Birmingham Public Library - Virtual Library - Subject Resources - Legal Self Help
Search Subject Resources
Subject Resource Pages
General Database Links
Subjects last updated on Jul. 21, 2023.
Legal Self Help RSS
Guide Sections
Guide Information
Last Updated
Jul. 14, 2022
Comments
Internet Websites
Lawyer Directories
In 2010 the Alabama State Bar partnered with Local Lawyers to provide this legal website, AlabamaLawyers.org, for all Alabama State Bar Members, as a Member Benefit. The lawyer directory serves as a “one stop shop” for the public to help them find and compare local lawyers.
Avvo's Find a Lawyer database allows users to search for attorneys throughout the United States by name, practice area, and location.
Birmingham Lawyers website provides legal consumers a directory and content-rich profile-based website. Here legal consumers can find the right lawyer and legal help by problem/need, area of practice, location or name of lawyer or law firm. It is a one stop comparison shop for Birmingham Lawyers.
The FindLaw Lawyer Directory, features detailed profiles of attorneys from across the United States. To get started use the search box or click on a city, state, or legal issue. If you haven't hired an attorney before, you may want to consult FindLaw's Guide to Hiring a Lawyer and Guide to the U.S. Legal System.
The Justia Lawyer Directory provides lawyer, legal aid & services profiles by practice area and location. Whatever your legal issue, our lawyer directory will simplify researching, comparing, and contacting attorneys that best fit your legal needs in your city, county or state
Martindale-Hubbell has evolved into a leading global network of over one million lawyers and a portfolio of websites and tools designed to connect lawyers and buyers of legal services. The Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™ and Martindale-Hubbell® Client Review Ratings are recognized as the gold standard in attorney ratings. Lawyers seeking to refer a client, as well as individuals researching lawyers for their own legal needs, use these ratings and reviews to identify, evaluate and select the most appropriate lawyer for their legal issue. The searchable directory contains listings for more than one millon lawyers and law firms.
With over 50 web properties, the Nolo Network is one of the web's largest libraries of consumer-friendly legal information – all available for free. The Nolo lawyer directory can help you connect with a short list of attorneys who will compete for your business. Or you can use the directory to learn more about individual lawyers and then connect with the ones you choose.
Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The patented selection process includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations. The Super Lawyers directory features detailed profiles of attorneys across the United States who exhibit excellence in their practice. The directory can be searched by lawyer name, lawyer's area of practice, or law firm name.
Law Dictionaries
FindLaw.com contains a wealth of free, up-to-date, and easily understandable legal information and tools. The FindLaw Legal Dictionary offers free access to definitions of legal terms. Users can search for a definition or browse through legal glossaries.
Law.com is the industry-leading media platform powering over 18 online U.S. national and regional award-winning legal publications that deliver news, rankings, reports, and strategy all designed with one purpose in mind: to give you the competitive intelligence to prepare for today and anticipate opportunities for future success.
Search more than 10,000 legal words and phrases for clear definitions written in plain language. An easy-to-understand guide to the language of law from the dictionary experts at Merriam-Webster.
Find plain-English definitions for legal terms by browsing Nolo's Plain-English Law Dictionary.
Wex is a free legal dictionary and encyclopedia sponsored and hosted by the Legal Information Institute at the Cornell University Law School. Wex entries are collaboratively created and edited by legal experts.
Legal Forms
The website of the Alabama Administrative Office of Courts (AOC) links to forms that have been approved for use in the state courts.
Description
Provides a wide selection of Alabama legal forms across the most popular legal areas. Includes real estate contracts, wills, pre-marital agreements, bankruptcy, divorce, landlord tenant and many others. Also included is a comprehensive attorney state directory and a dictionary of legal definitions explained in laymen's language. Also, via https://subscriptions.uslegalforms.com/gale/forms.html
Availability
Requires a JCLC card.
Tutorials
Product Overview  HTML document
Video Tutorial  Video tutorial by BPL on YouTube (length 4:32)
This webpage contains “Do It Yourself Forms” from the Alabama State Bar. Instructions and forms are available in both English and Spanish.
The Business Entity Division of the Alabama Secretary of State's Office provides downloadale forms that can be used for registering all types of business entities in that state, both for profit and nonprofit.
Legal Assistance
The Alabama Access to Justice Commission was created by order of the Supreme Court of Alabama in April 2007 to serve as a coordinating entity for the legally underserved, the legal community, social-service providers and the private and public sectors. The Commission is comprised of citizens representing the legal profession, educational administration, religious community, military, business sector, advocacy groups representing low-income Alabamians and volunteers.
Links to consumer affairs, victim assistance and programs available through or in partnership with the Attorney General's Office.
Alabama Legal Help is a website produced by Legal Services Alabama. It contains general information about a variety of legal issues. Included on the site is a lawyer directory and access to legal forms.
The Alabama State Bar provides information, support and services to the public through various means. As a member of the public, you have access to information on a multitude of legal subjects through our collection of brochures, ways to find a lawyer through the bar and other programs around the state that assist Alabamians with legal issues that may arise.
Links to information about legal aid and pro bono programs, including other programs for those who are elderly, disabled, members of the military, or with other special needs.
The Lawyer Referral Service is a public service provided by the Birmingham Bar Association. Please note that the Lawyer Referral Service will provide you with the name of an attorney for NO CHARGE. However, participating attorneys charge fees for their services. The Lawyer Referral Service maintains a list of pre-screened and experienced lawyers, and connects potential clients to attorneys with experience in all areas of the law.
