There is no single form or format that is required. We will put some pathfinders on Course Reserve so that you can see what other folks have done in the past. You will be looking up a lot of information on your subject, so pick something you care about. You don't have to choose a 'traditional' legal topic. In fact, when we are grading the pathfinders we give more credit to topics that are not already covered by the standard resources and are therefore more difficult to research.
Most topics cover more than just cases, statutes, and journal articles.
Try to think broadly about your topic. The information you gather, as well as the organization and format of your pathfinder will vary greatly depending on your audience. For instance, a pathfinder on surrogacy written for a family law attorney would be considerably different than one written for people interested in finding a surrogate mother. We will ask you to write a short essay, setting out the purpose, audience and subject matter of your pathfinder. This will help you to have a clearer idea of what kind of information will be relevant, when you begin your research.