Law Librarian Blog

New JobLIST site combines American Libraries, C&RL News online ads

From the Press Release:

"Employers and job seekers in library and information science and technology now have a completely searchable and all-inclusive Web resource at their command with the official launch of JobLIST."

"A joint project of American Libraries magazine, the Association of College and Research Libraries' (ACRL) C&RL News, and ALA's Office for Human Resource Development and Recruitment (HRDR), the site was designed and developed by Fig Leaf Software of Washington, D.C. The new site incorporates the current AL and ACRL job sites and many services of HRDR, including placement services at the ALA Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference."

"JobLIST allows job seekers to do a "quick search" or to register for the site at no charge and do more advanced searching. The site sorts job listings not only by library type, but also by date, state, institution name, salary range, and other parameters. In addition, registered job seekers can post their resumes on the site and recruiters will be able to search those resumes confidentially. The site will include openings for professional and support staff in libraries of all types, in information technology, and at associations (including the American Library Association) and related institutions and companies."

The Leadership Imperative

From the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges:

“The Leadership Imperative examines the responsibilities and relationships between presidents and boards, new demands for board accountability, appropriate selection and training of board members, the board’s duties in evaluating and compensating presidents, and the president’s responsibilities for uniting the board, faculty, and others in meeting the strategic challenges facing the institution. It notes also that boards need to be sensitive to the personal aspects of the presidency, including issues surrounding family impacts, health risks, career trajectory, and compensation.”

[RJ]

Law Bloggers Mostly Male

The legal blogosphere is an overwhelmingly white-male world, more so than the blogosphere at large. Three quarters of legal bloggers are male, and 94 percent are white, according to a survey conducted by Simon Owens. Read more about it in Robert J. Ambrogi's article.

Did the survey include law library/law librarian blogs? Don't know but I seriously doubt the above demographics would be mirrored in our slice of the legal blogosphere. [JH]

LexisNexis CourtLink Data Shows 2006 Chapter 7 Figures 71% Less Than 2004

LexisNexis Bankruptcy expert addresses law one year later :

"Nearly one year has passed since enactment of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (Oct. 17, 2005). LexisNexis® CourtLink® compiled data shows 2006 Chapter 7 bankruptcy filings (Jan. 1 – Sept. 15) are 71 percent lower than 2004 Chapter 7 filings for the same time period."

Check out the rest of the story. [RJ]

Yale U. Plans to Offer Some Course Materials, Including Lecture Videos, Free Online

From the Chronicle:

"Cameras are rolling in Yale University classrooms this fall, as part of a project to make video recordings of several courses available free for anyone to view online.

Yale is the latest institution to pledge to create "open courseware," in which detailed material from courses is placed online in the hopes that it will be used by educators and students elsewhere."

Check out the rest of the story [sub req]. [RJ]

SSRN Expands Law & Society Journal Offerings

SSRN's Legal Scholarship Network has expanded the Law & Society journal by adding the following as "child" journals:

Law & Society: International & Comparative Law
Edited by Kenneth Dau-Schmidt, Indiana University School of Law

Subscribe | View papers

Law & Society: Private Law
Edited by Kenneth Dau-Schmidt, Indiana University School of Law

Subscribe | View Papers

Law & Society: Procedural Law, Courts
Edited by Jeannine Bell, Indiana University School of Law

Subscribe | View papers

Law & Society: Public Law
Edited by Ajay Mehrotra, Indiana University School of Law

Subscribe | View papers

Law & Society: The Legal Profession
Edited by William Henderson, Indiana University School of Law

Subscribe | View

Opening: Reference Services Librarian, Arkansas-Fayetteville

The Robert A. and Vivian Young Law Library, at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, is seeking a service-oriented and self-motivated candidate for our Reference Services Librarian.  The Reference Services Librarian is an integral part of the excellent service the Law Library provides all of its clientele.  This position is a tenure-track full-time appointment.  The Young Law Library serves the University of Arkansas School of Law, which has a diverse student body of 450 students and thirty-two full-time faculty members.  We are located in a vibrant Northwest Arkansas community surrounded by the scenic beauty of the Ozark Mountains.

Description:  Full-time 12 month appointment in a law library faculty tenure-track position.  Assists with reference services for the Law Center community.  Salary range: $40,000-45,000.  Excellent fringe benefits.

Responsibilities: Provide reference assistance to faculty, staff, students and the public.  Assist in training staff, faculty and students in the use of legal information resources.  Some teaching may be included.  Assist Law Center faculty in developing instruction and presentation materials.  Report to the Associate Director of the Law Library. 

Qualifications:  JD and MLS required.  Law Library experience is preferred.  Knowledge of legal resources and ability to work independently and as part of a team is important.  Strong communication, interpersonal, and customer service skills are essential.

Application Process:  Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.  Candidates should submit a resume and the names and telephone numbers of three references to : 

Professor Herb Cihak, Director of the Young Law Library
University of Arkansas School of Law, Leflar Law Center
213-A Waterman Hall
Fayetteville, AR  72701-1201
or email to hcihak@uark.edu

The University of Arkansas is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.   All applications will be accepted without regard to age, race, color, sex, or national origin.  Applicants must have proof of legal authority to work in the United States.  All applicants are subject to public disclosure under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

How Things Has Changed Since Library School

Check out what Joyce Valenza has to say about how things have changed in the last 30 years. See also Joyce Valenza's NeverEnding Search [JH]

Researcher Proposes New Ranking System for IHE

From the Chronicle:

"Colleges and universities have the raw materials with which to build a better rankings system, but many institutions do not want to abandon the current model. As a result, students rely on commercial guides that provide little useful information, according to a report scheduled to be released today by a research group in Washington."

