Keeping Up With Legal Matters

AlloyNavigator Updated: 2025-08-04

Being up to date on legal matters is essential to being a successful lawyer. There are other tactics that can be used, like reading reliable legal news sources, downloading legal podcasts or blogs, and dedicating time specifically for research.
Detailed coverage of Supreme Court merits cases can be found on SCOTUSblog. Articles about case outcomes, verdicts, and legal events are also included.

1. Journals of Law

When discussing new legal concerns, legal publications and journals are frequently the first secondary source to discuss them. They can also include references to original sources and identify modifications made to the law. Numerous legal magazines, a selection of lone law reviews and journals, and numerous databases with articles from various sources are all available in the library.
The Index to Legal Periodicals (Law Library 4th Fl, K33.I52) and the Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals (Law Library 4th F) are two of the most helpful indices for legal magazines, newsletters, and journals. Additionally, the Law Library keeps bound volumes of the Index to United States Law Review Publications and the Current Law Index.
Numerous individual legal reviews and journal volumes on microfilm or microfiche are also available in the library. They are on the second floor, in the Microforms Room. By title, the titles are listed alphabetically. To find the full, accurate title of a specific article, use the index.

2. Online journals

Online diaries that incorporate text with digital photos, videos, or music are called blogs. They are often updated, which raises their search engine ranking. There are blogs that are collaborative and have posts written by several people.
Professional copywriters start blogs to establish their profile and draw business; private bloggers use them to share their thoughts and experiences. In order to improve client loyalty and brand recognition, businesses also create their own corporate blogs.
Usually, a blog's contents are presented in reverse chronological order, starting with the most recent entry. The habit of including links to other websites in postings may have originated with bloggers, and some of them use social networking sites as a means of content promotion. A photoblog is a blog that includes text and digital photographs, and a vlog is a blog that only posts videos. Additionally, there are blogs that post brief entries known as microblogging, as well as those that include scanned documents or typecasts created on a typewriter.

3. Audiobooks

Podcasts are online audio programs that you may stream or download to listen to on your tablet, phone, or computer. The majority of them cover a wide range of topics and are usually free.
Though some are produced by businesses or news organizations, most podcasts are made by one person. Podcasts are becoming a more popular tool for businesses to advertise their brands and reach new consumers. Slack presents tales from the workplace, Lyft highlights its drivers in "Pick Me Up," and Dieter Zetsche, the CEO of Daimler, reveals his personal experience in "HeadLights."
While radio broadcasts live and on a set timetable, most podcasts are pre-recorded and available for download whenever they're needed. A podcast's content might range from being fully improvised to being extremely structured. The majority of podcasts are published in series, with a distinct topic covered in each episode. Episode lengths can also differ. Some are an hour or longer, and some are as brief as one minute.

4. Bulletins

Newsletters are a useful tool for informing clients, but the information they contain must be in line with the objectives that your company has set forth. Every newsletter you send out should have clear, quantifiable goals, regardless of whether your goal is to attract more clients, develop brand awareness, or establish yourself as an authority in your industry.
For example, include a section discussing your involvement in various activities if you want to showcase the work your firm does with members of the local community. This type of material demonstrates your company's dedication to the field and can act as a recommendation that improves your reputation.
You can also distribute legal news and advice through your newsletter. For instance, make an attorney FAQ to publish in your newsletter if you've seen that clients or prospects frequently ask the same questions. Next, request that readers opt-in to receive future marketing communications in order to access this resource, and encourage them to share it on social media.