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Simple English definitions for legal terms
citator
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A quick definition of citator:
A citator is a tool that helps people who study law to check if a law or a court decision is still valid and if it has been used in other cases. It is like a list of references that shows where a law or a court decision has been mentioned or used in other cases. Citators used to be printed on paper and stuck next to the original document, but now they are available online. Two popular citators are Shepard's and KeyCite.
A more thorough explanation:
A citator is a tool used in legal research to determine the current status and precedential value of cases, statutes, and other legal sources. It is a catalogued list that shows the subsequent history of these sources.
Citators help researchers to:
- Verify the authority of a precedent
- Find additional sources related to a given subject
Citators were originally printed on gummed paper and pasted next to the report of a cited case. Today, they are published in volumes and are also available online. The two most popular citators are Shepard's and KeyCite.
For example, if a lawyer is researching a case that cites a particular statute, they can use a citator to determine if that statute has been amended, repealed, or otherwise affected by subsequent legislation or court decisions. This information can help the lawyer to determine the current status and precedential value of the statute.