The Law Library Staff prepares "Research Frequently Asked Questions" (FAQs) for the convenience of our users to provide access to a variety of sources addressing particular points of law. These are general legal information sources, and are not to be construed as a substitute for personal legal advice from an attorney. Please seek legal counsel to help you determine the applicability of any of the information in these resources to your specific situation. The Law Library makes no recommendation as to whether you should purchase any services offered by the websites contained in this FAQ.
General Tips
The foolproof way to find an Ohio case is to have a full or partial citation for the case. Example: Rutledge v. Johns, 2010-Ohio-6472, 2010 WL 5550253 (Ohio App 8th Dist. 2010). This cite includes the full title of the case, the Ohio Supreme Court web cite, a parallel citation to Westlaw, and the date of the opinion. Or you could check the citation at The Legal Information Institute's Read It Online site.
If not all of this information is available, answer as many of these four
questions as you can:
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Is the case in state court or federal court?
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Is the case a trial court case or has an appeal been taken?
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Do you know the name of one or both parties?
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Do you know approximately what date the case was filed or decided?
Print Reporters & Fee Based Services
State Court System
Trial Courts:
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Printed Opinions: The source for selected opinions is Ohio Miscellaneous Reports, first and second series, which are available in law libraries.
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Fee Based Services: Lexis+, Westlaw, Trellis and other online databases provide access to selected trial court opinions.
Appellate Courts:
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Printed Opinions: Printed opinions are contained in various case reporters found in law libraries.
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Fee Based Services: Lexis+, Westlaw and other online databases provide access to appellate court opinions.
Ohio Supreme Court:
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Printed Opinions: Printed opinions are contained in various case reporters found in law libraries.
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Fee Based Services: Lexis+, Westlaw and other online databases provide access to Ohio Supreme Court decisions.
Federal Court System
The local trial court is the United States District Court for the Northern
District of Ohio.
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Printed Opinions: Printed opinions (about 10% of the cases) appear in the Federal Supplement series of reporters available in law libraries.
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Fee Based Services: Lexis+, Westlaw and other online databases provide access to district court cases.
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Web Opinions: See Internet Legal Websites: Federal courts.
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Recent case dockets that may include opinions are available through a fee-based service called Pacer at www.pacer.gov/psco/cgi-bin/links.pl
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Copies of opinions can be requested directly from the Court through the Court’s home page.
The federal appellate court for Ohio is the Sixth
Circuit Court of Appeals, which also includes Michigan, Kentucky and
Tennessee.
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Printed Opinions: Printed opinions (about 50% of cases) are available in the Federal Reporter series, which is available in law libraries.
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Fee Based Services: Lexis+, Westlaw and other online databases provide access to appellate decisions.
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Web Opinions: See Internet Legal Websites: Federal courts.
Supreme Court of the United States
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Printed Opinions: Printed opinions of the Supreme Court of the United States are available in various series available in law libraries.
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Fee Based Services: Lexis+, Westlaw and other online databases provide access to U.S. Supreme Court decisions.
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Web Opinions: See Internet Legal Websites: Federal courts.