Law databases include primary (legislation and case law) and secondary (dictionary, encyclopaedia, book and journal) sources of legal information.
This page outlines the key law databases for United Kingdom law. There are additional pages for European Union and International law.
Database A-Z
Complete list of all law databases at University of Warwick library.
Lexis+ UK
A legal research and practical guidance database from Lexis Nexis, including primary and secondary sources of legal information, and current awareness services. Key features of the database include:
Westlaw UK
A legal research database from Thomson Reuters, including primary and secondary sources of legal information, and current awareness services. Key features of the database include:
Legislation is the laws created by Parliament, and it includes Statutes or Acts of Parliament, and Statutory Instruments. Printed legislation including Statutes at Large, Acts and Ordinances of the Interregnum, Law Reports Statutes, Public General Acts and Measures and Current Law Statutes Annotated are available from shelf mark 41 P 22 on the 4th floor of the library.
Lexis+ UK and Westlaw UK
The best legislation databases are Lexis+ UK and Westlaw Edge UK. Both contain the full amended and consolidated text of in-force Statutes and Statutory Instruments. Both include commencement information, annotated notes and citation services, with cross-references to related information.
Legislation.Gov.UK
The official open access website of UK legislation from 1267 to the current day from The National Archives. Includes Statutes and Statutory Instruments from England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Public Information Online
Includes full-text Public General Acts from 1900 to the current day and a Pepper v Hart search tool which enables discovery of related parliamentary papers.
Statutes of the Realm
Historical collection of the Acts of Parliament of England from 1215 to 1714 available via HeinOnline.
Acts and Ordinances of the Interregnum
Historical collection of legislation passed during the Interregnum from 1642 to 1660 available via British History Online.
Case law is the laws created by Courts, and the decisions of the courts are published as law reports. Printed law reports including the English Reports, The Law Reports, Weekly Law Reports, Current Law Yearbook and The Digest are available from shelf mark 41 R 85 on the 4th floor of the library.
Lexis+ UK and Westlaw UK
The best case law databases are Lexis+ UK and Westlaw Edge UK. Both contain case law indexes and citation services (including judicial history and treatment) and cross-references to related information. Both include the The Law Reports and English Reports, alongside specialist law reports and judgments.
British and Irish Legal Information Institute
BAILII (Bailey) is an open access law database which includes full-text primary and secondary sources of legal information. It is best known for coverage of case law, including decisions of the Privy Council, Supreme Court, House of Lords, Court of Appeal and Tribunals. It also includes case law from Jersey and St Helena, and Law Commission reports.
Find Case Law
The new official open access website of UK case law from The National Archives. Includes decisions from Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, England and Wales High Court and Upper Tribunals from 2003 to the current day.
Proceedings of the Old Bailey Online
Historical reports of 197,745 criminal trials held at The Old Bailey, London's central criminal court, from 1674 to 1913.
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