• What are study aids?
• What are the various types of study aids?
  • Treatises
  • Hornbooks
  • Concepts and Insights
  • Turning Point
  • Examples and Explanations
  • Understanding the Law
  • Law Stories
  • Nutcases
  • Nutshells

Treatises are works written by legal scholar(s) that cover a specific area of law in great detail. Treatises provide the highest level of analysis and detail and provide extensive references to related sources in footnotes and appendices. They are often multi-volume works, and the author's name is often included in the title; for example, Farnsworth on Contracts.

Depending on the reputation of the work and the author, treatises can be persuasive authority to cite to a court. Treatises are primarily geared towards legal scholars and practitioners, but can also be helpful to law students.

Hornbooks are legal texts written expressly for law students by law professors using plain prose. They condense an area of law into a single volume and give a clear overview of the law's evolution, a discussion of courts' interpretation of the law, and an explanation of the application of the law today. This presentation of "Black letter law" makes hornbooks an attractive study aid. A hornbook published by West Group identifies itself as such on its cover.

There is no clear line of demarcation between treatises and hornbooks, but as a general rule a hornbook is not as detailed as a treatise and provides fewer references to other sources. Accordingly, hornbooks are not considered persuasive by courts and should be used only for background purposes. West also publishes a Practitioner's Series of Hornbooks that include selected practice documents. They are frequently multi-volume sets.

Concepts and Insights is a series of study aids that give a detailed, straightforward presentation of the law along with a brief explanation of how the law developed. They point out particularly difficult points of law and walk the reader through examples in an effort to clarify. Concepts and Insights are as detailed as Hornbooks but have far fewer footnoted references.

Study Aids in the Turning Point series focus on complex issues within an area of law; for example, proximate cause within the area of Tort law. The area of focus is evident from the title of each volume. In addition to presenting the historical development of the law, the Turning Point series also includes major cases in an effort to explain complex issues.

Examples and Explanations combines clear text with examples, explanations, and questions to test understanding of the material. The text deals with legal as well as policy issues. Concepts are illustrated with charts and graphics. Sample exam questions with suggested answers are also included.

The Understanding the Law series of study aids cover the basic concepts within an area of law as well as the leading cases. Topics that typically cause the most confusion are covered in-depth.

Law Stories give the textual background of leading cases within a broad area of law along with behind-the-scenes historical context and the role played by the cases in shaping current policy and debates.

Nutcases cover legal topics in the British legal system and transnational topics. The Law Library only collects the transnational topics. Nutcases give a straightforward presentation of the law followed by the basic facts and key principles of major cases. Additional commentary summarizes and ties together the key points.

Nutshells are short, paperback volumes that present a simple, no-frills overview of an area of law. Nutshells provide few, if any, references to other sources and are considered the most basic secondary source on a legal topic. They are quite helpful for non-lawyers and law students just beginning to study an area of law. All nutshells published by West include the word "nutshell" in the title. Never cite a nutshell in a legal document.