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OBHR 4P96: Labour Arbitration

A guide to information sources on Labour Arbitration in Canada

Introduction to legal research

According to Tjaden (2010), conducting effective legal research requires an understanding of standard legal research techniques as well as more general information literacy skills including:

  • recognizing when information is needed,
  • the ability to locate and evaluate legal and non-legal information,
  • and understanding the social, cultural, and philosophical impact of information.

Source: Tjaden, T. (2010). Legal research & writing, 3rd edition. Toronto: Irwin Law.

The FILAC Approach (a Legal Research Process)

FILAC is a five-step methodical approach to legal research

  1. Facts - identify the relevant facts.
  2. Issues - identify the relevant issues to be researched.
  3. Law - find the relevant law.
    • Start with secondary sources to get an overview of applicable law, and then focus your research on primary sources (legislation and case law). 
  4. Analysis/Applications - apply the relevant law to the facts and analyze the issue from multiple viewpoints. 
  5. Conclusion / Communication - answer the issues raised and communicate your findings.

 

Source: Maureen Fitzgerald (as cited in Tjaden, 2010).