Family law in Pennsylvania changed dramatically in 1980 when the General Assembly passed legislation which essentially replaced the existing law addressing divorce. Eventually, court cases and statutory amendments followed. While publishers have produced many volumes to help attorneys keep track of these developments, the amount of secondary material can sometimes seem overwhelming, especially for those new to the practice of family law. This article will focus on the major tools available in print and will highlight those resources that should help attorneys conduct research quickly and efficiently.

Encyclopedias
Encyclopedias offer a general overview of the law. They are helpful when attorneys have to leave their specialized area of practice to handle an unfamiliar situation. The standard set for Pennsylvania is, of course, the Pennsylvania Law Encyclopedia (Lexis Law Publishing).

Another title, which works very much like an encyclopedia, is the Summary of Pennsylvania Jurisprudence 2d (v.15, Family Law, West Group, 1994, supp.1999). It presents relevant statutes and caselaw in a textual fashion. Besides giving a summary of the law, it contains commentary and practice guides. For example, the sections on "Grounds for Involuntary Termination of Parental Rights" (Sections 9:25 - 9:36) have case annotations, illustrations of points of law, cautions and reminders. Each section begins with references to other pertinent citations from sources such as American Jurisprudence 2d and Am Jur Pleadings and Practice Forms. Summary of Pennsylvania Jurisprudence 2d offers a valuable overview and provides a good starting point, which will lead researchers to other useful material.

Citators
Certain resources exist to help attorneys speedily access primary law, such as statutes, cases and rules. One of these is the Pennsylvania Divorce and Domestic Relations Reporter (LRP Publications). This reporter primarily covers family law cases from the Pennsylvania appellate level, but does include selected cases from the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas as well. This source actually provides the full text of cases, unlike many other citators. In addition, cases are easily accessible.

The editors at LRP have developed their own indexing system with headnotes. It allows attorneys to pinpoint cases on a very specific topic, but for those unfamiliar with the system, the book also has a traditional subject index. Besides caselaw, Pennsylvania Divorce and Domestic Relations Reporter reprints relevant statutes and rules. This loose-leaf service is kept current with semi-monthly updates.

Practice Manuals
Perhaps the most important type of secondary reference material available is the practice manual. One of the best places to start is Pennsylvania Bar Institute's series on family law practice. PBI publishes several volumes covering domestic relations practice in counties throughout the state, including Central Pennsylvania, Western Pennsylvania and Lehigh Valley. In addition, the Philadelphia County Domestic Relations Practice manual is specific to Philadelphia County. These manuals contain statutes, rules and forms in all major areas of family law, and practice tips from professionals practicing in those counties.

While these books discuss the basic information needed for practicing, they are not very detailed. For more complicated situations, the practice manual discussed below might be more appropriate. Pennsylvania Matrimonial Practice by Jack A. Rounick and Gary J. Friedlander (West Group) aims to provide both technical and practical information. It is extremely thorough. The statutory section, for example, not only reproduces the statutes, but also gives legislative history and analogous caselaw. In other areas it contains forms, sample letters and articles. It has a detailed table of contents as well as a subject index, which enable researchers to locate information easily.

Forms
Many treatises contain forms tailored for the Pennsylvania family lawyer, but only a few books are published solely for that purpose. Saul Levit's Pennsylvania Domestic Relations Forms: Practice (Lexis Law Publishing) is one of those few books. This loose-leaf source is updated annually. Levit covers all major topics of family law from annulments to custody proceedings. In addition to providing sample forms, the book has textual material that should help lead attorneys to relevant statutes, court rules, and caselaw. The book has a good topic index, as well as an index to caselaw. It also has a computer disk, which can be downloaded and edited.

Other form books focus solely on a particular aspect of family law. Pennsylvania Family Law Discovery Forms, by Carol A. Behers and Robert Raphael (Pennsylvania Bar Institute) is an example of this type of book. It is also a loose-leaf product containing interrogatories, requests for production of documents and other discovery forms, which might be difficult to find in a more general publication.

Newsletters
Because the law can change so quickly, attorneys will find PBA's Pennsylvania Family Lawyer a valuable resource. It is a newsletter, which is designed to keep attorneys current on any new developments. A typical issue contains case notes on recent litigation, legislative news and articles. This publication allows attorneys to keep up to date on trends in the law, as well as stay in touch with the family law section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

CLE
In conjunction with its continuing legal education courses, PBI produces many books each year covering various family law topics. Some of these concentrate on more specific or unusual areas of the law. For example, Collateral Actions In Family Law: Tax Fraud, Criminal Actions & Bankruptcy covers topics which family lawyers might come across, but are not normally part of their practice (i.e. wiretapping, abuse etc.). This book explains how to handle these situations when they arise. Domestic and Matrimonial Torts points to the value of considering this cause of action to assist with damages. Divorcing the Elderly makes attorneys familiar with issues involving health insurance and retirement benefits, which are often important when advising the elderly. These three titles alone suggest the variety of PBI publications. When a researcher has difficulty finding an answer in the manuals or form books, it is a good idea to turn to PBI for guidance.

Conclusion
Family law is an area of Pennsylvania practice that is rich in resources. The volumes discussed above only begin to skim the surface. They were selected to represent the types of available items, which I have found useful in helping attorneys. There are other useful books that couldn't be discussed due to space constrains, but I would recommend browsing the shelves of your nearest law library to discover even more valuable publications for family law research. In addition, I have only discussed print materials, because this traditional medium still provides the most comprehensive and reliable research tools for family law, but the Internet continues to offer more and more reference options.