California Legal Research

California administrative agencies may be established by the state constitution, or created by the legislature. Agencies are sometimes called commissions or boards. They have quasi-legislative power to enact regulations or rules. They also have quasi-judicial power to settle disputes with decisions, which may be referred to as decisions, opinions, or orders.

Here are some important resources that will introduce you to California admininstrative law:

Looking for current or proposed regulations?

Barclay's Official California Code of Regulations (CCR)
Contains the current rules and regulations of California administrative agencies. Regulations are grouped by subject and organized into 28 different titles. Title 24, the Building Code, is published separately as the California Building Standards Code. 

Available online:

California Regulatory Notice Register ("Z Register")
Proposed regulations are published in this weekly publication, popularly known as the "Z Register." Often includes substantial discussion of the reasons for a proposed rule, providing some evidence of regulatory intent.

Available online through the California Office of Administrative Law. You can also track proposed and new regulations through Westlaw and Lexis:

Looking for older regulations?

For help finding older regulations, see Finding Past Versions of a Regulation from the Office of Administrative Law, and this research guide from the UCLA law library:

Looking for disapproval decisions?

The Office of Administrative Law issues disapproval decisions when it rejects agency regulations for failing to comply with appropriate standards. Disapproval decisions from 2000 - present are available on the Office of Administrative Law's website:

Looking for decisions from a particular agency?

Some California administrative orders, decisions, and rulings are available through Westlaw and Lexis:

For a list of agency decisions published in print, see chapter 8 of Henke's California Law Guide (2006 8th ed.).

Executive orders and proclamations are available on the California governor's website:

For older executive orders and proclamations, see this research guide from the UCLA law library: