Researching the legislative history of a federal statute is the process of examining the reports and records of hearings and debates that preceded the enactment of a law in an effort to determine why Congress chose to write the law as it did. The need to examine the legislative history of a particular law usually arises in the context of litigation. The statute at issue may be ambiguous or have seemingly conflicting provisions.   If so, you may need to look to legislative history documents to find support for one interpretation or the other.

It is important to recognize that there is a doctrinal difference among jurists regarding both the value and the authority of determining "legislative intent" to aid in statutory interpretation.   Some judges find it to be an invaluable source, capable of shedding light on the legislature's motivations.   Others give it little or no weight, arguing that it is impossible to determine the intent of a legislative body made up of dozens or hundreds of individuals.   Therefore, you should make yourself aware of which camp your judge is in before introducing legislative history arguments in his/her courtroom.

Another point to keep in mind is that different legislative history documents have differing levels of authority and persuasiveness. (See Hierarchy of Authority.)  For instance, conference committee reports and committee reports tend to be the most persuasive type of legislative history authority.   That said, in practice it is important to remember to utilize whatever forces you can to support your argument and that just because a committee report is silent on or seems contrary to the issue you are litigating does not mean that other legislative documents cannot be used to support your position.

Because there is a vast amount of information, both government and commercial, available on federal legislative actions, you may be intimidated upon being assigned the task of compiling a legislative history for a federal statute. However, while the materials at times may be extensive, there are effective techniques and methods that will enable you to compile such a history in an efficient, timely, and cost-effective manner.