Death by Undue Means: Coroners’ Records

Death by Undue Means: Coroners’ Records

From colonial times to today, death not attributable to natural causes required investigation. Elected or appointed coroners worked with local juries to determine more about what caused each death. Learn more about coroners’ records and how to use them in genealogy.

The Legal Genealogist Judy G. Russell is a genealogist with a law degree who writes and lectures on topics ranging from using court records in family history to understanding DNA testing. On the faculty of numerous genealogy institutes, she is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Board for Certification of Genealogists®, from which she holds credentials as a Certified Genealogist® and Certified Genealogical Lecturer℠.

The Discriminating Genealogist: Telling Good Evidence from Bad

The Discriminating Genealogist: Telling Good Evidence from Bad

The “best evidence” rule in law requires the presentation in court of an original rather than a copy, and a copy won’t even be admitted if the original is available. In genealogy, our rules require us to do the same: to discriminate, choose in favor of, prefer certain types of evidence to others, certain bits of information to others, certain sources to others. That sounds right, but just how do we do that? What are the rules we follow, what do we need to know to do this right, and what tools are available to help us? Those are the focus of this presentation.

The Legal Genealogist Judy G. Russell is a genealogist with a law degree who writes and lectures on topics ranging from using court records in family history to understanding DNA testing. On the faculty of numerous genealogy institutes, she is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Board for Certification of Genealogists®, from which she holds credentials as a Certified Genealogist® and Certified Genealogical Lecturer℠. Her award-winning blog is at http://www.legalgenealogist.com.

Facts, Photos and Fair Use: Copyright Law for Genealogists

Materials and records created by others are the bread-and-butter of genealogy. But whether copyright law allows use of old photographs, reports and articles can be murky at best. Understanding what is and isn’t copyrighted and what genealogists can and can’t use is the key to staying out of trouble and to protecting our own work.

The Legal Genealogist Judy G. Russell is a genealogist with a law degree. She writes, teaches and lectures on a wide variety of genealogical topics, ranging from using court records in family history to understanding DNA testing. A Colorado native with roots deep in the American south on her mother’s side and entirely in Germany on her father’s side, she is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, the National Genealogical Society and numerous state and regional genealogical societies.

Courthouse Research

That First Trip to the Courthouse

If there is one home truth in genealogy research, it’s this: not everything is available online. Sooner or later, every genealogist has got to make that first trip to the courthouse to check out the original records available there. How to prepare for that trip, the rules of the road, what to expect, what to ask for, and how to be sure you’ll be welcomed back the next time are explored in this lecture. 

The Legal Genealogist Judy G. Russell is a genealogist with a law degree. She writes, teaches, and lectures on a wide variety of genealogical topics, ranging from using court records in family history to understanding DNA testing. A Colorado native with roots deep in the American south on her mother’s side and entirely in Germany on her father’s side, she is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, the National Genealogical Society and numerous state and regional genealogical societies. She has written for the National Genealogical Society Quarterly and National Genealogical Society Magazine, among other publications. On the faculty of the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research in Alabama, and the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh, she is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, from which she holds credentials as a Certified Genealogist℠ and Certified Genealogical Lecturer℠.