its approach to the Confrontation Clause. 

Prince, Richardson on Evidence

This eleventh edition of Richardson continues to follow the objective established by William Payson Richardson and Jerome Prince: to give students, lawyers and judges a quick guide to the law of New York on the subject. To this possible, the size of the text has increased over the years, but every effort has been made to retain the outline form. The advent of the Federal Rules of Evidence in the 1970's had no direct impact on New York, although a sustained, ultimately unsuccessful, effort was made to promulgate a Code of Evidence for New York. Because a generation of lawyers has studied Evidence against the background of the Federal Rules, the material in this edition reflects the general organizational scheme of the Federal Rules, which are cited wherever and whenever though appropriate.

Scientific Evidence

Scientific Evidence explains in clear terms the latest forensic techniques and scientific concepts used in collecting and evaluating evidence. Organized logically for the active litigator, Scientific Evidence first covers rules and precedents relating to admissibility, constitutional limitations, discovery, expert testimony, laboratory reports, and chain of custody. It then analyzes the most frequently encountered scientific evidence. The reference cited by the Supreme Court in Daubert v. Merrill Dow explains such current developments as hypnotically-refreshed testimony, DNA technologies such as RFLP and PCR, computerized accident reconstruction, securing expert assistance, questioned document examination, and bite mark comparison. 

Weinstein's Evidence Manual

The authority on Federal Evidence Rules saves you valuable research time. Here's hands-on accessibility to expert guidance. Useful on its own as a convenient quick reference guide, or as a companion to the seven volume masterwork. 

Weissenberger's Federal Evidence

Weissenberger's Federal Evidence (FEDEVD) is a comprehensive treatise on the Federal Rules of Evidence that serves as a succinct yet scholarly analysis of the Evidence Rules for judges, practitioners, and students. The authors have focused on exploring the Rules with clarity and conciseness, integrating theory with a practical understanding of how these rules operate in the real world. Among other updates, this work contains a careful examination of the most recent changes in the Federal Rules.

Weissenberger's Ohio Evidence Treatise

Weissenberger's Ohio Evidence Treatise provides a comprehensive, authoritative treatise analyzing the intricacies of Ohio evidence law. Organized according to the Ohio Rules of Evidence, this treatise covers all evidentiary issues, supported by ample footnote citations to current case law. 

Westlaw Edge Secondary Resources

Attorney-Client Privilege in the United States
Everything attorneys and judges need to understand about the scope and limitations of the attorney-client privilege.

Attorney-Client Privilege: State Law

Attorney-Client Privilege: State Law is a Westlaw-only treatise created as a state law companion to the treatise Attorney-Client Privilege in the United States by the late Paul R. Rice and contributing authors, which provides everything attorneys and judges need to understand the scope and limitations of the attorney-client privilege.

Attorney-Corporate Client Privilege

A guide to the attorney-client privilege and work product doctrine as applied to corporations and their employees, providing practical suggestions for protecting corporate communications and for discovering them.

Courtroom Handbook on Federal Evidence

It's important to have the correct answers to your evidentiary questions the first time, every time--especially in court. COURTROOM HANDBOOK ON FEDERAL EVIDENCE, by Goode and Wellborn, is an annual softbound volume that gives you these answers. This convenient compact volume includes extensive tables and a detailed index, making this courtroom resource extremely easy to use.

Cross-Examining Experts in the Behavioral Sciences

This update includes discussions on latest legal issues affecting the admissibility and use of behavioral experts in litigation, including cases involving false confessions, eyewitness testimony, parental alienation, future dangerousness, the adequacy of mental health expert assistance in cases involving mental health issues, and much more. Cases involving inadequate assistance of counsel where counsel failed to explore behavioral science issues are also discussed.

The Daubert Compendium (DRI)

The Daubert Compendium contains documents from the 2011 DRI Daubert Compendium which highlights the opinions of the U.S. courts of appeals and district courts that have discussed Daubert on a substantive basis. It includes citations, factual summaries, key language, and practice tips.

Depositions: Procedure, Strategy & Technique

Destruction Of Evidence 

Destruction of Evidence is a practice manual and an authoritative resource that analyzes issues from the standpoints of civil litigation, criminal litigation, and the laws of professional responsibility.

