Statute Search
Full-text search across 2.1 million current statute sections — every US state, the District of Columbia, the US Code, the Code of Federal Regulations, and the complete federal statutes of Canada in both English and French — retrieved from each jurisdiction's official source and held in Recording Law's own legal record. Results show the operative statutory language, whether the section is in force, and where to read it in full.
What This Searches
The index covers the codified statutes of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the complete United States Code, the Code of Federal Regulations, every consolidated federal Act of Canada plus the statutes of British Columbia and Ontario, the United Kingdom statute book (Acts and statutory instruments in force, from legislation.gov.uk), core European Union instruments from EUR-Lex, and the principal Commonwealth Acts of Australia from the Federal Register of Legislation — 58 jurisdictions in one search. Every section was retrieved from the jurisdiction's official publisher, and each result links back to that official source. Canadian federal Acts are held in both English and French, exactly as Parliament enacts them. Sections that have been repealed, recodified, or reserved are labeled rather than hidden, because knowing a law is dead is as important as finding a live one.
A few states publish their codes only through commercial platforms; for those, our record is built from the most recent official bulk releases and is labeled with its as-of date wherever it appears. Where a section backs one of our articles, the result links the article too — that is where we explain what the law means in practice.
How to Search Statutes Well
Statutes rarely use everyday words. A law about recording phone calls says “intercept a wire, oral, or electronic communication”; a law about revenge porn says “nonconsensual dissemination of a private image.” If a plain-language phrase comes up empty, try the formal term of art, or start from one of our articles — every article's “The Law Behind This Article” section names the exact provisions and links back here. Quoted phrases (“security deposit”) match exactly; multiple words match sections containing all of them; OR between words broadens the search. Narrowing to one jurisdiction sharpens results dramatically.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does the statute text come from?
Every section is retrieved from the official publisher for that jurisdiction: state legislature websites, uscode.house.gov for the US Code, the eCFR for federal regulations, and Justice Canada’s official consolidated XML for Canadian federal Acts (reproduced under the Reproduction of Federal Law Order, SI/97-5 — not an official version). Each result links the official source, and for a small number of states whose codes are published only through commercial platforms, our record is built from the most recent official bulk release and labeled with its as-of date.
Is this the current version of the law?
Each section carries the date its text speaks as of, shown wherever it appears on this site. Most jurisdictions are current to recent months; a few are labeled with an earlier snapshot date. Statutes also change: always confirm at the official source linked with every result before relying on a section, and treat anything labeled Repealed or Amended accordingly.
Why can I only see an excerpt of the section?
Search results show the matching passage in context. The full, authoritative text lives at the official government source linked on every result, which is also where you should read a section before relying on it.
Can I search cases or regulations too?
Federal regulations (the CFR) are included. Court opinions are not part of this search yet — our articles cite and explain the key cases interpreting each statute.
Is this legal advice?
No. This is a research tool over the text of the law. What a statute means for your situation depends on facts, case law, and context a search cannot assess. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction.
This tool searches Recording Law's own record of US statutory law, built from official sources. It is general legal information, not legal advice. Statutory text can change at any time; the official source linked with each result is authoritative. RecordingLaw.com is not a law firm and is not affiliated with any government body.
Know someone who could use this? Share this free tool: