Begin with the legal question
Use Lex to investigate an unfamiliar area, find relevant authorities or return to a case you partly remember. Legal-source research and cited responses give you material to examine as your question develops.
Research connects those sources to the legal framework and the facts of the matter. The distinctions below help shape that enquiry.
Sri Lanka’s mixed legal heritage
Sri Lankan research draws on several connected traditions: Roman-Dutch law, English common-law influences, constitutional and statutory law, and personal-law systems. The applicable framework matters as much as the search terms.
The source collection draws on these traditions, including material associated with Voet, Grotius and Van Leeuwen, alongside legislation and local decisions. The research question should guide which sources you examine and the weight you give them.
Read legislation in context
A provision may need to be read alongside the Constitution, another enactment, an amendment or a Gazette instrument. A useful research trail therefore includes more than the first matching section.
Check the date relevant to your matter, the version of the text and any changes affecting it. Questions about higher and lower authority, later enactments and specific provisions should be investigated explicitly.
Examine the authority behind an answer
In case research, distinguish the issue decided from observations made along the way. Consider the court, material facts, reasoning and later treatment, as well as the relationship between binding and persuasive authority.
Use Lex to help locate material for that examination. Confirm the ratio, read relevant passages in full and investigate later decisions. Questions involving prior proceedings or res judicata also depend on the specific record and procedural context.
Keep personal-law questions specific
Kandyan law, Thesawalamai and Muslim personal law are substantive parts of Sri Lanka’s legal landscape. Questions about marriage, property or succession may require close attention to the governing framework and the parties’ circumstances.
Frame the question around the parties, relevant facts and governing law, then examine the primary sources that address it.
Use comparative sources with care
The archive’s comparative scope includes the United Kingdom, India, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Their relevance depends on the issue and its connection to Sri Lankan law, including the shared Roman-Dutch tradition with South Africa.
Scholarship and commentary can help explain that context. They should remain distinguishable from legislation and judicial authority. Explore the source categories. Review cited sources before relying on an answer; Responsible use provides a practical checklist.