Discovery Proceedings in Federal Court

Practical guide to the federal discovery rules, their application, and the strategies for using the rules for courtroom advantage.

eDiscovery & Digital Evidence

Written by longstanding experts, eDiscovery & Digital Evidence provides guidance for lawyers and judges on how to preserve, seek, and use digital evidence, and how to determine when forensic or similar specialized technical help is necessary. 

Electronic Discovery & Records & Information Management Guide

This treatise offers comprehensive and periodic treatment of key topics affecting law firms, including organizational, management, and leadership issues. Based on the practical collective experience of Hildebrandt's consultants and their clients over a 30-year period, you will gain access to current thinking on the day-to-day issues of leading and managing modern law firms. You will also learn about emerging trends and what are considered to be the best practices over a wide range of management topics. The 2021-2022 edition includes recent court decisions concerning e-discovery as well as new forms. Among the topics addressed in this edition are the following: Expanded discussion of privacy and portable electronic devices, explanation of discoverability of preservation letters, expanded discussion of possession, custody, or control, discussion of form of production, explanation of service of subpoena, discussion of the constitutional right to privacy, expanded discussion of proportionality, new chapter on social media, emoticons, emoji, and messaging.

Engineering Evidence

New features in the December 2020 update include coverage expert witnesses and testimony, products liability evidence relevant to specific types of products, construction litigation and accidents related to construction and industrial equipment, automobile components and design.

Evidence - Baldwin's Ohio Practice

Evidence, 4th examines the Ohio Rules of Evidence, rule by rule. The text of each rule is presented, followed by expert commentary and discussion of how the rule has been interpreted and applied by the Ohio court. 

Examination of Witnesses

Examination of Witnesses provides an in-depth view of the legal issues involved in direct and cross-examination to help you master the art of witness interrogation.

Excellence in Cross-Examination

Excellence in Cross-Examination provides a novel approach to teaching the necessary tools of effective cross-examination. Written by two masters of the courtroom, F. Lee Bailey and his former law partner, Massachusetts Superior Court Justice Kenneth J. Fishman, Excellence in Cross-Examination is an invaluable book for law students and seasoned trial lawyers alike. 

Expert Witness Checklists 

EXPERT WITNESS CHECKLISTS 3d's addresses the increase in use of expert witnesses in today's courtroom. It will help you understand the roles played by experts and expert witnesses, and teach you how to use them to your advantage through every stage of the litigation process. You'll find sections covering the selection of the expert, pretrial use of experts, expert discovery, and direct and cross examination of experts. You'll learn how cases may be lost through incomplete or misunderstood testimony, and get practice-oriented materials to get the most out of your expert witnesses.

Expert Witness in Civil Trials

The 2021-2022 edition of Expert Witnesses in Civil Trials aims to keep you current on important recent developments in federal and state statutes, rules, and case law pertaining to experts. This treatise is updated and written from the perspective of active practicing trial lawyers, ever watchful of developments that shape best practices for utilizing expert witnesses to create the most compelling trial presentation possible. 

Expert Witnesses: Motor Vehicle & Accident Reconstruction Cases

Expert Witnesses: Motor Vehicle and Accident Reconstruction Cases is a resource that attorneys can turn to when faced with a question or concern about expert witnesses at any stage of a motor vehicle or accident reconstruction case. Each chapter is organized to cover the issues that attorneys encounter with expert witnesses during litigation, including identifying and retaining experts, conducting discovery and challenging opposing experts, and conducting direct and cross-examination of experts at trial.

Eyewitness Identification: Legal & Practical Problems

Eyewitness Testimony: Strategies and Tactics

The literature is clear: jurors afford eyewitness testimony enormous weight, yet it is often inaccurate and unreliable. Eyewitness Testimony: Strategies and Tactics helps you understand the perception process, then pinpoint how and where inadvertent mistakes can occur. It predicts the probable direction of the error and suggests ways in which this information can be effectively brought before a jury. It also provides practical guidance on handling the mistaken eyewitness at every stage of the litigation process.

Federal Civil Trials & Evidence (The Rutter Group Practice Guide)

Federal Evidence (Mueller & Kirkpatrick)

Written by two nationally respected evidence scholars, Federal Evidence, 4th is among the most cited references in judicial opinion. It is a staple of the bench and finds a place in legal libraries in every state of the country.

Even as the Federal Rules of Evidence have been dramatically amended over the years since their adoption in 1975 and interpretive caselaw has exploded, the authors have stayed true to their original mission: to provide a practical tool, both comprehensive and manageable, for litigators and judges.

