Legal Research

Reminder: CRIV Vendor Roundtable to Discuss FTC's Proposed Prenotification Negative Option Plans Rule on July 27

Posted on July 24, 2009
On Monday July 27 at noon in room 143B at the convention center, the CRIV Vendor Roundtable will discuss the FTC's Proposed Rule Concerning the Use of Prenotification Negative Option Plans. Additional topics of discussion include licensing and SERU. [JH]

Nothing Else To Do? Vote for Your Favorite TV Law Show

Posted on July 24, 2009
You can vote for your favorite legal TV show on the ABA Journal's site here and read the Journal's August 2009 issue article The 25 Greatest Legal TV Shows. See also The 25 Greatest Legal TV Shows: Honorable Mentions. [JH]

Do Commercial Online Services That Distribute Court Briefs Infringe on Author's Copyright?

Posted on July 24, 2009
Briefs filed in court are part of the proceeding's offical record but distribution of them by Lexis, Westlaw and other commercial online service providers may infringe on the copyright of their authors. When an attorney (Ed Connor) learned the California...

Openings: Assistant Director for Public Services & Foreign, Comparative and International Law Librarian, LSU Law Library

Posted on July 24, 2009
Assistant Director for Public Services Louisiana State University Law Center Law Library Responsibilities: Responsible for planning, directing and coordinating the overall Public Services operations of the LSU Law Library, including reference, research and instructional support, research guide production, interlibrary loan,...

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Google Maps Update - just in time for D.C.

Posted on July 23, 2009
Google maps has always been a great asset for finding your way, but now it is even better! Their improvements, released today, will make finding your way in D.C. even easier. After finding your walking/driving directions, you can run multiple...

Video of John Yoo Being Pranked During Lecture at Chapman Law

Posted on July 23, 2009
Berkeley law prof John Yoo, the former Bush Administration deputy assistant attorney general who authored the controversial torture memo, was pranked by an Australian comedian from Chaser?s War on Everything during a lecture Yoo was giving on international law at...

JISC's Documentary on Libraries of the Future

Posted on July 23, 2009
JISC has commissioned the following 10 minute video on academic libraries of the future. Details here and video below. Hat tip to Library Boy. [JH]

Have Federal e-Government Initiatives Plateaued?

Posted on July 23, 2009
Despite spending enormous sums, progress on electronic government appears to have plateaued, according to the report E-government 2.0, published by McKinsey & Co. "Many new e-government initiatives have neither generated the anticipated interest among users nor enabled clear gains in...

Zittrain on the Dangers of the Cloud

Posted on July 23, 2009
Lost in the Cloud, a New York Times op-ed contribution by Johnathan Zittrain, identifies some of the dangers of moving from manipulating and storing data on your computer to doing everything online where you entrust your files to service providers...

Keep Up with the News (and Gossip) at AALL with Twitter

Posted on July 23, 2009
Regardless of whether you are a fan of Twitter, a number of law librarians are enthusiastic users of the microblogging service, and they are coming to the AALL Annual Meeting. With free wifi in the Convention Center (thanks BNA!) and...

Green Resources on the Internet

Posted on July 23, 2009
LLRX has compiled a current list of green resources and sites on the Internet. Many of them have a practical application in reducing energy consumption and environmental awareness. Hat tip to the Pace Law Library Blog for the links ....

Michigan?s State Law Library Faces Service Cuts, Uncertainty

Posted on July 22, 2009
The future of Michigan?s State Law Library has become uncertain in light of a July 13, 2009 executive order issued by the state?s governor. The Governor?s press release respecting the order is available here. Section II(B)(8)(b) of the order, Executive...

Copyright Office Proposes Rule Change Exempting Works Only Available Online from Mandatory Deposit

Posted on July 22, 2009
The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress is proposing to amend its regulations governing mandatory deposit of electronic works published in the United States and available only online. The amendments would establish that such works are exempt from mandatory...

Attractions In and Around DC

Posted on July 22, 2009
After a long hard day of attending AALL sessions, law librarians deserve a break. Check out the Washington Convention and Visitors Association website generally and it's list of 100 free (or nearly free) things to do in DC. See also...

Reminder: 4th Annual Bloggers Get Together at AALL, Monday, July 27

Posted on July 22, 2009
Roger Skalbeck (Georgetown) and others have organized the 4th Annual Bloggers Get Together during AALL's annual meeting in D.C. 4th Annual Bloggers Get Together Monday, July 27 from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm Old Dominion Brew House 1219 9th Street...

