LEGAL RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES AND HOW TO BETTER THEM

AUTHOR- YASH DHIKLE *

EDITOR- RIYA LUHADIA & MURTUZA GADYALI

INTRODUCTION

Research means studying and analyzing existing information for numerous purposes, either understanding, describing, or illuminating a forsaken cause or a new idea. Likewise, legal research examines a law to describe or analyze its effects, enforcement, and merits.

In the journey as a law student, research is used while interning, legal writing either a research paper or article, creating a memoir in moot court competitions, paper presentations, and in other varied contests or challenges. Legal analysis is what distinguishes good performers from underachievers. Legal research stays with us at every step of our legal career, either in litigation or corporate field or as an in-house counsel, judge, NGO, or other legal nature.Each of these contexts often requires specific research skills and orientation. The value of solid foundational elements in legal methodology is hence rewarding in the long term.

DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES OF LEGAL RESEARCH

There are many methods to conduct legal research; moots, internships, research papers, law practice, conducting a socio-legal study, and many more. But in a broader sense, legal research is conducted by following the two mentioned methodologies-

● We could be asked to find an answer to a legal question, or we could be given a proposition of law and asked to find authorities to support the proposal. This is called analytical or doctrinal research; in this, we need to analyze an existing law and make an argument after studying the scholarly research. E.g., Are fake news unconstitutional? In such topics, we have to analyze and study the existing law and commit to it.

● We should also focus on legal questions but with a social angle to them. These questions can only be solved by studying laws along with their impact or repercussions. This form is called empirical research. It also includes other aspects of law like its evolution and morality; this research requires us to go beyond the legal field and study varied elements like the primary cause of its happening prospective and retrospective effect from the source itself.

TYPES OF APPROACHES TO CARRY LEGAL RESEARCH

One can decide a specific approach to carry out his/her research; this helps, and this brings clarity and narrows down topics from the literature review. There are five broad theoretical perspectives on legal research-

● Positivism- Positivists are researchers who believe in facts as opposed to opinions. They think facts can be found empirically and are objective. On the other hand, they believe opinions are subjective, and it is impossible to find truth in them. They believe things that are not facts, like values, should not be searched as they are subjective and cannot be called 'true.'

● Interpretivism- This approach is anti-positivist; it believes that the natural/real world and the social worlds are very different. While positivism is used to study the natural world; capable of complex empirical analysis, it cannot be used in the social world, which is composed of subjective things like ideas and emotions.

● Critical- Critical research is carried out by analyzing and spotting existing power structures. A critical researcher believes that existing values, social structures are not neutral; they reflect power. They study social values and structures critically.

● Postmodernism- Postmodernists believe that there is no clear reality at any given point. They believe reality is not constant, and it keeps evolving every day. The primary research carried out by postmodernists is to examine other research that pretends to convey reality. They believe research is a tool used by someone to express his/her values.

HOW TO BECOME A BETTER RESEARCHER

Legal researchers who shine above the rest are unwilling to let go of a question until they track down the answer. Contextually what the research is doing is a paramount quality; a good researcher generates research that helpfully transforms the world.

Relevance also plays a significant role; one should focus on what is happening in society rather than what is written in a book. One should also acknowledge limitations as honestly as possible; researchers who communicate the limitations of their analysis, possible sources of error are the ones who strike a chord with people.

Steps that can help us make our research better and process easier-

• Title- Framing the title and research question is one of the essential steps; this decides our research's further direction. It is generally advised to pick a topic that interests us. Some questions to ask ourselves before finalizing the topic- Can we study the topic? It refers to the capability and availability of resources for a researcher. How will our research impact society?

• Structure- Framing the research is very important as it acts as a compass to guide us. It includes framing research questions, deciding methodology, methods to collect data, presentation of the research.

• Authenticate - Verify the information from various sources like bare acts, other statutes, book precedents, and even parliamentary debates. It is advised not to trust secondary sources like articles and to always cross-check with the primary source of information, either bare acts, Legislations, Government Sites, and many more.

• Manage citations- Often, we read something, and then we forget about the source or maybe use it at the wrong place; that is why it is always advised to cite the information there and then or use a citation management app like Zotero.

CONCLUSION

In the end, each researcher is different, and each research project is unique. A researcher should study and examine the different methods, but he/she should not limit themselves to it. Grit and diligence remain the qualities with utmost importance for legal research of any sort.

*The Author is a 1st year BLS LLB student at Government Law College Mumbai.

Disclaimer: The opinions and views in this article are personal and independent opinions of the author. VAIDHA doesn't hold any liability arising out of this article.