Legal periodicals can be very helpful in obtaining background information on an issue. These articles often discuss subjects that are too new or specialized to be covered in books. Scholarship by prominent authors can be considered persuasive authority or can provide contemporary perspective on long-standing issues. The extensive usage of footnotes in legal articles often provides another layer of valuable research.

In addition to searching for full-text articles on Westlaw, LexisNexis and Bloomberg Law, Index to Legal Periodicals and Hein Online are excellent databases for locating legal periodicals.