The Salt Lake City's website provides a wealth of resources for SLC residents, including information about the city justice court, city services like garbage pickup or snow removal, and city council news. If you're interested in some historic SLC government resources, be sure to visit the SLC Infobase.

This website has a variety of historic Salt Lake City government information, including city council meeting minutes (1982-Present), resolutions (2000-Present), and ordinances from 1900-Present.

More information about accessing Salt Lake City government records can be found on the Salt Lake City Recorder's Office website.

The Utah Office of the Property Rights Ombudsman helps resolve property rights disputes and helps citizens understand land use and property rights laws. Their website has recently been redesigned. From the new home page you can find quick links to popular links, including:

• laws about land use and eminent domain,
• how to request mediation or arbitration from the office, and
• advisory opinions, which are legal analyses of land use questions, prepared by attorneys, that explore how a question might be decided by a court.
  ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2013/02/office_of_property_rights_ombu.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2013/02/office_of_property_rights_ombu.html Legal Research Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:15:29 -0700 A new free app has been developed to help you track the Utah State Legislature's bills and resolutions that are proposed and passed during legislative sessions. It's called Watch Utah Legislature Bills, and it's compatible with both Apple and Android mobile devices.

  With this app, you can search for and subscribe to bills and receive notifications when any status change has occurred, whether it passed a committee, was read, or received a vote.

  You can download this app from iTunes or from Google Play.

  ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2013/02/new_utah_legislature_app_1.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2013/02/new_utah_legislature_app_1.html Utah State Government Tue, 19 Feb 2013 08:05:39 -0700 The University of Utah's S.J. Quinney School of Law has a new publication: Utah OnLaw, a online supplement to the Utah Law Review. You can access each article's abstract and full text for free. If you are interested in submitting an article for this publication, create an account and follow the author instructions.

  See our Law Reviews Online post for more information on Utah law school publications that are available online.

  ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2013/02/utah_onlaw.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2013/02/utah_onlaw.html Legal Research Thu, 07 Feb 2013 15:55:56 -0700 The U.S. Supreme Court often reviews high-profile cases. This term, one of these cases involves Myriad Genetics, a company based in Salt Lake City. The case is Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics, Inc., and the Supreme Court granted certiorari to the issue of whether human genes are patentable.

  If you would like to research this case, you can read the filings in this case on SCOTUSblog, a comprehensive blog with news and information about U. S. Supreme court cases. Also, you can find several articles related to the science behind the dispute using PubMedCentral, a full-text archive of scientific literature at the U.S. National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine.

  ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/12/us_supreme_court_case_involvin_1.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/12/us_supreme_court_case_involvin_1.html Legal Research Fri, 14 Dec 2012 11:07:18 -0700 In celebration of Halloween, this year we're featuring recent appellate cases dealing with all things spooky and scary:
  • A Utah prisoner named Robert Rice filed for extroardinary relief, claiming the prison acted in violation of his right to practice his religion by failing to provide a "vampire" diet. Rice v. Department of Corrections, 2002 UT App 352.
    
  • In Illinois, an officer was sued for violating first and fourth amendment rights when responding to a complaint from neighbors disputing over Halloween yard decorations etched with insults. Purtell v. Mason, 527 F.3d 615.
  • In Louisiana, a customer who visited a haunted corn maze sued the owner and owner's insurer after she fell and broke her leg when she was approached by an actor with a chainsaw. Durmon v. Billings, 873 So.2d 872.

  Have a happy and safe Halloween!

  ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/10/scary_court_cases_1.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/10/scary_court_cases_1.html Legal Research Wed, 31 Oct 2012 09:49:12 -0700 The Library of Congress recently launched a new website for federal legislation research:: Congress.Gov. The site currently has information about legislation from 2001 to present. The website will eventually replace THOMAS, the current legislative resource from the Library of Congress.

  Congress.Gov has several improved search and design features, including:

  • the ability to narrow search results by year, legislation type, and subject.
  • lists of bills introduced and laws enacted in the current congress.
  • an easy to read overview of each law's status.

  The site also has an extensive overview of the legislative process, featuring videos and transcripts.
  

  ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/09/congressgov_1.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/09/congressgov_1.html Legal Research Fri, 21 Sep 2012 09:36:45 -0700 Today marks Constitution Day, which commemorates the signing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787. This year marks the 225th anniversary this historic event occurred.

