Annotated codes add resources after the text of a statute to help researchers determine its relevance and to assist them with further research on the issue addressed by the statute.
The annotations added to the text of a statute in the South Carolina Code Annotated include:
For example, the annotations added to the text of section 41-10-50 of the South Carolina Payment of Wages Laws in the print South Carolina Code Annotated (on the right) include:
In addition to the volumes containing the 63 titles of the Code of Laws of South Carolina, the official print South Carolina Code Annotated also includes the volumes described below.
The SC General Assembly can enact state laws called local laws that apply to specific counties or municipalities only and are not published in the South Carolina Code Annotated. Local laws passed by the SC General Assembly are published in the SC Acts and Joint Resolutions.
For example, 1987 Act No. 263 provided that there would be no open season for hunting deer in a specific area in Marlboro and Dillon counties in South Carolina from September 15, 1987 through January 1, 1993.
To help you locate local laws in the SC Acts and Joint Resolutions, the South Carolina Code Annotated provides a list of South Carolina's local laws by city or county and subject in its Index to Local Laws volume.
The print SC Acts and Joint Resolutions is located on the first floor of the law library.
The full text of South Carolina Acts from 1980 forward are accessible through the Legislation and Archives pages of the South Carolina Legislature website.
The Statutory Tables volume contains tables to help you locate where a South Carolina Act is codified (arranged by subject) in the South Carolina Code Annotated. It also includes tables for determining where a particular code section was published in an earlier version of the code.
In addition, the Statutory Tables volume provides a table of amendments and repeals to sections of the current South Carolina Code Annotated.
There is also a Constitution volume included with the print South Carolina Code Annotated that contains the text of both the South Carolina and United States Constitutions, with annotations. Both are included in the general A-I and J-Z indexes for the South Carolina Code Annotated. There is an index at the back of the Constitution volume as well.
The un-annotated South Carolina Constitution is accessible through the South Carolina Legislature website. The annotated South Carolina Constitution is available via Westlaw and Lexis.
Rules of civil and criminal procedure and rules of evidence prescribe in detail how parties must proceed to resolve their disputes in court. In addition to the rules of procedure and evidence that apply to civil and criminal cases, every jurisdiction has local court rules that govern the administration of its trial and appellate courts.
The print South Carolina Code Annotated includes a paperback Court Rules volume that contains the annotated South Carolina rules of civil and criminal procedure, rules of evidence, and local rules for South Carolina trial and appellate courts. These court rules are included in the general A-I and J-Z indexes to the South Carolina Code Annotated. There is also a separate court rules index in the back of that volume.
The un-annotated court rules for South Carolina courts are accessible through the South Carolina Judicial Department’s website. The annotated court rules for South Carolina are available through Westlaw and Lexis.