I feel magnanimous today so I'm sharing a bunch of really good links for your perusal. The plugging comes at no price at all, so yeah, no catch.We begin with the usual. Incidentally, these can be found on my blogroll:
- Supreme Court - what decent law student hasn't heard of this site? Cases include only from 1996 to present
- Lawphil.net - include Philippine Reports cases as well as the most recent ones; the site has a new design; personally, I find the new layout better than the old one, it's more streamlined
- Chanrobles - good source of laws and jurisprudence
(I usually check this site for codal provisions, EOs, DOs, etc. but for cases, I just go directly to Lawphil and/or SC mainly because I don't like the layout of this site, lots of annoying extras and it's mostly html-based; php is the way to go with websites these days)I just visited the site and they have a new layout now. Looks better than before, still html-based but definitely better. PERK: they have the 2008 pre-bar review on Labor Law by Atty. Chan up for grabs! ♥ - BerneGuerrero - academic resources like outlines and case digests (detailed)
- Arellano Law Notesbank Blog - case digests! (Arellano University School of Law)
- Arellano Law Notesbank - consider this as the archived version of the blog
- UB Law Journal - case digests, case laws and legal articles (University of Batangas)
- Abogadomo - a very good site containing cases, laws, legal documents, plus a Q & A corner
- GTA Law - useful site that contains recent developments in Philippine law
- Libertas et Iusticia - I stumbled upon this site while researching school stuff; mostly legal articles but there are some informational stuff as well to reinforce your knowledge (very nice layout, too, although it looks like it's still under construction)
- Philippine E-Legal - updates on Philippine laws in the context of current events; very, very helpful especially for Political Law enthusiasts ^.^
Now for others -- These sites are gem for various reasons, primarily because they contain ready-made notes:
- Pinoy Law Forum - this is an online community of law students and lawyers (I think); anyway, it's not very populated so perhaps the term "community" is a misnomer; it's sooo quiet but if you want copies of past bar exam questions, this is a good place to find them or make a request
- Eric John Calagui - it's a personal site, hence, the name; contains notes, lovely notes too, organized under the eight bar subjects; HELPFUL; the homepage also contains some Awesome Words of Wisdom (TM) 0.@
- Barely Legal - grrreat site; just check it
- Legal Corner - an old blog last updated in 2005 (yikes!) but still contains some pretty helpful info like bar exam tips, etc; good reading if you have nothing better to do
- Bar Matter 911 - you want notes? this is it; I think this is run by a UP law student; the notes are downloadable
- Atty-at-Work - legal articles, bar exam tips
- BarristersForum - I don't really know who keeps this blog but it does contain some interesting tidbits on the Maceda Law; there also seems to be assignments for class so maybe it's a class blog or whatever; anyway, I don't visit this site often since it's not frequently updated
- BIR: Taxpayer's Rights - exactly; btw, it's always better to check out the specific agency's site for department orders or implementing rules; i found this site very helpful for outlining tax remedies
- Atty. Manuel Laserna's Blog - notes on the justice system, legal profession and legal education; the thing about blogs is that they are opinionated but this one tries to be objective so it's useful
- The Bystander - he's not a bystander at all; a searing blog filled with opinions backed by laws and jurisprudence; a word of caution: very anti-GMA (ok, make that two words)
- Scribd: Fifthangrygirl - Scribd is an i-paper service that lets you upload documents (pdf or doc) online; Fifthangrygirl (her name is Layla) has made some of her law notes available here
- TurningLegalese - this is Layla's multiply account that contains notes and laws
- Scribd: Raj-point - downloadable Ateneo Reviewer Primer memory aids, UP notes, and some more delightful extras; I definitely recommend this site
- The Philippine Bar Reviewer - this blog contains materials in preparation for the bar exam
- RegisLegis - a fairly new blog that contains case digests; the owner doesn't seem to categorize them so good luck browsing through the archives; good digests, however
- PIL Executive Class - I think the person behind this blog is the same one behind Regis Legis; again no categories or even a search bar so you'll have a devil of a time looking for a particular digest, but if you're persistent, you'll get results; actually, if it takes you this much time just searching for a digest, then you're better off just getting the full text from the SC website or Lawphil and digest the case yourself (always better to do stuff yourself; you'll learn better that way and retain more)
- Legal Forum - another online community; I just found it so I don't really know what this forum has to offer other than its face value; I think it's a new site so you can find few people there; if you want to join and make the place livelier, be my guest
And now for some tips on online research:
Google is still the best search engine around. But there are a few tricks to get even more out of it.
- When looking for cases, type the GR numer on the search bar. If you don't have the GR number, type the title of the case.
- Criminal cases are usually harder to find if all you have to work on is the case title. But if you manage to get the year, you'll have a much easier time finding the specific case by visiting either the SC website or Lawphil.
- When you're at the Google search results page, look for the word "cached" under the links. If you click this, it will direct you to the page where the specific search term you used is highlighted. This will make it easier for you to find what you're looking for.
- If you're looking for implementing rules, departmental orders and other administrative issuances, it's best for you to visit the official website of the specific administrative body that issued the rules. This is especially helpful in Labor Law where rules are frequently updated.
- Yahoogroups is also a great way to connect with your classmates. Sharing is love, as they say. You can create a group for your class where you can swap notes and exchange ideas.
