Legislation
Access legislation on vLex and research legal processes.
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Access legislation on vLex and research legal processes.
Last updated
Was this helpful?
Search for legislative documents using the simple search, then use the . You can also start from , or use the Content option on the page.
From Browse, click Legislation. In some cases, you can also filter your search by jurisdiction.
From Advanced search, select Legislation and Regulations as your content type. Then conduct your search as normal.
When you select Legislation and Regulations, the filters below will become content-specific.
Because legislation differs for every jurisdiction, some of the filters may change. Here are some of the common ones that you will see:
Reference: use this to search for the legislation's citation.
Jurisdiction: filter by jurisdiction.
Legislation type: this field will display a list of options for types of legislation, you can choose more than one.
Cited authorities: filter based on the documents cited by the legislation. Start typing and a list will appear for you to choose from.
Date: this is the publication date of the legislation. This field will show three options:
Since: for legislation after a certain date.
Range of dates: for legislation from within a certain date range.
Exactly on: to select a specific date for the legislation you are searching for.
vLex Document ID: this is a number, unique to vLex, that you can use to share documents with other users. You can find this number in the share menu.
Next to the title, you will immediately see if a piece of legislation is in force, or if it has been repealed. This information is available on the results page and when you open the document. For some jurisdictions, where the consolidated texts are not available, this is not shown.
Below the search box, you will see a Table of contents option with links to various sections and subsections of the document, allowing you to easily navigate the information in front of you.
If vLex has the consolidated version of a piece of legislation, you will see a tab marked Consolidated text that will show the text as it is currently enforced. Next to this, there will be a tab marked Versions that will show a list of any previous versions.
Where the consolidated text is not available, legislation documents will show a tab marked As enacted that will show the original version, alongside another tab marked Amendments, where you will see the list of amending and amended items.
Title: type words that appear in the title. You can include in this field.
In the top left of the screen, you will see a magnifying glass and a search field that can be used to search for any terms within the document. You can use in this field.
For a more detailed explanation, go to the article.
When you conduct legal research, it is vital to know how authorities have been subsequently treated before you rely on them as an accurate statement of the law. The and tabs will allow you to visualise how legislations relate to subsequent cases.
Under this tab, you will see recommendations created by . This shows citations within the document, as well as similar documents even if they haven't been directly cited.
To learn more about the related tab, you can read .
