The Use of Non-Legal Authority in Legal Analysis: Critiquing Margolis' Assertion

Challenges of Citing Non-Legal Authority in Legal Analysis

 Critically discuss the statement below from the standpoint of legal research. “While some courts have balked at the citation of nonlegal authority in support of legal analysis, its use is on the rise, and many courts are clearly accepting and using nonlegal authority. The problems with citation to online materials are legion. There is often no way to authenticate sources, links may become inactive, and website content is subject to change. Despite these drawbacks, for the generations that are used to easy access to legal and nonlegal information of all kinds, there is no going back”. (E. Margolis, ‘Authority Without Borders: The World Wide Web and the Delegalization of Law’, 41 Seton Hall Law Review (2011) 909, at 944, footnotes omitted) . A useful short guide is here:  One of the assessment criteria for this coursework is a requirement to write to a specified word length (see below) as it is an important professional skill for any aspiring lawyer. Students should declare the word count on the first page (or cover page) of their assessed work. Note that footnotes are NOT included in the word count. Footnotes should only be used for referencing purposes and not for substantive comments or argument, and footnotes containing any additional information or discussion will not be read. The word count does NOT include the required front sheet, contents page, the bibliography or any appendices. For the avoidance of doubt, your bibliography should list/collate only the material you refer to in your substantive piece (i.e. your references); it is NOT a list of all the material you have read in order to construct your answer. Learning and Teaching Service Staff may check the accuracy of your stated word count. Students are permitted to go up to 10% over the word limit without penalty. However, the ability to write concisely is considered a key legal skill. Where a student exceeds the word limit by more than 10%, there will be a deduction of 10 marks off the original mark. In addition, the marker is only obliged to read up to the 10% limit but is not obliged to read beyond it. There shall be no deduction of marks or other penalty where an item of coursework otherwise does not meet the expected word length. However, it is important to remember that failing to provide sufficient material, producing material that lacks focus or including material that is irrelevant will probably result in a lower mark on the basis of the lack of academic merit of the work submitted. Reading List : International law theories: an inquiry into different ways of thinking – Book - by Andrea Bianchi - 2016 - Core Reading Research methods for law Book - edited by Michael McConville; Wing Hong Chui - 2017 - Core Reading Research methodologies in EU and international law Book - by Robert Cryer; Tamara K. Hervey; Bal Sokhi-Bulley; Alexandra Böhm - 2011 - Core Reading Methodologies of legal research: which kind of method for what kind of discipline? Book - by Mark van Hoecke - 2011 - Core Reading • if you want me to provide you with learning materials( which are presentations) let me know please.