Statutes

Print: Mississippi Code Annotated (1972).

Internet: Web sites containing the Mississippi Code are listed under Statutes on our Legal Resources page (http://library.law.olemiss.edu/library/state/ms.shtml#STATUTES).

Westlaw: Current annotated code for Mississippi: MS-ST-ANN.

Lexis: Current annotated code for Mississippi: MSCODE file.

CD-ROM: Available from West Publishing.

Session Laws

Session laws are bound and available in the library under the title Laws of the State of Mississippi (General Laws). Local and Private Laws is published in paperback around November of each year. Although there is no generally available compilation of session laws in electronic format, the final text of bills as passed are available over the Internet through the Legislature's ftp server.

Bills / Pending Legislation

Print: Several commercial companies provide subscription services to printed bills during the legislative session.

Internet: Information on legislation pending in the Mississippi Legislature can be found by accessing the Mississippi Legislative Bill Status System. This site contains bills dating back to 1997, both those that were passed into law and those that were not.

Westlaw: Find pending bills on the Westlaw Bill Tracking System at MS-BILL and get the full text of those bills at MS-BILLTXT.

Lexis: Find information on pending bills under the Mississippi library in the MS-TRCK and MS-BILLTXT files.

Legislative History

Few sources for Mississippi legislative history exist. After reading the sources contained in parentheses at the end of each code section, one can check the original bill published in Mississippi's session laws, Laws of the State of Mississippi. The bill published therein will usually contain a statement of purpose at the beginning of the text of the bill. Also, the published journals of both the House of Representatives and the Senate of the Mississippi Legislature contain the texts of bills and resolutions as introduced, amendments, voting records, and executive messages. Committee reports and records of floor debates are usually not available; however, the Mississippi Legislative Reference Bureau (601-359-3135) sometimes has some special material.

Case Law

Print:

• The relevant digest is the Mississippi Digest: Covering Cases from State and Federal Courts.
• The Southern Reporter is now the official reporter for Mississippi, publishing opinions of both the Mississippi Supreme Court and the Mississippi Court of Appeals (established in 1994).
• Until 1966, Mississippi Reports was the official reporter for Mississippi Supreme Court opinions. These opinions were also published unofficially in the Southern Reporter.
• A special edition of the Southern Reporter which contains only Mississippi cases is available.
• Published federal court opinions from Mississippi can be found in the Federal Reporter (Court of Appeals) and Federal Supplement (district courts).

Internet: Web sites containing the Mississippi Code are listed under Courts on our Legal Resources page (http://library.law.olemiss.edu/library/state/ms.shtml#COURTS).

Westlaw: Mississippi state cases are in the file MS-CS. Unlike the Internet sources, this source includes only opinions which are or will be published in the Southern Reporter.

Lexis: Mississippi cases can also be found using the MSCTS file in the MISS library. Again, unlike the Internet sources, this source includes only opinions which are or will be published in the Southern Reporter.

CD-ROM: West produces a CD-ROM which includes the same cases that appear on Westlaw.

Court Rules

Print:

• Mississippi Rules of Court, KFM7129 .A195
• Mississippi Rules Annotated, KFM7129 .A19
• Mississippi Rules of Evidence Annotated, KFM7140 .M57 1989

What's available:

• Rules of Civil Procedure
• Rules of Evidence
• Rules of Appellate Procedure
• Uniform Chancery Rules
• Local Chancery Court Rules for districts 2, 3 (mslawyer.com only), 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 13, 16, 17, 18, and 19
• Uniform Circuit/County Rules
• Local Circuit Court Rules for circuits 1, 4, 5, 7, 10, 15, 18, and 19
• Local County Court Rules for Harrison and Lowndes Counties
• Uniform Justice Court Rules
• Rules Governing Judicial Performance
• Mandatory Rules Governing CJE
• Code of Judicial Conduct
• Rules of Professional Conduct
• Bar Rules of Discipline
• Mandatory Rules Governing CLE
• Rules Governing Admission to the Bar
• Court Annexed Mediation Rules for Civil Litigation

Westlaw: The database is MS-RULES.

Lexis: The file is MSRULE.

