The USC Law Library's collection contains books and treatises that examine the powers of local governments in relation to state and federal law. Listed below are three of these publications that are particularly helpful in understanding the major legal issues related to local governments and identifying important cases that have addressed these issues.
This six volume treatise is the library's most comprehensive, in-depth, and current source that focuses on the topic of local government law. The treatise includes extensive references to state and federal cases and is regularly updated with looseleaf supplements.
This single volume book provides a more selective approach to the issues related to local government law, though it is heavily footnoted with references to cases and other sources. It is particularly useful for students studying this topic in a law school or law-related course.
This book provides the most concise treatment on the subject of local government law and contains very few references to specific cases. It is, however, a particularly useful source if you are looking for a quick overview of one or more of the key issues related to this topic.
Among the topics covered in these sources are the formation of local governments, limits on local government authority, municipal legislation, public officers and employees, local government finance, local operation of utilities, zoning, eminent domain, city planning, local regulation of individuals and businesses, and local government liability.
To find other books on the topic of local government law, you can search one or more library catalogs, including the USC Law Library catalog, ADVOCAT. The following are three standard main subject headings related to local government that are used in most catalogs, including ADVOCAT:
These main headings are subdivided further through subheadings (e.g., Local government -- Law and legislation -- California). When you enter one of these main headings as a "subject" search on ADVOCAT, you will retrieve an alphabetical list of all of the subdivisions. You can browse through this list and then choose the one(s) that best reflect(s) your research interest. Another option is to include one of these headings as part of a "keyword" search on ADVOCAT, since the subject headings are considered keywords in this catalog.
Other Helpful Secondary Sources
In addition to the subject specific sources listed above, standard secondary sources like legal encyclopedias, law journal articles, and American Law Reports often provide discussions of significant legal issues and cases related to local governments. For guidance on how to find relevant information in these types of sources, consult the USC Law Library guide How to Find Journal Articles.