Shambles- In the US, they are simply notebooks with yellow paper that are bound at the top, and come in two common sizes, 8 1/2" by 11", and 8 1/2 by 14. I do not know their origin. My guess is some lawyer was having trouble locating his case notes amid tons of paperwork, and yellow stands out better than white. They used to be all over the place, but I don't see them much anymore. Of course, I'm not an attorney. BlueJay