Legislation

Access legislation on vLex and research legal processes.

Search for legislative documents using the simple search, then use the Legislation and regulations filter. You can also start from Browse, or use the Content option on the Advanced search page.

Legislation from Browse

From Browse, click Legislation. In some cases, you can also filter your search by jurisdiction.

In some jurisdictions, the Legislation option will change for: Statutes, Regulations, Constitutions, or Administrative decisions.

Legislation from Advanced search

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.

Filters for legislation

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.
Title: type words that appear in the title. You can include Boolean operators in this field.
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.

Reading legislation

Next to the title, you will immediately see if a piece of legislation is in force, or if it has been repealed.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.

In some instances, vLex will show a Historical version warning. Next to it, there will be a link to the current version so that you can make sure you are up-to-date.

Search in this document and Table of contents

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 Boolean operators in this field.

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.

Tabs in legislation documents

Consolidated text and Versions

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.

As enacted and Amendments

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.

For a more detailed explanation, go to the Versions and amendments article.

Cited in and Precedent Map

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 Cited In and Precedent Map tabs will allow you to visualise how legislations relate to subsequent cases.

Under this tab, you will see recommendations created by Vincent. 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 Vincent.