Nevada Supreme Court Law Library: Uniform & Model Laws

This guide helps you learn how to find and research uniform laws, which are laws made to be the same in different states. The Uniform Law Commission (ULC) started in 1892 and creates these laws to make state laws clearer and more consistent. States can use these laws exactly as they are or change them to fit their needs. You can find these laws on the ULC’s website or in special books and online resources like Westlaw and HeinOnline. The guide also shows how to find Nevada’s version of these laws.

Uniform Laws

• Uniform Laws are carefully drafted model laws for potential enactment by state legislatures.
  • State legislatures can reject them, enact them in their entirety, enact only a few provisions, or enact the laws with minor modifications. One of the most famous examples is the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC).

Model Laws

• Model Acts and Model Codes are similar to Uniform Laws but may be proposed by any individual or organization including the American Bar Association, the American Law Institute, or the Uniform Law Commission (ULC).
  • In comparison to Uniform Laws, Model Acts are generally used as a basis for designing state laws. They are rarely enacted exactly as written.

Uniforms laws may be found for free from the ULC’s website. They are also published as part of West’s Uniform Laws Annotated, or ULA (also discussed in a later section). They may also be found on HeinOnline (access available in the Law Library only).