Government & Law

Legal Terms

These are legal terms you may see used frequently:

• Law: A piece of legislation passed by a body with the power to make laws such as the U. S. Congress or a state legislature. Also known as a "statute".
• Regulation: A rule or order, having legal force, issued by an administrative agency or a local government.
• Ordinance: An authoritiative law or decree, especially a local regulation passed concerning the matters that state governments allow to be regulated at the local level.
• Code: Laws or regulations arranged by subject.
• Session laws: Laws arranged in the order they were passed (chronological order).

• R340.03 BLA, Reference. Black's Law Dictionary (2019). Available at the Main Library.
• Nolo's Plain-English Law Dictionary: Basic definitions of legal terms.

• Nolo's Legal Encyclopedia: Select your topic from the list.

Legal Research

State Law

• N.C. General Statutes Online : The most current statutes enacted by the North Carolina General Assembly.
• N.C. Session Laws: Local laws go back to 1959.

Regulations

• North Carolina Administrative Code: Covers state code from agriculture to juvenile justice.
• North Carolina State Building Code: View the current North Carolina Codes in an Adobe Reader format. The files found on this site are in a read only format and are not available for printing. May require subscription.
• The North Carolina Register Online: Includes agency rules, executive orders, contested cases, etc.

Local Law
Gaston County

• County Ordinances: Covers every ordinance from animals to zoning.
• Unified Development Ordinance: All land use ordinances have been condensed into one document.

City of Gastonia

• City Code of Ordinances: City ordinances from elections to housing.

NC Courts - nccourts.gov

Court decisions that become a body of law in a jurisdiction are called case law.

• The North Carolina Court System: Information on different N.C. courts, including petition decisions, opinions, etc. [En Español]
• R348.756 STR N.C.. Strong's North Carolina Index 4th. An index to reporters for North Carolina state law.

Gaston County Courthouse - nccourts.gov/locations/gaston-county

704-852-3100

• U. S. Code: The government website that includes national laws governing everything from the Congress, education, public lands, etc.
• U. S. Code: A website by Cornell University; this may find it easier to search.

• Code of Federal Regulations: Regulations made by Federal agencies ranging from food and drug regulations to firearms laws.
• Federal Register: Includes Executive Orders, documents from the President, etc. 1936 to the present.

The Gaston County Public Library does not have a case law collection and most online case law is only available for a fee through a vendor.

• U. S. Court System: Information about federal courts, including some selected opinions, court forms, and judiciary news.
• The Supreme Court of the United States: Includes the Supreme Court docket, calendar, opinions, and more.
• Selected Historic Decisions of the Supreme Court: Cornell University. Over 631 decisions available.

Author: Gaston County Public Library
Title: You & the Law
URL:https://gastonlibrary.libguides.com/government-law/you-and-the-law
Revised: 4 October 2022