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 chapters by Julie Graves Krishnaswami, Nicholas Mignanelli, Nicholas Stump, and Yasmin Sokkar Harker, alongside editor Susan Nevelow Mart, Legal Research Unbound brings together leading voices in law librarianship and legal information scholarship. 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.

Critical Perspectives

Encourages students to question algorithms, data sources, and the power structures underlying legal information.

Accessible & Engaging

Uses the comic book format to make complex research theories approachable both first year and advanced students.

Perfect for the Classroom

Designed to supplement introductory and advanced legal research courses or stand alone as an engaging learning tool.

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 is designed for students, educators, and professionals who teach, study, or support legal research and information literacy, including:

Law students who want to understand not only how to find legal information but also how to think critically about the systems that shape it.
Legal research and writing instructors seeking engaging, accessible materials that encourage deeper discussion about algorithms, bias, and information access.
Law librarians and library educators looking to integrate critical legal information theory and human–computer interaction into their teaching.

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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