Country-by-Country Guide to Foreign Law Research

This country-by-country guide will help get you started on your foreign law research by connecting you to the best research guides and databases for each country. 

Notes about the guide:

  • Links under Country go to the CIA's World Factbook.
  • The LC Call Number indicates where the print materials for that country are located on the Lower East Side (LES) of the Yale Law Library.
  • The Regional Map icons go to a map of the larger geographical region.
  • LC Country Studies provide social, political, legal and economic information
  • The FLG is the outstanding and comprehensive Foreign Law Guide which will give you the historical, political and legal framework for each country plus the past and current sources of legal information, including where to find legislation, codes and case decisions, print and online. This is a Yale subscription database.
  • HLS refers to Harvard Law School's list of online guides to doing legal research in foreign jurisdictions.
  • WorldLII is a directory of legal information available on the Internet.
  • The Online Guides column includes the most substantial guide available from a library or research site.
  • The World Law Guide is a good resource for current legislation.
  • The Gazettes column features a link to the country's national gazette.
  • Finally, the Other Databases column lists other valuable subscription or open-access databases or websites for that country.
Country
LC Call Number Range
Regional Map LC Country Study FLG HLS Legal Information Institute (WorldLii) Online Guides WorldLaw Guide Gazettes Other Databases
Bahamas (KGL)  FLG HLS

WorldLIICommonLII

LLRX GlobaLex (Caribbean)
LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Official Gazette of the Bahamas (not available online)


Bahrain (KMF)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLII

GlobaLex

LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Official Gazette of Bahrain (not available online)


Bangladesh (KNG)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLIIAsianLIICommonLII

Parliament Heidelberg GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Bangladesh Gazette



Chancery Law Chronicles (Bangladesh Case Law Database, in English) 

Barbados (KGL)  FLG HLS

WorldLIICommonLII

LLRX GlobaLex (Caribbean)
LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Official Gazette of Barbados (not available online)


Belarus (KLF)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLII

LLRX GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

National Register of the Legal Acts of the Republic of Belarus; Веснiк Канстытуцыйнага Суда Рэспублiкi Беларусь / Vestnik Konstitutsionnogo Suda (Gazette published by the Constitutional Court of Belarus) (in Belorusian, Russian, and English)



National Legal Information Center (Russian)

Orders and Decrees of Belarus

Belgium (KJK)  FLG HLS

WorldLII

LLRX GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Belgisch staatsblad = Moniteur belge



Juridat French Dutch

Westlaw (Patents & Trademarks)

Juricaf

N-Lex

Belize (KGA)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLIICommonLII

GlobaLex (Caribbean) LOC

WorldLaw Guide




Latin Laws -- Bibilioteca Legal Latinoamericana

Benin (KQJ)  FLG HLS

WorldLII Droit Afrique

GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Journal officiel de la republique populalaire du Benin (not available online)



Juricaf

Bermuda (KDZ) (British Overseas Territory)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLII CommonLII

Northwestern LLRX (the Caribbean) GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

The Bermuda Official Gazette (not available online)



LexisNexis

LexMundi (A Lawyer's Guide to bermuda, pdf)

Law And Tax

Bhutan (KNH)  CS  HLS

WorldLIIAsianLII

GlobaLex

LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Bhutan Government Gazette (not available online)


Bolivia (KHC)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLII

Yale DLSA
LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Gaceta judicial de Bolivia
Boletin del Ministerio de relaciones exteriores
Boletin informativo del Ministerio de relaciones exteriores
Boletin Oficial = Anuario administrativo
Gaceta Oficial de Bolivia



Latin Laws -- Biblioteca Legal Latinoamericana

Bosnia and Herzegovina (KKZ)  FLG HLS

WorldLII

GlobaLexLOC

WorldLaw Guide

Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (not available online)



OHR (Laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina, English)

Zakoni (Legislation Database, Bosnian)

Sud (Courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian)

Botswana (KQK)  FLG HLS

WorldLIICommonLIISAFLII

NorthwesternGlobaLexLOC

WorldLaw Guide

Botswana Government Gazette (not available online)



Laws of Botswana

Brazil (KHD)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLII

Yale DLSA
Northwestern

LLRX

GlobaLEX

LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Diario Oficial

Brazil Institute (portal to Brazil, English)Lexis (International Arbitration)
Westlaw (Regulations)

Latin Laws -- Biblioteca Legal Latinoamericana


Portal LexML Brazil

LC Translation of National Legislation into English
Brunei Darussalam (KNK)  FLG HLS

WorldLIIAsianLIICommonLII

LOC

WorldLaw Guide

The Brunei Government Gazette



Lexis (Case Law & International Arbitration)

Bulgaria (KJM)  CS FLG HLS

WorldLII

GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Държавен вестник



Bulgarian Institute for Legal Development Bulgarian and English

Juricaf

N-Lex

Burkina Faso (KQT)  FLG HLS

WorldLII  Droit Afrique

GlobaLex LOC

WorldLaw Guide

Journal Officiel



Juricaf

Burundi (KQV)  FLG HLS

WorldLIIDroit Afrique

GlobaLexLOC

WorldLaw Guide

Bulletin Officiel du Burundi (not available online)



Juricaf

 

Stephanie Davidson created the original version of this guide for a clinic several years ago. It has since been modified to suit general foreign law research. Thanks to Zhang Yue, YC '10 and Anna Ershova, YC '11 for their assistance in updating this guide.

Questions/Comments