Research Guides: Researching U.S. Industries: Legal Issues

Search Legal & Regulatory Issues

The legal and regulatory climate in which an industry operates can be very complex. Businesses are subject to federal, state, local and agency laws and regulations. The sources listed below provide a general collection of legal and regulatory resources available for industry research. However, many different agencies are responsible for regulating industries. You should also be sure to check the agencies responsible for regulating your industry for any additional legal or regulatory issues that may be of interest.

Select Resources

American Law Reports Provides articles with analysis of specific legal issues for most industries. The reports consist of discussions of cases (with case references) about specific issues.
Consumer Products Safety Commission This site lists the CPSC's regulations, laws & information for manufacturers, importers, distributors & retailers, and provides a database of product recalls. See the business section to find regulations. You can also search for recalls here.
Govinfo Provides access to the U.S. Code, Federal Register and other government publications.

Lexis+ This link opens in a new window Lexis Advance is a legal database restricted to law faculty, staff and students.

MERCATUS Center Housed at George Mason University, the Center publishes in depth studies of many proposed regulations.
Nexis Uni Contains full text news, business and legal information. Use the Legal tab to find legal cases or law review articles.
PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) Provides access to federal district, appellate and bankruptcy cases. This service is available to UC LAW students and faculty. Please see a reference librarian for assistance with this service.
OSHA Inspections Provides tools which locate OSHA inspections conducted within a particular establishment or industry group.
Regulations.Gov Allows searching across many agencies for proposed regulations accepting comments from the public and provides case dockets from many agencies.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) EDGAR Search Many legal issues are discussed in annual corporate reports of the companies in the industry, which provide general industry information as well as specific company information. They also identify government regulations affecting the industry and often give market share information. Look up reports from several companies in the industry to locate reoccurring issues.
U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Covers federal cases in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee.
U.S. Food & Drug Administration Docket System The official repository for the administrative proceeding and rule-making documents for the FDA.

Westlaw Westlaw is a legal database restricted to law faculty, staff and students.