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Library Logo: return to Library home page Researching Immigration Law

Last update 9/2005. Direct feedback on this page to lawlib@umn.edu.

Introduction

This guide provides a starting point for researching immigration law at the University of Minnesota Law Library. Most of the resources listed here are available at this library, although you may find some useful sources at Wilson Library. Also, the University’s Immigration History Research Center collects information on American immigration and ethnic history and may be helpful for some researchers.

In the United States immigration is controlled at the federal level, primarily by statutes and administrative regulations. If you need an overview of immigration law, start with David Weissbrodt's Immigration Law in a Nutshell (TC Law Library Reserve KF4819.3 .W4 2005).


Legislation

The Immigration and Nationality Act or INA, (available on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' web site (http://www.uscis.gov),  was created in 1952. Before the INA, a variety of statutes governed immigration law but were not organized in one location. The McCarran-Walter Act of 1952, Public Law No. 82-414, 66 Stat. 163, collected and codified many existing provisions and reorganized the structure of immigration law. The Act has been amended many times over the years, but is still the basic body of immigration law. The current text of the act is also contained in Title 8 of the United States Code.

Legislative Histories
IIRAIRA : selected legislative history of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (American Immigration Lawyers Association, 1997).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4806.57 .A15 1997x.

Selected legislative history of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 : public law no. 99-603 (American Immigration Lawyers Association, 1987).
TC Law Library KF4806.56 .A15 1987x.

Nancy Humel Montwieler, The Immigration Reform Law of 1986 : analysis, text, and legislative history (1987).
TC Law Library KF4806.56.A16 M66 1987.

E. P. Hutchinson, Legislative history of American immigration policy, 1798-1965 (1981).
TC Law Library KF4805.8 1981

Frank George Franklin, The legislative history of naturalization in the United States (1969).
TC Law Library JK1814 .F73 1969

Immigration and nationality acts : legislative histories and related documents
, (Oscar M. Trelles, II and James F. Bailey, III, eds., 1979-).
TC Law Library KF4805.8 1979

The Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services web page also provides a compilation of federal immigration and naturalization statutes for an overview of the legislative history of immigration from 1790 to 1996. It is not exhaustive either for the number of bills enacted or for the specific points of law within each bill, but it does provide a basis for further inquiry for more detailed information.

To find other legislative histories, consult these guides:

Nancy P. Johnson, Sources of compiled legislative histories, a bibliography of government documents, periodical articles, and books (1979-).
TC Law Library Reference Office KF42.2 1979

Bernard D. Reams, Jr., Federal legislative histories : an annotated bibliography and index to officially published sources (1994). 
TC Law Library Reference Office KF42.2 1994


Judicial and Administrative Decisions and Citators

Judicial Decisions
You can find judicial decisions (court cases) by looking at the United States Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.) (TC Law Library Primary KF62 1927 .W45) and United States Code Service (U.S.C.S.) (TC Law Library Primary KF 62 1972 .L38). First, use the index at the end of each set, or the table of contents at the beginning of Title 8, to find the statutes relevant to your issue. Look up the sections and read the annotations at the end. These annotations include case citations that you can use to locate the full text of the cases.  You can also use the topical index to Gordon & Mailman’s Immigration Law and Procedure (TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .G67 1988) to find references to cases.

Administrative Decisions
The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) issues appellate administrative decisions that are binding on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Bureaus responsible for enforcing immigration laws nationwide. Decisions of the BIA are binding on all DHS officers and Immigration Judges unless modified or overruled by the Attorney General or a Federal court. The Board has been given jurisdiction to hear appeals from certain decisions rendered by Immigration Judges and by DHS Bureau offices in a wide variety of proceedings in which the DHS Bureaus are one party and the other party is either an alien or a citizen. You can find selected decisions and interpretations of immigration laws here: http://www.usdoj.gov/eoir/vll/intdec/lib_intdecnet_vol.html

United States. Board of Immigration Appeals.
Interim decision.
TC Law Library KF4812.A2 U54
Cumulated by: United States. Dept. of Justice. Administrative decisions under immigration & nationality laws. These are the advance sheets for Administrative decisions under immigration & nationality laws.

United States. Dept. of Justice
Administrative decisions under immigration & nationality laws.
TC Law Library KF4812.A2 U54

United States. Dept. of Justice. Executive Office for Immigration Review. Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer
Index of administrative law judge and chief administrative hearing officer decisions.
TC Law Library US Documents J1.102/3:
TC Law Library US Documents J21.23/2:

Citators
David A. Martin, Asylum case law sourcebook: master index and case abstracts for U.S. court decisions (4th ed. 2003).
TC Law Library KF4836.A59 M37x 2003, also available on Westlaw.