Legal Services Alabama (LSA) has eight offices and a centralized Call Center, working together to fulfill its mission statement: To serve low-income people by providing civil legal aid and by promoting collaboration to find solutions to problems of poverty. These offices are located in Anniston/Gadsden, Birmingham, Dothan, Huntsville, Mobile, Montgomery, Selma and Tuscaloosa. LSA offices handle civil cases only. Each office has lawyers licensed to practice in Alabama and other staff who know how to help low-income people resolve their legal problems.
The mission of the Magic City Legal Center is to provide affirmation through legal advocacy for LGBTQ communities and community members impacted by HIV.​ In addition to legal advocacy, staff members will offer LGBTQ education and training services across a variety of legal issues through community outreach.
The goal of the Alabama Legal Assistance Program, administered locally by the United Way Area Agency on Aging, is to improve the quality and quantity of legal assistance available to vulnerable older individuals, and thereby protect their autonomy, dignity and independence. The program assists seniors by helping them understand their rights; exercise choice; meet essential needs of income, shelter, health care and nutrition; and maintain their rights promised and protected by law.
Volunteer Lawyers Birmingham (VLB) is a corps of attorney volunteers coordinated by a professional staff driven to improve access to justice. VLB is the only non-profit in the state of Alabama that provides immediate access to free high-quality attorneys so low-income families can obtain critically needed legal services.
Constitutions, Statutes, and Codes - Birmingham
The General Code of the City of Birmingham, Alabama is available in electronic format to be viewed and searched on the Municode website.
Constitutions, Statutes, and Codes - Alabama
The Alabama Administrative Code is a compilation of the rules of all state agencies covered by the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act. The Code is compiled by agency generally in alphabetical order by agency name and includes a table of contents for each agency's rules.
The Code of Alabama is available in electronic form on the website of the Alabama Legislature. Users can view individual titles of the code or they search the entire code using keywords and phrases.
The Constitution of Alabama is available in electronic form on the Alabama Legislature's website. Users can view individual sections and amendments to the constitution or they can search the entire constitution using keywords and phrases.
The website of the Alabama Secretary of State's Office includes links to acts adopted by the Alabama State Legislature from 1818 to the present. The site also includes links to the State of Alabama Local Laws Index, which allows users to search local laws.
Constitutions, Statutes, and Codes - United States
The National Archives website includes images of the Constitution of the United States in its original format
The National Archives website includes a transcription of the Constitution as it was inscribed by Jacob Shallus on parchment. The spelling and punctuation reflect the original document.
The Avalon Project is a collection of digital documents relevant to the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government. It was created and is maintained by the staff of the Goldman Law Library at Yale University. Included in the collection is the text of the United State Constitution and its amendments. For each amendment, dates are provided for its passage by Congress and its ratification by the states.
The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation ("Constitution Annotated" or "CONAN") provides a legal analysis and interpretation of the United States Constitution based on a comprehensive review of Supreme Court case law and, where relevant, historical practices that have defined the text of the Constitution. This regularly updated resource is written in "plain English" and useful for a wide audience: from constitutional scholars to those just beginning to learn about the nation's most important legal document.
The United States Code is a consolidation and codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States. It is prepared by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the United States House of Representatives.
The Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (e-CFR) is a currently updated version of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). It is not an official legal edition of the CFR. The e-CFR is an editorial compilation of CFR material and Federal Register amendments produced by the National Archives and Records Administration's Office of the Federal Register (OFR) and the Government Publishing Office. The OFR updates the material in the e-CFR on a daily basis.
Each day Federal agencies publish documents in the Federal Register, including proposed rules, final rules, public notices, and Presidential actions. The print-based, official format of the Federal Register displays information in a dense format (3-column PDF) that makes it difficult to read and to process regulatory data in meaningful and innovative ways. This unofficial, HTML (XML-based) format of the Federal Register on FederalRegister.gov overcomes the technical limitations of the official PDF format and demonstrates how an alternate format can effectively convey regulatory information to the public.
Case Law Finders
Justia offers cases from the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, and U.S. District Courts. Additionally, users will find links to many state supreme court and intermediate court of appeal cases. Information for the state of Alabama includes Supreme Court of Alabama decisions, Alabama Court of Civil Appeals decisions, and Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals decisions.
FindLaw has a database of case law from the U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, as well as several state courts. The state courts from Alabama that are included in the database are the supreme court, court of civil appeals, and the court of criminal appeals.
Google Scholar has an extensive database of case law that allows users to perform keyword searches of opinions delivered by the U.S. Supreme Court, federal district courts, state supreme courts, and state appellate courts.l
Legal Information Resources
Are you facing a legal issue, or just looking for more information about a specific legal topic? FindLaw's Learn About the Law section is the perfect starting point. Learn About the Law features informational articles about a wide variety of legal topics, as well as specific information about subjects such as how to hire an attorney and understanding your state's unique laws.
FindLaw's Alabama Law Section contains user-friendly summaries of Alabama laws as well as citations or links to relevant sections of Alabama's statutes.
The Nolo website includes thousands of free articles on everyday legal topics. Nolo is committed to insuring that the articles are accurate, up to date, and written in plain English.
Justia’s legal guides provide an overview of various areas of the law in plain English to help you learn in more detail about a range of legal concepts and areas including divorce, estate planning, employment, criminal law and much more. Delve into the various sub-areas of our main topics to get a better understanding of key legal issues that arise within a specific legal practice area and learn how they can relate to each other.
Page Last Modified: 4/4/2024 12:12 PM