Legal Research and Writing:  Ted Tjaden

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Law-Related Movies

Since I am an avid fan of movies, I have included on this site an updated version of law-related movies that I had created for my students when I was teaching legal research and writing at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law.

The 202 law-related movies listed on this site have been arbitrarily limited to those that contain one or more of the following features: interesting courtroom scenes, portrayal of lawyers, themes of justice or liberty, or discussion of substantive legal issues. Generally excluded are films with a focus on political issues or crime. I have recently started to also add selected lawyer-related dramas/series available on Netflix Canada and Prime Video.

The pages on this site are divided into the following topics:

• "A to Z" List of Law-Related Movies
• Movies Organized by Substantive Law Subject
• Comedies
• Court Martial Movies
• Courtroom Dramas
• Documentaries
• Inspirational Lawyer Movies
• Prison-Related Movies
• Top 10

For more extensive lists of law-related movies, see any of the following:

• Paul Mastrangelo, "Lawyers and the Law: A Filmography" (1983) 3 Leg Ref Serv Q 31.

• Paul Mastrangelo, "Lawyers and the Law: A Filmography II" (1986) 5 Leg Ref Serv Q 5.

• Paul Mastrangelo, "Lawyers and the Law: A Television Filmography" (1988) 8 Leg Ref Serv Q 135.

• Tarlton Law Library: Law and Lawyers in Popular Culture

• The Oklahoma Legal Group Blog: "Best Legal Movies of All Time" (13 January 2014). Contains a detailed infographic ranking law-related movies by Oscar / Academic Awards, among other things.

• Michael Asimow, "Bad Lawyers in the Movies" (2000) 24 Nova Law Review 533 (HeinOnline version)

• Law-Related Movies Blog

• ABA’s 25 Greatest Legal Movies and list of 25 Honorable Mentions

See also:

• Paul Bergman & Michael Asimow, Reel Justice, The Courtroom Goes to the Movies (Kansas City: Andrew McMell, 2006).

• Sonia Buck, "Movie Therapy for Law Students (and Their Instructors)" (2011) 36 Can Law Lib Rev 64 (HeinOnline version).

• Sonia Buck, Movie Therapy for Law Students (and Pre-Law, Paralegal, and Related Majors) (Bloomington, IN: Authorhouse, 2009).

• Kent Kauffman, Movie Guide to Legal Studies, 2nd ed (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2011).

In addition, the Faculty Lounge blog has a number of entries relating to law-related movies (click here).

Send recommendations for titles to be added to owner@legalresearchandwriting.ca.

 

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Last updated: January 2024    |    Legal / Terms of Use    |    Ted Tjaden © 2010-2024

Legal Research and Writing:
4th Edition

by Ted Tjaden

Softcover 512 pgs.
Published: January 2016
ISBNs:
Paperback: 978-1-55221-414-5
e-book: 978-1-55221-415-2

Purchase here

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Irwin Law: Canadian Online Legal Dictionary (click here)