  To learn more about the U.S. Constitution, see the following links:

  • The National Archives' online exhibit, The Charters of Freedom features high resolution images of the original U.S. Constitution.
  • The Constitution of the United States of America: Analysis and Interpretation. This book is also available to browse at the law library.
  • If you're a Utah teacher, see the Constitution Day resources available from the Utah Education Network, which features activities and lesson plans by grade level.
    ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/09/us_constitution_resources.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/09/us_constitution_resources.html Federal Government Mon, 17 Sep 2012 10:45:46 -0700 A few months we blogged about the availability of the Utah Bar Journal on your mobile device. You can also download an app for the Utah Trial Journal. The Utah Trial Journal is a quarterly publication of the Utah Association for Justice, an association of trial attorneys in Utah . Each issue features articles about litigation techniques, advocacy, and summaries of cases related to product liability, workers' compensation, health care, and other issues relating to individual rights.

    If you don't have a mobile device, you can read the Utah Trial Journal by visiting the law library.

    ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/08/utah_trial_journal_app_availab.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/08/utah_trial_journal_app_availab.html Legal Research Wed, 29 Aug 2012 08:01:59 -0700 The Utah State Archives has recently digitized a court case index for Third District Court filings from the state's territorial period. The alphabetical index includes the names of plaintiffs and defendants for civil cases from 1871 to 1896 and for criminal cases from 1871-1882. The index can be searched or browsed. When on a page, there are zoom options or you can download or print the page.

    This new resource joins several other name indexes available from the Utah State Archives, including historic civil and probate cases from several Utah counties and other government records.

    ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/08/territorial_court_case_index_a_1.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/08/territorial_court_case_index_a_1.html Utah State Courts Thu, 09 Aug 2012 07:52:58 -0700 Looking for an older Utah Law Review or BYU Law Review article for your legal research? You can visit the law library to browse our print law journal collection or use HeinOnline, a legal database that allows you to view and search over 1,000 law journal titles, including titles from the University of Utah and Brigham Young University.

    If you can't make it to the law library in person, there are several ways online to access full text law journals published by both universities:

    1. The University of Utah's E-Publications database provides access to the current and prior issues (back to 2007) of Utah law journals.
    2. The J. Willard Marriott Library's Digital Publications database provides access to all prior issues of Utah law journals. You can search for articles using keywords and phrases. Or, try the advance search feature and search using the title field to locate all issues of a law journal.
    3. BYU's Publications Page provides links to law journals along with full text access to current and all prior issues of each title.
       ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/08/utah_law_review_online.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/08/utah_law_review_online.html Legal Research Thu, 02 Aug 2012 09:19:00 -0700 Do you own a tablet like the iPad or an ebook reader like the Amazon Kindle? The Utah State Bar has recently announced that the Utah Bar Journal is now available in an ebook format for wireless devices. It displays each issue as a full-color PDF document. Visit the app store or market on your mobile device and search for "Utah Bar Journal." New issues of the bar journal will be downloaded to your Newsstand app.

       If you don't have a smartphone or tablet, you can still access current and previous issues of the Utah Bar Journal on the bar's website.

       ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/05/utah_bar_journal_for_mobile_de_1.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/05/utah_bar_journal_for_mobile_de_1.html Legal Research Tue, 15 May 2012 10:11:59 -0700 The U.S. Government Printing Office has partnered with the Library of Congress to create a new iPad app to access the Congressional Record. The iPad app lets you run keyword searches, browse issues by date, and share documents by email.

       If you don't have an iPad, you can access daily issues of the Congressional Record through the Federal Digital System. The website provides access to issues from 1994-present.

       ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/01/new_congressional_record_app.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/01/new_congressional_record_app.html Federal Documents Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:41:52 -0700 In November 2010 we reported on the various spice bans in local municipalities and that the Utah State Legislature would be considering a state-wide ban in the 2011 legislative session.

       The legislature did pass House Bill 23 in the 2011 General Session that not only included spice, but also included the substances in bath salts in the expanded list of controlled substances. Spice was also added to the driver license provisions regarding driving under the influence.

       You can read the committee reports, listen to the floor debates and read the bill as it was introduced as well as the final bill that was passed and signed by the governor here.

       ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/01/spice_and_bath_salts_banned_in.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2012/01/spice_and_bath_salts_banned_in.html Legal Research Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:42:43 -0700 There is a new mobile-friendly website for PACER, the U.S. Federal Courts' records database. Now you can access federal district court case information without needing to use a desktop computer or laptop.

       Never used PACER before? Check out our previous post on PACER training available online or read the PACER User Manual.

       ]]> http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2011/11/mobile_version_of_pacer.html http://www.utcourts.gov/lawlibrary/blog/2011/11/mobile_version_of_pacer.html Legal Research Tue, 29 Nov 2011 08:22:06 -0700