Law Resources

You do not need a library card or a reservation on the Internet computers for access to government websites.  All government websites are accessible from any Catalog Computer in all Spokane City Libraries.

Basic Rights

Spokane City Charter explains the organization and powers of the city government.

 Spokane County Government

Washington State Constitution on our Washington State Law Resources page.  

United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights (the first 10 Amendments) and Constitutional Amendment numbers 11-27 on the  National Archives website.

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Common Legal Questions

Washington Law Help provides guidance for common legal questions and Forms for representing yourself in court, Washington State pattern forms, and resources in many languages;  Links to other states, Guides to free legal services providers in your locale, and a Glossary of legal terms. 

LawforWA.org:  also offers advice on how to prevent and solve common legal problems. 

Legal Voice  a Washington state organization that publishes legal Tools to Help You, including Self Help legal rights education materials for the general public about family law, civil rights, civil procedures, and other consumer subjects.

The King County Law Library :  see their Research Links, including "Public Sleuthing", and their Research Guides, including  "Washington Probate"

Several Law Libraries have either chat or email reference service for the public:
University of Washington Gallagher Law Library – http://lib.law.washington.edu/questions.html 
Washington State Law Library – http://www.courts.wa.gov/library/?fa=library.ask

Washington Bankruptcy Law will help explain the federal bankruptcy process and issues as they pertain to Washington residents.

Criminal Law:  To find the penalties for certain crimes in Washington State, look in Title 9 and Title 9a of the RCW.

Martindale-Hubble Law Directory online provides a Lawyer Locator to find the credentials of more than one million lawyers and firms.   Martindale-Hubble and LexisNexis also sponsor Attorneys.com
Locating Lawyers Online  from LLRX.com
 Avvo.com  a website that rates and profiles lawyers, and helps you research legal advice.

Washington State Attorney General’s site offers this site on Consumer Issues.

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Law on the Internet

Here are some good starting points when looking for legal information on the Internet.

ABA directory of programs providing free civil legal services to the poor, a directory of Pro Bono Programs by state.

Guide to Law Online from the Library of Congress .

LegalWA.org  includes links to:
•    Washington State Supreme and Appellate Court Decisions:   recent decisions, and the full text of Washington Reports (1889 to 1939) and Territory Reports (1854 to 1889).
•    Revised Code of Washington and Washington Administrative Code
•    Washington State County and City Municipal Codes

Legal Information Institute from the Cornell Law School is a major provider of public legal information.

National Consumer Law Center:  Advocates for low-income consumer issues and provides basic information on the most critical consumer issues.

National Indian Law Library is a public law library devoted to federal Indian and tribal law.

National Senior Citizens Law Center provides consumer information on assisted living and Medicare Part D.

National Women's Law Center focuses on major concerns of women and girls, including family economic security, education, employment opportunities, and health.

 Read Nolo Books Online Free  and Free Legal Articles  from Nolo.com; this library also has many of these books available for check out.

Washington State Law Library  provides a webpage of useful starting places for Legal Research on the Internet .  

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