LibGuides: Law: Grey Literature

Grey Literature

Grey literature refers to materials and research produced outside of traditional academic or commercial publishing channels. It exists beyond law textbooks and legal journals, offering a wealth of information not readily available in mainstream legal publications.

Why is Grey Literature Useful for Your Studies?

Real-World Application: Grey literature bridges the gap between legal theory and practice. You'll find court documents, legislative analyses, policy briefs, and reports that illuminate how laws are interpreted and applied in real-world scenarios.
Emerging Legal Issues: Grey literature often captures emerging legal issues and debates before they make their way into academic publications. It provides insights into evolving legal landscapes and new areas of legal scholarship.
Diverse Perspectives: Explore legal issues from various viewpoints, including those of government agencies, advocacy groups, think tanks, and legal practitioners. This can broaden your understanding of complex legal problems and potential solutions.
Comparative Law Insights: Access legislation, legal opinions, and reports from other jurisdictions, which can be invaluable for comparative legal studies and international law research.

Feature	Grey Literature	Academic Sources (Books, Journal Articles)
Publication process	Informal, non-commercial channels	Rigorous peer-review
Availability	Can be harder to find, often through specialised sources	Widely available in law libraries and online databases
Authors	Varied: government agencies, NGOs, law firms, individuals	Primarily legal scholars and academics
Purpose	Diverse: inform, advocate, document, analyse	Disseminate scholarly research, contribute to legal knowledge

Types of Grey Literature You Might Encounter:

Court Documents: Case briefs, pleadings, judgments, and decisions.
Legislative Documents: Bills, committee reports, legislative analyses, and transcripts of legislative debates.
Government Reports: Reports from law commissions, government agencies, and regulatory bodies.
Think Tank Reports: Policy briefs, research papers, and legal analyses from organisations focused on specific areas of law.
NGO Reports: Reports and publications from organisations advocating for specific legal issues or reforms.
Law Firm Publications: White papers, client alerts, and legal analyses produced by law firms.
Conference Papers: Presentations and papers delivered at legal conferences.
Working Papers: Preliminary legal research findings before formal publication.

For a more detailed list of different types of grey literature, vist this link at GreyNet.org

Where to Find Grey Literature:

Government Websites: Explore the websites of relevant government departments and parliamentary websites.
- (e. g., Ministry of Justice, Home Office)
Court Websites: Many courts publish their decisions and judgments online.
- (e.g. The Supreme Court, Court of Justice of the European Union)
NGO Websites: Browse the websites of organisations working in specific areas of law
- (e.g., Liberty, Amnesty International for human rights law).
Professional Associations: Explore professional legal associations.
- (e.g., The Law Society, Bar Council of England and Wales).
Think Tank Websites: Many think tanks specialise in legal issues.
- (e.g., Policy Exchange, Chatham House).
Legal Databases: Some databases include grey literature in their collections.
- (e.g. Westlaw and Lexis)
Specialised Websites: Websites like the British and Irish Legal Information Institute (BAILII) provide access to legal materials.

Google:

In addition to using Google to find sources of grey literature, you can also use the Advanced Search to search within particular sites or domains as well. This is often more effective than using the site's own search engine, plus you can specify types of files (i.e. most reports and publications will be .PDF files) and date updated.

To search within a particular website using Google Advanced Search, put the domain URL in the 'site or domain' field - for example, .gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office. This will search just within the Home Office. Using .howardleague.org will just search within the website of the Howard League for Penal Reform.

(If you're not sure which part of the URL to use, basically take everything after the www, including the full stop.)

Custom Google Searches:

A number of custom Google searches have been helpfully set up by other librarians and/or librarians.

Custom Google Search:

NGO Search (non-governmental organisation)
- (spreadsheet of NGOs included)
IGO Search (international governmental organisation)
- (spreadsheet of IGOs included)