Federal Rules of Evidence (Treatise)

Sets out each rule with expert analysis and practice commentary by Georgetown law professor and trial lawyer Paul Rothstein, an acknowledged expert on the rules and their practical application in litigation and trial.

Federal Testimonial Privilges

Federal Testimonial Privileges offers comprehensive, authoritative coverage and analysis of a wide range of privilege issues confronting practitioners when they prepare for and conduct all stages of litigation. This update includes many important new cases, plus examination of burgeoning new twists that are being put on existing precedent. Discussion of numerous issues has been augmented. Cases already in the book have been updated here with later history where appropriate. The aim as always is to provide useful practical information in a relatively compact form. The book's numerous headings and other special organizational features should make readily accessible, material responsive to the lawyer-reader's particular legal issue. (Further to that end, authority from both sides of an issue is often presented.)

Handbook of Federal Evidence

This treatise traces the organization of the governing Federal Rules of Evidence. Every citation appearing in reported federal decisions to the Federal Rules during well over 45 years has been thoroughly considered. The resulting interpretive authority with respect to each Rule appears in the form of Commentary following the Rule text. To make the Handbook as self-contained as possible, numerous selected quotations from reported decisions are included in the footnotes.

Hearsay Handbook

Hearsay Handbook clearly and concisely explains the hearsay rule and its exceptions as they are currently applied in courts throughout the United States. His Hearsay Handbook is the only concise and authoritative source to take you through the basic hearsay rule as it is expounded in the Federal Rules of Evidence, all state equivalents, all common law variations and all 40 generally accepted exceptions. Included is discussion of evidence that looks like hearsay but isn't, guidance on objections, impeaching out of court declarants, and Sixth Amendment confrontation.

Jones on Evidence 

This comprehensive evidence reference integrates coverage of the Federal Rules of Evidence and the latest revised Federal Rules of Procedure. Discussion covers multitude of significant decisions and feature expanded coverage of exclusionary law. Includes how-to-do-it outlines overseeing every step and concise statements of each rule, including their variations and state analogs. Also provides guidance on how to apply the rules, and cautions on the methods of presentations found to be inadmissible.

Law of Confessions

McCormick on Evidence

When there are specific questions of evidence for which a jurisdiction has no precedent, this treatise provides both general theories that may be argued to suggest the answer and varying views from other jurisdictions. Like Dean McCormick's original text, the Eighth Edition continues to provide a pragmatic approach to the law of evidence.

Modern Scientific Evidence: The Law & Science of Expert Testimony

Modern Scientific Evidence: The Law and Science of Expert Testimony helps judges and lawyers assess the validity of an expert's scientific methodology, following the scientific evidence issues raised by the Daubert ruling. The text challenges the use of "generally accepted" scientific ideas when ruling on admissibility or managing expert witnesses in state and federal courts, and prepares trial attorneys to explain scientific concepts during admissibility arguments and confidently elicit or challenge expert testimony during trial.

Psychological and Scientific Evidence in Criminal Trials

Psychological & Scientific Evidence in Criminal Trials provides a complete and detailed analysis of its subject matter through all stages of a criminal trial. The text presents a review of states’ decisions on psychological and scientific evidence and includes pointers for defense attorneys and prosecutors.

The Statistics of Discrimination: Using Statistical Evidence in Employment Discrimination Cases

The Statistics of Discrimination: Using Statistical Evidence in Employment Discrimination Cases provides an edge by analyzing and explaining statistical information that practitioners need for any employment discrimination case. The use of statistics is an integral part of employment discrimination litigation.

Testimonial Privileges

This practice-oriented treatise helps attorneys deal with the complex issues of privilege and confidentiality facing them on a daily basis, both in transactional practice and in litigation. Exploring the tension between almost-sacred privileges and the need for truth in the adversarial process, the authors cover all aspects of privilege and privileged communications, including complete coverage of the attorney-client privilege and the work product doctrine; the privileges available for certain relationships, such as spousal, clergy, accountants, doctors, and therapists; executive and governmental privileges; and others.

Trial Objections Handbook

Trial Objections Handbook is the only resource you need to make or defend every possible evidentiary objection. You'll get clear explanations of all 109 objections commonly used in civil and criminal court, as well as each objection's basis in law.