A treaty is a written document on a legal topic, often a secondary source book with primary source references. Legal professionals and students use them to familiarize themselves with a specific area of law and find more information on a particular topic. They are generally found in law libraries and can cover broad or specific topics.
A treaty is a written document formally focusing on a legal topic. Normally, it is a large secondary source book on a certain topic. These books refer to primary sources appropriate for their subjects. There are no limitations to what can be called a treaty in legal terms; some case study books, parts of a larger series, and textbooks are all called treatises.
Legal professionals new to a new area of law might refer to one of these books to familiarize themselves with a specific area of law. The position paper provides the practitioner with the information necessary to acquire a basic understanding of a particular area of law. The practitioner also uses the treatise as a tool to assist in reaching detailed information which can be used as a source by the practitioner.
Law students might use a treatise as an additional source to help them find more information on a particular topic. Legal textbooks vary in the details they provide on each topic. Sometimes it is necessary for a law student to look for secondary materials to complete the picture. These types of treatises could be called horn books.
Students can purchase these secondary materials along with their textbooks. First-year law students are likely to purchase a general treatise that includes basic legal definitions and explanations. These books are helpful for students as they learn new vocabulary, because the law includes a large number of words and phrases not used in regular conversation.
Most legal treatises are generally found in law libraries. This is one of the cases where the individual should search for the physical book as opposed to using an online tool. Many forms of legal research are hosted in online forums, but most treaties are limited to book format. The search for the most appropriate treatise begins in the law library’s cataloging system.
A legal treatise can cover a broad topic such as contract law or it could focus on a very particular topic such as a specific law. When you are familiarizing yourself with an area of law, you can start with the book that covers the broad topic and then work towards more detail in another book. Each should have primary source references that allow one to arrive at a particular law in the correct jurisdiction to cite in one’s case.
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