Legal Research Unbound

Edited by:

Susan Nevelow Mart

Professor Emeritus and former Director of the Law Library, Colorado Law

Adapted and illustrated by:

Tom O'Brien

Cartoonist and Illustrator

$39.95

HEIN'S FIRST
COMIC BOOK!

See legal research in a whole new light, one comic panel at a time.

A Fresh Approach to Teaching Legal Research

Legal Research Unbound invites law students to think critically about the systems and algorithms that shape how they find and understand legal information. Presented in a comic book format, this engaging text introduces concepts from critical legal information theory and human–computer interaction, making complex ideas approachable, visual, and fun to explore.

With key contributions from prominent legal scholars in the field:

Julie Graves Krishnaswami
Associate Law Librarian for Research Instruction; Lecturer, Yale Law School
Nicholas Mignanelli
Assistant Director for Reference, Lillian Goldman Law Library; Lecturer, Yale Law School
Nicholas F. Stump
Head of Research & Reference Services, George R. Farmer Jr., Law Library, West Virginia University College of Law
Yasmin Sokkar Harker
Librarian and Law Library Professor, CUNY Law

Together, they help students and educators understand not only how to research, but also why information appears as it does, and how to recognize and navigate bias and complexity in today’s AI-driven research platforms.

Explore Legal Research Unbound

Summary of Contents

Introduction
Chapter 1: Results May Vary
Chapter 2: Critical Information Theory: A New Foundation for Regulatory Research
Chapter 3: Rage Against the Machine Learning
Chapter 4: Critical Legal Research and the Law of Mountaintop Removal Mining
Afterward
Appendix

Legal Research Unbound prepares readers to navigate legal research in an AI-driven world. It’s ideal for:

Readers will learn to:

Spot bias in AI search tools
Understand how algorithms shape legal information
Verify automated answers
Approach legal research with greater accuracy and awareness

Chapter 1: Results May Vary

By: Susan Nevelow Mart
Leading scholar on algorithmic accountability

Understand why different research platforms deliver conflicting answers, and how to avoid missing key authority.

Reveals how algorithms and database design shape search results

Helps readers spot hidden bias and ranking choices

Teaches strategies for verifying results across multiple systems

Chapter 2: Critical Information Theory: A New Foundation for Regulatory Research

By: Julie Graves Krishnaswami

Expert in regulatory research and critical information literacy

Learn to navigate regulatory systems by understanding the political and structural forces behind agency actions.

Shows how power and transparency influence regulatory materials

Helps readers evaluate primary vs. secondary sources

Builds skills for uncovering the “story” behind a regulation

Chapter 3: Rage Against the Machine Learning

By: Nicholas Mignanelli

Scholar of legal tech and algorithmic systems

Understand how AI and machine learning reshape legal research, and how to question automated results.

Explains how AI tools embed human bias

Highlights the risks of over-reliance on ranking and prediction

Offers strategies for responsible use of legal AI tools

Chapter 4: Critical Legal Research & the Law of Mountaintop Removal Mining

By: Nicholas Stump

Specialist in critical legal research and environmental justice

See how critical legal research exposes hidden injustices through real-world, community-focused case studies.

Uses environmental justice as a lens for analyzing legal authority

Encourages researchers to question traditional sources

Demonstrates how research can support advocacy and reform

About the Editor

Susan Nevelow Mart

Susan Nevelow Mart is Professor Emeritus, University of Colorado Law School, and was the director of the William A. Wise Law Library at the Law School from 2011 to 2022. Her scholarly interests have focused on such issues of legal informatics as access to legal information, legal research pedagogy, human/computer interaction, and algorithmic accountability. Her most recent work focuses on user interfaces and AI.

About the Illustrator

Tom O'Brien

Tom O’Brien is a cartoonist and illustrator living in central Kansas. He received a Master’s in Cartoon Studies from the Center for Cartoon Studies in 2014. His comics fall on two ends of a wide spectrum, often being either fantasy or informative non-fiction. His work has been published in a variety of comics anthologies, as well as guides on liquor history, kitchen knife use and care, recipes, and a host of other informational pamphlets. In 2018, he was the co-editor of the superhero comics anthology, Who is the Shiluette? When not making comics, he does graphic design and plays RPGs. He lives in Hays with his partner Allison and their two cats, Wally and Nora.

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