Free Sites for Legal Research : Pennsylvania

videos and live-feeds posted online by Pennsylvania Cable Network. Requires subscription. Law Library has subscription available for faculty who wish to show a recording to students.

"While not all cases were migrated, this chart will provide a general guideline as to the age of a criminal case available from the Court of Common Pleas Web Docket Sheet."

The Right-to-Know Law (“RTKL”) provides that the Office of Opens Records (“OOR”) shall issue Advisory Opinions to both agencies and requestors. An Advisory Opinion provides an official written response to a question about the interpretation and application of the RTKL based on a specified set of facts provided to our Office. The purpose of an Advisory Opinion is to provide written guidance to an agency or requester that may be relied upon in taking action. Advisory Opinions cannot be provided in response to questions about actions already taken.

Locate a business by name or Tax ID number; view company status, date established, contact information and order copies of filed documents (for a fee).

Official open data repository for the city and incorporates data from other organizations in the region--over 320 datasets provided. Examples include: Police Advisory Commission Complaints by year, Locations of Red Light Cameras, City Facilities list (description of all properties owned or leased by city), Air Quality Index Data going back to 1990 and many others. Search by Topic, contributing organization, file format or keyword.

From the PA Historical and Museum Commission

Search by name, inmate number, committing county, location etc.

The "mission of the Office of Open Records is to implement and enforce the state’s Right-to-Know Law (RTKL) and serve as a source for citizens, agencies, public officials and members of the media in obtaining public records of their government." View the linked "Citizen's guide" for an overview

Search for ownership and valuation information via address or owner.

From the PA Historical and Museum Commission

Browse by topic

Search datasets for Pittsburgh and surrounding area; browse by topic or contributing organization.

Commentary on current PA legislative bills authored by press from the Pennsylvania News Media Association. Must register for free subscription.

Search by County.

Archived snapshots of PA agency websites from particular points in time. Track how information has evolved or agency names/employees have changed over time.

Links to some PA & NJ municipal codes

Archived snapshots of PA agency websites from particular points in time. Track how information has evolved or agency names/employees have changed over time.

Unofficial but links to many PA & NJ municipal codes

From the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University. Offers links to a spreadsheet of all green building municipal laws for both public and private buildings. Also links to New York state and local green building laws.

From the Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development. Search for officials by job title or municipality. Also provides access to county financial and tax information as well as demographic information.

Offers free links to the municipal codes for some municipalities in the US. Includes updates describing annual changes. New Jersey list includes: Audobon, Elizabeth, and Tewksbury Township. Also offers subscription service that lets you search across jurisdictions.

List of law schools providing open access to their law journals via Digital Commons repositories. Currently participating Pennsylvania schools include the University of Pennsylvania and Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law.

Covers volumes 1-91 (1929-2020). Indexes articles by article title, author and subject. Does not include full text articles.

The Pennsylvania Bar Association offers these informational pamphlets to the public. Note they are general information, not legal advice.