One of the strongest parts of the entire South Slavic collection comprises legal materials numbering over 6% of the entire Serbian collection. Official government documents, laws, parliamentary minutes, and other legal materials represent sources much used by all branches of the U.S. government, as well as by legal scholars and practitioners interested in this part of the world. With the extensive immigration of South Slavs into the United States after World War II, this collection has been heavily used by former citizens of these countries through their representatives in the U.S. Congress, in support of all kinds of legal research from cases of inheritance and political persecution to divorce and civil cases.
The Law Library of Congress has a deep collection of former Yugoslav and Serbian laws, court decisions, commentaries, and a nearly complete run of the official gazettes Službene novine, 1919-1944 and Službeni glasnik, from 1945 to the present day. The Law Library also has many books and studies on various legal topics relating to Serbia, and long runs of legal periodicals from several historical eras such as Revija za kriminologiju i krivično pravo [Review of Criminology and Criminal Law], Pravni zapisi [Legal Records], Pravna misao [Legal Thought], and Harmonius: journal of legal and social studies in South East Europe from Beograd.
In addition to collecting works on Serbian law, since the 1950s the Law Library has published a number of works related to some legal aspect of former Yugoslav law such as forced labor, nationalities, and foreign investment. These titles are listed in the section of this guide for Publications by the Library of Congress on Serbia and also in the guide to Law Online for Serbia.
Guide to Law Online: SerbiaThe Law Library of Congress contains the world’s largest collection of law books and legal resources. It is a repository for the complete record of American law and holds foreign law materials covering all major national, state, and equivalent jurisdictions. In 1832, the Law Library was officially established to provide the United States Congress and Supreme Court with access to current and accurate legal research materials. Over time, our mission was expanded to include other branches of the U.S. Government, the public, and the global legal community. This evolving mission is supported by a collection of around three million volumes and brings together the expertise of approximately 100 lawyers, librarians, other professionals, and support staff who provide legal reference, research, and analysis using the Law Library’s collection. We also draw upon the collections and expertise of our colleagues throughout the Library of Congress.
