Case Law Research

A secondary source (aka secondary authority) is a writing about primary authority. Secondary sources explain the law and provide citations to primary authorities including cases. Thus, if you find a secondary source that is relevant to your issue(s), your secondary source will lead you to relevant cases. A secondary source is the best place to start your research if you are not familiar with the topic. For more information on researching secondary sources, please consult the law library's Secondary Sources LibGuide. 

The screenshots below are excerpts from section 14:13 of McCarthy on Trademarks and Unfair Competition, Fourth Edition. This is a secondary source (treatise) on trademark law. The author supports his explanation of trademark law by providing relevant cases in footnotes.