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Rutgers University Libraries

Employment and Labor Law: Finding Laws

Guide to library resources in the field of employment and labor law.

Online Sources for Locating the Text of Laws


Finding Federal and State Laws Online

Before you begin searching for a law, it is important to consider the type of law you are looking for.  Questions to consider include:

1.  Is it a federal law or a state law?

2.  Is it a statute or a regulation?

3.  Is it a current law, or are you looking for the original text of a law that has been ammended or repealed?

EXAMPLE SEARCH:  Finding the Text of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. 

It might be necessary to do some online searching to answer the questions above.  Through a google search I found that the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 was enacted by Congress, so it is a federal law.  Laws created by legislatures are called statutes, while regulations are passed by administrative agencies such as the EPA.  Now that I know I am looking for a federal statute, and I want the current the legislation, it can be found by clicking on the link for the US Code located in the "Federal Statutes" box on this screne.  Many laws can also be found through the WestLaw and THOMAS databases (links are located in the box above). 

Federal Statutes

Federal Statutes- laws passed by the US Congress

Federal Regulatory Laws

Federal Regulatory Law is created and enforced by administrative agencies of the Federal government (ex: Department of Labor, FDIC, EPA). 

New Jersey Statutes

New Jersey Statutes- laws passed by the New Jersey State legislature

New Jersey Regulatory Laws

New Jersey Regulatory Laws are created by administrative agencies to explain how statutes will be enforced. 
