PLEA gratefully acknowledges our primary core funder the Law Foundation of Saskatchewan for their continuing and generous support of our organization.
Legal research can be very complex and will often require the expertise of a trained professional. There are some ways that individuals can research the law themselves, however. Finding answers to legal questions can involve doing research in a number of places such as libraries and online databases.
You can contact many government departments through government websites. For the Government of Canada’s website, visit canada.ca. For the provincial government’s website, visit saskatchewan.ca.
Many government departments and agencies have publications and fact sheets on a wide range of topics. These documents outline rules and regulations, appeal processes and other information. Government websites provide access to legislation and general legal information on relevant topics. They usually provide answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) and links to other related organizations as well.
Public libraries often have general legal information and copies of important legislation. They can be a good beginning point for some understanding of a problem or question. The College of Law at the University of Saskatchewan has a library that is open to the public. The Law Society of Saskatchewan also has public libraries in Regina and Saskatoon.
The Public Legal Education Association of Saskatchewan (PLEA) has plain-language legal information on a variety of topics. This includes family law, estate law and criminal law. PLEA does not give legal advice for specific problems. However, PLEA can help with general legal information, including suggestions on where to turn with a problem. PLEA is a province-wide service.
The main sources of law are written laws, called statutes, and court decisions, called case law. For a legal matter, you will usually need to know both the relevant statutes and case law. This will provide you with a full picture of what the law is. Statutes help us to know what a particular law says. Case law can help us to understand how a particular law applies to a particular situation. Advice from a lawyer is helpful in these situations. This type of thing is what a lawyer is trained to understand.
Saskatchewan statutes are available online at the Publications Centre. Federal statutes are available online at the Justice Laws website.
The federal and provincial governments both create statutes. The type of statutes they create depends on the subject matter. For example, the federal government is responsible for the criminal law. Provincial governments are responsible for healthcare. Municipal governments fall under provincial responsibility. They also create laws called bylaws.
Judges interpret statutes when they decide cases in court. In doing this, they create case law. They often also look to related case law to see what other judges have said. These judicial decisions form part of the law, just as statutes do.
When a judge gives written reasons for a decision in a court case, those reasons are recorded and are available to the public. The Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) has a searchable database of Canadian cases and statutes that is available to the public for free. The Law Society of Saskatchewan's website has a Saskatchewan Cases Database.
There are often books and journal articles dealing with various aspects of the law as well. You can visit the College of Law or Law Society libraries to find these types of resources.
Dockets are formal records that note the proceedings and filings in a particular court case and may also refer to a court schedule. The case names can reveal a bit about the nature of the dispute.
R v John Doe
A criminal case is referenced as “R” versus the defendant. The “R” stands for Regina or Rex, the Latin terms for Queen or King. This symbolizes that it is the state or government that is bringing the charges against an individual defendant on behalf of the people.
John Doe v R
Sometimes, if the defendant in a criminal matter appeals, the “R” appears second. This is because the defendant is the one challenging the government. In Saskatchewan, the “R” always appears first regardless of who appeals.
R v J.D.
Generally, the Youth Criminal Justice Act does not allow for the public release of the names of people under 18 involved in criminal acts. Their initials are used to protect their identity.
John Doe v Jane Smith
If only names of individuals or entities appear, the court case is a civil matter. In this case, the plaintiff’s name appears first followed by the defendant's name.
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