Research Workshop Descriptions


The Law Library holds research workshops throughout the semester. The following are descriptions of the types of classes we run. See the Research Workshop Schedule for a list of dates and to register for a research class.

Zotero for Law

This introductory workshop will provide an overview of accessing, downloading and working with Zotero to manage your resources. We will also demonstrate how to use Zotero to create references and bibliographies according to the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC4) in Microsoft Word.

The Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC) is the preferred citation style used by legal academics and practitioners in Australia. In this workshop, you will learn how to apply the rules of the guide to the items you will need to cite in your Melbourne Law School assessments.

Beginning Legal Research

This session will discuss approaches to beginning legal research. We will explore databases to use to find journal articles, commentary and reference materials for legal research.

Finding Case Law

Case law is a fundamental element of Australia's legal system. There are a variety of tools and resources available to help you navigate the legal landscape. In this session, we will utilise some of these tools to put finding relevant case law into practice.

Finding Legislation

Understanding the legislative process and how to interpret statutes is a key legal skill for law students and legal practitioners. As a result of attending this workshop, you will have a greater understanding of the legislation making process, the different documents produced at each stage and which version of an Act you will need to use when presented with a particular problem. This workshop will introduce you to finding resources that can assist in statutory interpretation and locating judicial decisions that have interpreted legislation.

Public international law is a legal system that deals with the relationship between nation-states and intergovernmental organisations, such as the United Nations and the European Union. In this session, we will explore where you can locate public international law materials.

Foreign Law Research

Legal systems across the globe employ a range of legal systems such as common law, civil law, customary law, religious law, or mixed law systems. In this workshop, we will guide you through how to locate information about other jurisdictions' legal systems, and where to find their primary and secondary resources in other jurisdictions.