Roll Call is Buying Congressional Quarterly

Posted on July 22, 2009
The details are in this article from the Washington Post. [MG]

Don't Just Ban Them, Burn Them As Well

Posted on July 22, 2009
There's a story in CNN about yet another attempt to ban books, this time in West Bend, Wisconsin. The books in question deal with homosexuality and other sexual topics that some may find squeamish or offensive, at least in subjective...

Government Research on Cell Phone Driving Accidents Suppressed for Six Years

Posted on July 22, 2009
The United States Department of Transportation wanted to conduct a study of 10,000 drivers over time to assess the risk of cell phone use. This was in 2003. The Department collected substantial research and statistics and ultimately did not publish...

Before You Go ? Some Tips for AALL

Posted on July 22, 2009
Whether you?re a first time attendee or a seasoned veteran of AALL Annual Meetings, the schedule of educational programs, committee meetings and social events can be overwhelming. Thankfully, our fellow law librarian colleagues have wealth of advice to offer for...

ARL's Academic Law Library Stats

Posted on July 21, 2009
Data collection for ARL's Academic Law Library Statistics has been completed and the final tables can be viewed on ARL's website. Here's a sample of summary stats from the compiled data: See also ALR's updated graph for academic library expenditures....

Assessment of State e-Government Services

Posted on July 21, 2009
The National Center for Public Performance and the American Society for Public Administration have released U.S. States E-Governance Report (2008) An Assessment of State Websites, which evaluates security, usability and content of state websites, the type of online services being...

Reminder: AALL Legal Research Round Table Scheduled for Sunday, July 26

Posted on July 21, 2009
The 2009 Legal Research Round Table at this year?s AALL Annual Meeting is scheduled for Sunday July 26. It will start at 12:15 pm and last about one hour. See you in WCC Room 146 B. Discussion topics include: Teaching...

Opening: World Digital Library Content Manager, Library of Congress

Posted on July 21, 2009
This position is located in the World Digital Library, Office of the Librarian, and reports to the Technical Project Director, World Digital Library. The mission of the World Digital Library (WDL) is to make available on the Internet, free of...

Europe to Weigh In on the Google Book Settlement, and B&N Gets Into the e-Book Market

Posted on July 21, 2009
Two stories in Ars Technica cover developments in the nascent e-book market. The first details that the European Union has decided to look over the Google Book Settlement and offer their findings to U.S. authorities. A hearing is scheduled for...

Google Book Scan, the EU, and the Senate Judicidary

Posted on July 21, 2009
According to the AP, European Union regulators are seeking advice and comments from the publishing industry on the controversial Google book scan project. Regulators are concerned that the project would violate the complicated structure of copyright laws in Europe...

TechCrunch Provides Insight Into Twitter's Corporate Plans from Internal Documents Stored in Hacked Google Apps Account

Posted on July 20, 2009
In a somewhat controversial move TechCrunch has decided to selectively publish and review some of the 310 confidential Twitter documents it received from a hacker. About the decision to publish, TechCrunch's Michael Arrington wrote "the vast majority of these documents...

Facebook Finding Under Canada's Privacy Law: Adequate Safeguards Not in Place

Posted on July 20, 2009
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has released Report of Findings into the Complaint Filed by the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC) against Facebook Inc. The Privacy Commission found that Facebook has not complied with...

Reminder: 2009 AALL Salary Survey Responses Due July 31

Posted on July 20, 2009
So the response rate this year have been very low, perhaps too low to yield accurate findings. Law library directors can complete the entire survey online by following the link provided in AALL's e-mail or if complete the survey in...

Opening: Legal Information Analyst, Law Library of Congress

Posted on July 20, 2009
The Legal Information Analyst works under the broad supervision of the Assistant Director of Law Library Services for Public Services (1) analyzing, summarizing, and indexing laws, treaties, regulations, court decisions, and legislative histories involving United States domestic and international legal...

Judicial Philosophy and Activism on the Supreme Court

Posted on July 20, 2009
Nate Silver says that conservative Supreme Court justices are as activist as anyone with a liberal bent to their philosophies. In fact, he finds the Rehnquist Court to be the most activist in history followed by the Warren Court. This...

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