lawyer

The first edition was published in 1891, and the second edition in 1910, long before the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary was completed in 1928. The sixth and earlier editions of the book also provided case citations for the term cited, which some lawyers view as its most useful feature, providing a useful starting point with leading cases. The Internet made legal research easier than it ever had been, so many state- or circuit-specific case citations and outdated or overruled case citations were dropped from the seventh edition in 1999. The eighth edition introduced a unique system of perpetually updated case citations and cross-references to legal encyclopedias. The ninth edition was published in the summer of .

Black's Law Dictionary has been used to create law dictionaries in other languages including Qanuni, Angrezi-Urdu lug?h?at. Blaiks la? dikshanari se mak?h?uz, published in Urdu in Islamabad by Muqtadirah-yi Qaumi Zaban in 1992, and Farhang-i ?uquqi-i Bahman. Ingilisi-Farsi. bar asas-i Black's law dictionary, published in Persian in Tehran by Ganj-i Danish in 1999.

Because many legal terms are derived from a Latin root word. the Dictionary gives a pronunciation guide for such terms. In addition, the applicable entries provide pronunciation transcriptions pursuant to those found among North American practitioners of law or medicine.

An online version of the latest edition can be accessed through the paid Westlaw legal information service and as of late 2006, West Academic has published Black's Law Dictionary Digital, 8th edition (ISBN 9780314176103) which has toolbars that integrate with Microsoft Word. Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer. The second edition of Black's Law Dictionary (1910) is now in the public domain. The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. has reprinted the first and second editions (ISBN 0-9630106-0-3 and ISBN 1-886363-10-2, respectively).

As of April 27, it is also available on the Apple iPhone and iPod touch.

• Bryan A. Garner. editor, Black's Law Dictionary 9th ed. (West Group, ) ISBN 0-314-19949-7.
• Bryan A. Garner. editor, Black's Law Dictionary 8th ed. (West Group, 2004) ISBN 0-314-15199-0.
• Bryan A. Garner. editor, Black's Law Dictionary 7th ed. (West Group, 1999) ISBN 0-314-22864-0.
• Black's Law Dictionary 6th ed. (West Publishing, 1990)
• Black's Law Dictionary 5th ed. (West Publishing, 1979) ISBN 0-8299-2041-2.
• Black's Law Dictionary, 4th ed. (St. Paul: West, 1951)
• Black's Law dictionary, 3d ed. (West Publishing Co. 1933)
• Bryan A. Garner. editor, Black's Law Dictionary 3d pocket ed. (West Group, 2006) ISBN 0-314-15862-6.
• Bryan A. Garner. editor, Black's Law Dictionary 2d pocket ed. (West Group, 2001) ISBN 0-314-25791-8.
• Black's Law Dictionary, 2d ed. (St. Paul, Minn. West Publishing, 1910) ISBN 1-886363-10-2 Public Domain (accessible for free through Google Book Search)
• Black's Law dictionary, 1st ed. (St. Paul, Minn. West Publishing, 1891) ISBN 0-9630106-0-3