Patel's citations (1988-).
Other Title: Patel's citations of administrative decisions under immigration and nationality laws
TC Law Library KF4812.5 .P37

P. J. Patel, Patel's Immigration law digest : digest of judicial and administrative opinions in immigration and naturalization cases (1985-1998). Other Title: Immigration law digest
TC Law Library KF4814 .P38 1985

Shepard's immigration and naturalization citations (1991).
TC Law Library Reference KF4810.5 .S53 1991


Administrative Regulations

Once Congress passes a law, rules or regulations are often developed by an agency. These regulations describe how the agency will implement the law. The current text of Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services (BCIS) regulations in force are found in Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations, (8 CFR).  The Code of Federal Regulations is frequently amended by adding new language, revising or removing existing language, although it is not necessary for every provision of law to be interpreted or implemented by a federal regulation.

Proposed and final amendments to the CFR are published in the Federal Register. The BCIS website provides a list of recent published immigration-related regulations in its USCIS Federal Register Announcements section.

The best print source for immigration regulations: Bender's Immigration Regulations Service (Aileen Jenner, ed. 1994-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .G671x, also available on Lexis-Nexis.


Lilbrary Catalogs

MNCat
To find resources available at the University of Minnesota, you must search in MNCat (http://mncat.lib.umn.edu), our online catalog. To find resources on immigration and related topics you should start with the following Library of Congress Subject Headings, along with the name of the country or region in which you are interested (e.g. Emigration and immigration law -- United States or Asylum, Right of – European Union countries) : Emigration and immigration law Immigrants Citizenship Asylum, Right of Political refugees -- Legal status, laws, etc. Refugees Refugees -- Government policy Naturalization Aliens -- Legal Status, laws, etc. Legal assistance to refugees Deportation Alien labor -- Legal status, laws, etc. United States -- Emigration and immigration -- Government policy. United States. Immigration and Nationality Act


WorldCat
You can also use the same terms to search WorldCat, http://www.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wcat.cgi, a catalog of library resources throughout the country. To access a work that you find on WorldCat that is not available locally, please contact Interlibrary Loan: http://www.law.umn.edu/library/umlawstudentsaccessmaterials.html#ill


Looseleafs, Treatises & Nutshells

Looseleafs often combine materials from many sources (i.e. statutes, judicial decisions, administrative regulations) and are usually frequently updated. A treatise is a legal work, often multi-volume, usually written by a respected legal scholar or scholars. A nutshell provides you with a condensed general overview of the law.

Charles Gordon and Stanley Mailman, Immigration law and procedure (2nd ed. 1988-). 
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .G67 1988, also available on Lexis-Nexis.
Most comprehensive treatise on U.S. immigration laws. Includes information on cases, statutes, regulations and instructions. Volume 9 contains forms.

David Weissbrodt, Immigration law and procedure in a nutshell (5th ed. 2005).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819.3 .W4 2005

Regina Germain, AILA'S asylum primer : a practical guide to U.S. asylum law and procedure (3rd ed. 1998).
TC Law Library KF4836 .G46x 1998

Bender's Immigration and Nationality Act pamphlet (1987-).
TC Law Library KF4806.54.A19 U55
TC Law Library Reserve KF4806.54.A19 U55
Annual softcover pamphlet containing the text of the INA.

Bender's Immigration and Nationality Act service (1999-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4806.54 .M38, also available on Lexis-Nexis.
Frequently updated text of the INA.

Bender's immigration regulations service (Aileen Jenner, ed. 1994-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .G671x, also available on Lexis-Nexis.
Frequently updated text of immigration regulations.

Todd R. Smyth, Deskbook of the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals (1992-). Other Title: BALCA handbook.
TC Law Library KF4829.A56 U55x, also available on Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

Ira J. Kurzban, Kurzban's immigration law sourcebook : a comprehensive outline and reference tool (8th ed. 2002).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819.3 .K87 2002

Immigration and nationality law handbook (1991-).
TC Law Library KF4819.A2 A415
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819.A2 A415
Detailed articles on many aspects of immigration and nationality law.

Austin T. Fragomen, Jr. & Steven C. Bell, Immigration fundamentals : a guide to law and practice (4th ed. 1996). 
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .F725 1996, also available on Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

Immigration law advisory (1985-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4815 .I452x
TC Law Library Looseleaf Services KF4815 .I452x
Monthly newsletter reporting developments in immigration and nationality law.

Austin T. Fragomen, Jr. et al.,  Immigration law and business (1983-).
TC Law Library KF4819 .F7 1983, also available on Westlaw.

Dan Kesselbrenner & Lory D. Rosenberg, Immigration law and crimes (1984-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .I45 1984, also available on Westlaw.

Immigration law and defense (1987-).
TC Law Library KF8925.E4 I46 1987 also available on Westlaw.

Immigration legislation handbook : covering the illegal immigrant, welfare and antiterrorism laws (1996-).
TC Law Library KF4819 .I482, also available on Westlaw.

Immigration procedures handbook : a how to guide for legal and business professionals (1985-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .I455
TC Law Library KF4819 .I455

Deborah E. Anker, The law of asylum in the United States (3rd ed. 1999).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4836 .A96 1999

Interpreter releases : an information service on immigration, naturalization and related problems (1983-).
TC Law Library Periodicals Per.I629 Also available on Westlaw. Weekly reports and analysis on developments in immigration and nationality law.

Richard D. Steel, Steel on immigration law (1992-).
TC Law Library Reserve KF4819 .S74, also available on Westlaw. Immigration law hornbook. Includes forms.


Periodicals & Periodical Indexes

To find other periodicals, search MNCat (http://mncat.lib.umn.edu) by adding the term periodicals to the subject headings listed above (e.g. Emigration and immigration law -- United States -- Periodicals or Political refugees -- Legal status, laws, etc. -- Periodicals).

Bender's immigration bulletin (1996-).
TC Law Library Periodicals Per.B464 Also available on Lexis-Nexis. Semimonthly update on developments in immigration and nationality law.

Columbia human rights law review (1972-).
TC Law Library Periodicals Per .C644
TC Law Library Core Collection Core4 200 .C644, also available on Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

Georgetown immigration law journal (1985-).
TC Law Library Periodicals Per.G4575, also available on Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

Harvard human rights journal (1990-).
TC Law Library Human Rights Library K8 .A6825, also available on Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

Immigration briefings (1988-).
TC Law Library Periodicals Per.I413, also available on Westlaw.

International journal of refugee law(1989-).
TC Law Library K9 .N7357x,  also available on Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw.

The International migration review : IMR (1966-).
TC Law Library JV6001 .I55, also available on Westlaw.

Periodical Databases To find periodical articles, you must search a periodical index. (MnCat does not include the titles of periodical articles.) These databases allow you to search by the author, title, and keywords/subject of an article. Some suggested electronic indexes are:

Legal Indexes (available on the law school network & in the Reference Office)
LegalTrac (also available in print as the Current Law Index -- TC Law Library Reference K33 .C87
Index to Legal Periodicals and Books (also available in print -- TC Law Library Reference K33 .I54x )

Other indexes (available through the University Libraries' Articles & More Indexes page at http://www.lib.umn.edu/articles/indexes.phtml:
America History and Life
Ethnic Newswatch
Historical Abstracts
International Political Science Abstracts
PAIS International
Sociological Abstracts


Electronic Resources

ImmForms plus : forms and procedures for immigration law practice. (1995-). [computer file ]
TC Law Library Reference Office KF4819 .I44x

Refworld = Refmonde (1996-).
TC Law Library Reference Office HV640 .R449
Internet Access at www.unhcr.ch (Click on “Search Refworld”).
Contains a collection of databases developed by the UNHCR Centre for Documentation on Refugees including current country reports, legal and policy-related documents and literature references.

LexisNexis Congressional (http://www.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/cong.cgi). Allows you to search federal bills, laws, regulations & Congressional information. (Off-campus use restricted to UM students, faculty and staff.)

LexisNexis. LexisNexis’ Immigration library (found under its “Area of Law by Topic” section) contains immigration case law, statutes and administrative law. It also provides full-text access to many immigration journals, as well as some treatises. (Available to UM law school students, faculty and staff only.)

Westlaw. Under the Immigration section of its Topical Practice Areas, Westlaw lets you search for immigration case law, statutes and administrative law. It also provides full-text access to many immigration journals, as well as some treatises. (Available to UM law school students, faculty and staff only.)

U.S. Government Resources

Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/index.htm

Department of Homeland Security http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/

Department of State – Visa Services http://travel.state.gov/visa/visa_1750.html

Other Internet Resources

American Immigration Lawyers Association http://www.aila.org. The professional organization for immigration lawyers.

American Immigration Law Foundation http://www.ailf.org. This organization promotes public understanding and support of immigration law through education, policy analysis and legal actions.

Cornell’s Legal Information Institute’s immigration law: an overview http://www.law.cornell.edu/topics/immigration.html.

The Immigration Portal http://www.ilw.com. Information from a leading immigration law publisher.

National Immigration Law Center http://www.nilc.org.  A national support center whose mission is to protect and promote the rights and opportunities of low income immigrants and their family members. NILC staff specialize in immigration law, and the employment and public benefits rights of immigrants.

National Immigration Forum http://www.immigrationforum.org/.  The Forum is a national public interest group which advocates for policies that welcome and support immigrants and refugees to our country.

Siskind’s Immigration Bulletin http://www.visalaw.com/bulletin.html.  This popular immigration publication is available for free at this web site.

University of Minnesota Human Rights Library http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/


Research Guides & Bibliographies

E.B. Williams Library Research Guide on Immigration Law http://www.ll.georgetown.edu/guides/ImmigrationLaw.cfm

“Immigration law,” in Specialized legal research (Leah F. Chanin, ed., 1997-) TC Law Library Reference Office KF240 .S63x 1987.

University at Buffalo Law Library Immigration Law Bibliography http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/units/law/guides_handouts/Immigration.pdf

Washington University School of Law Library’s Immigrants' Rights Seminar Research Guide http://law.wustl.edu/library/index.asp?id=1353

Links verified 4/29/2008 

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