CD-ROM: A CD-ROM entitled Mississippi Court Rules contains the following:

• Rules of Civil Procedure
• Uniform Rules of Circuit and County Court Practice
• Uniform Rules of Procedure for Justice Court
• Uniform Chancery Court Rules
• Code of Judicial Conduct
• Rules of the Commission on Judicial Performance
• Rules and Regulations for Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
• Rules of Professional Conduct
• Rules of Discipline for the State Bar
• Rules Governing Admission to the State Bar
• Rules of Appellate Procedure
• Rules and Regulations Governing Certified Court Reporters
• Rules and Regulations for Mandatory Continuing Court Education

Ethics and Attorney General's Opinions

Print:

• A limited (1984-July 1999) collection in print is Official Attorney General's Opinions (KFM7040 .A55 M57).
• Printed ethics opinions are compiled in Ethics Opinions--Mississippi (1988-present) (on reserve, KFM7125.5 .D5 E83).
• New ethics opinions are also published in The Mississippi Lawyer.
• Related print materials include the Code of Professional Responsibility of the Mississippi State Bar (KFM6676.5 .A75 M53) and the Rules of Professional Conduct (KFM6676.5 .A2 1987).

Internet: The Attorney General posts opinions from 1979-present here. An unofficial site with opinions from 1978-present is on mslawyer.com at http://www.mslawyer.com/ag/ag/. This site is available to subscribers only but may be accessed in the Law Library.

Microform: A complete set of attorney general's opinions for Mississippi is available on microfiche under the title State Attorney General Reports and Opinions.

Administrative Regulations & Orders

Print: The Code of Mississippi Rules (Weil Publishing Co. 1997; on reserve, KFM6635 .A2 1997) is the only comprehensive compilation of the official rules issued by state agencies pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act. Since this is a new publication, it may not be widely available yet. This is a looseleaf service that is updated monthly.

Internet:

• Various administrative departments are developing Web pages that provide a variety of information. These sites are growing and changing daily. Some contain the text of regulations and other material useful for administrative practice. Most are linked to the Mississippi State Government Home Page .

Citators

The print volumes of Shepard's Mississippi Citations are available in the library. Mississippi cases can also be Shepardized online via Lexis and KeyCited on Westlaw.

Jury Instructions

• Mississippi Model Jury Instructions: Civil (KFM7142.6 .A65 M57)
• Mississippi Model Jury Instructions: Criminal (KFM7183 .A65 M5)

Secondary Sources

The following is a select list of treatises and other secondary sources on Mississippi law held in our library.

• Warner's Griffith Mississippi Chancery Practice (KFM131. Z9 W37 1991)
• Expert Witness Strategies in Litigation in Mississippi (KFM141.5 .E96 1992)
• Mississippi Criminal Trial Practice (KFM7175 .M33 1991)
• Boundary Law in Mississippi (KFM6723 .B6 B68 1995)
• Mississippi Labor and Employment Law (KFM6931 .F33 1992)
• Workmen's Compensation: A Comprehensive Treatise on the Workmen's Compensation Law of Mississippi (KFM6942 .D8 1982)
• Basic Corporate Law in Mississippi (KFM6810 .A75 G73 1992)
• Mississippi Law of Damages (KFM6795 .P37 1990)
• Mississippi Corporations--Formation and Operation (KFM6910 .P3 1992)
• Wills and Administration of Estates in Mississippi (KFM6744 .W44 1995)
• Mississippi Divorce, Alimony, and Child Custody (KFM 6700 .H36 1996)
• Mississippi Evidence (KFM7140 .S72 1995)
• Bad Faith Litigation in Mississippi (KFM6751 .F7 B42 1996)
• Products Liability: The Law in Mississippi (KFM6797 .W5)
• Probate and Estate Administration (KFM6744 .W54 1989)
• Collection of Accounts: The Law in Mississippi (KFM6767 .C6 M35 1982)

Selected Practice Aids and Forms

Print:

• Legal Forms Manual for Real Estate (KFM6710 .A65 M57)
• Mississippi Will and Trust Manual Service (KFM6742 .A65)
• Mississippi Legal Forms Annotated (KFM6668 .M65)
• Summary of Mississippi Law (KFM6665 .G7) (an encyclopedia of Mississippi law)

Newspapers and Journals

• Clarion-Ledger
• Mississippi College Law Review
• Mississippi Law Journal
• Mississippi Law Week
• Mississippi Lawyer