The Wisconsin State Law Library exists to serve the legal information needs of the officers and employees of this state, attorneys, and the public by providing the highest quality of professional expertise in the selection, maintenance, and use of materials, information and technology in order to facilitate equal access to the law. To carry out our mission, we offer a wide array of services.

The Wisconsin State Law Library's main location is the Lavinia Goodell State Law Library, located in Madison, Wisconsin. Open to the public, this library location provides access to specialized databases, current legal practice materials, scanners and computer technology, and historical collections. The library manages a busy reference service, responding to legal questions and research needs from all over the state. 

Under contractual arrangements with Milwaukee and Dane Counties, the State Law Library manages the Milwaukee County Law Library and Dane County Law Library. These libraries are conveniently located in each county's courthouse. Small but bustling, our county branches provide a wide array of reference and information services to judges and court staff, county employees, attorneys, and self-represented litigants. Both maintain core print collections of primary and secondary Wisconsin resources and have public computers with access to Books Unbound (State Bar of Wisconsin's database), HeinOnline, Westlaw, and more.

Whether you need a specific piece of information or some guidance in finding materials in the library or navigating a legal research website, our reference staff will do their best to help you. Anyone may use our general reference service, available in person as well as by email, phone, fax, and mail. (Please note that library staff cannot give legal advice.) For judges and attorneys, we also offer case law and citator research services.

Phone: 608-267-9696

Email: wsll.ref@wicourts.gov

We offer free classes covering basic legal research procedures as well as specialized tools and databases. Most classes are held online while some are in-person in the Lavinia Goodell State Law Library computer training room, which is equipped with eight computers for hands-on learning. To view the current class schedule, visit our Classes page.

Our staff can track down and deliver all types of legal information - whether it's a copy of a case, an article, a book, a government publication, or some other print or electronic document from our own collections or elsewhere. If it's published, printed, posted, or recorded, we can probably locate it for you. Delivery options include email, fax, mail, UPS, and FedEx. Visit our Order a Document page for more information.