Download the report: College Rankings Reformed: The Case for a New Order in Higher Education (pdf). [RJ]

New AEI-Brookings Joint Center Study of Crisis Bureaucracy

Crisis Bureaucracy: Homeland Security and the Political Design of Legal Mandates
Dara Kay Cohen, Mariano-Florentino Cuellar, Barry R. Weingast.
AEI-Brookings Joint Center, Sept. 2006. 

Description: Policymakers fight over bureaucratic structure because it helps shape the legal interpretations and regulatory decisions of agencies through which modern governments operate. In this article, we update positive political theories of bureaucratic structure to encompass two new issues with important implications for lawyers and political scientists: the significance of legislative responses to a crisis, and the uncertainty surrounding major bureaucratic reorganizations. The resulting perspective affords a better understanding of how agencies interpret their legal mandates and deploy their administrative discretion. 

We apply the theory to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Two principal questions surrounding this creation are (1) why the President changed from opposing the creation of a new department to supporting it and (2) why his plan for such a department was far beyond the scope of any other existing proposal. We argue that the President changed his mind in part because he did not want to be on the losing side of a major legislative battle. But more significantly, the President supported the massive new department in part to further domestic policy priorities unrelated to homeland security. By moving a large set of agencies within the department and instilling them with new homeland security responsibilities without additional budgets, the president forced these agencies to move resources out of their legacy mandates.  Perversely, these goals appear to have been accomplished at the expense of homeland security.

Finally, we briefly discuss more general implications of our perspective: first, previous reorganizations (such as FDR’s creation of a Federal Security Agency and Carter’s creation of an Energy Department) also seem to reflect presidential efforts to enhance their control of administrative functions – including some not directly related to the stated purpose of the reorganization; and, second, our analysis raises questions about some of the most often-asserted justifications for judicial deference to agency legal interpretations.

Podcasts added to firms' recruiting arsenal

From the National Law Journal:

"Law firms are adding podcasts to their recruiting arsenal in the war for legal talent. Students want to get as close to the source as possible when they're evaluating firms, said Doug Husid, co-managing director of the 185-lawyer Goulston & Storrs in Boston."

Check out the rest of the story [sub. req.]

[RJ]

EPA Needs to Conduct Environmental Justice Reviews of Its Programs, Policies, and Activities

New report from the EPA's Office of Inspector General:

"Our survey results showed that EPA senior management has not sufficiently directed program and regional offices to conduct environment justice reviews in accordance with Executive Order 12898. Consequently, the majority of respondents reported their programs or offices have not performed environmental justice reviews. Though some offices may not be subject to an environmental justice review, the respondents expressed a need for further guidance to conduct reviews, including protocols, a framework, or additional directions. Until these program and regional offices perform environmental justice reviews, the Agency cannot determine whether its programs cause disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects on minority and low-income populations."

[RJ]

Opening: Legislative/Food & Drug Library Assistant, DC Law Firm

Prominent DC law firm seeks a Legislative/Food & Drug Library Assistant.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Acquires witness statements and/or transcripts for hearings in which attorneys have indicated an interest.
• Researches Supreme Court cases at the request of attorneys and tracks the cases until final disposition. Retrieves the order list and daily opinions from the Supreme Court when the Court is in session and photocopies briefs of the Court as requested by attorneys if they are not available in electronic format. Reviews daily the Supreme Court opinions which may have been released while the Court is in session.
• Indexes the CQ Schedules (Congressional hearings) and a variety of legislative materials, electronically captures pertinent information, and routes the material according to attorney profiles. Routes print copies of Roll Call, The Hill, National Journal, and Congress Daily AM.
• Obtains Congressional materials, when not available electronically, from the House and Senate documents rooms, and by retrieving press releases and committee prints from the Senate Finance Committee, the House Ways and Means Committee, and the Joint Committee on Taxation; distributes copies of documents to list of requestors.
• Orders hearings unavailable from GPO website upon request by attorneys, Legislative Librarian, and Assistant Librarian, Research.
• Scans selected documents needed for electronic legislative histories or other requests.
• Assists in compiling electronic legislative histories under the supervision of the Legislative Librarian.
• Prepares legislative histories for binding or rebinding by typing the binding forms to reflect accurately what must be printed on the spine and how the material is to be treated. Assigns F&D hearings identification numbers and prepares for bindery. Performs data entry for bibliographic information on hearings and committee prints, and works closely with IRS staff to ensure the efficiency of the 2 databases used to index this material.
• Establishes contacts and maintains good rapport with Congressional and Supreme Court offices to ensure prompt response to requests.
• Executes and distributes CQ Online and GalleryWatch bill-tracking reports.
• Maintains the currency of the Legislative Interest List Routing Program by adding new attorneys and their interests, and editing the lists at the request of the attorneys. Works with the Library Database Administrator to keep the program as responsive as possible to the needs of the Legislative Section and the Firm.
• Obtains Congressional documents upon request, and provides basic assistance in using the legislative collection in the absence of librarians.
• Organizes legislative files of bills, reports, and laws in preparation for compiling legislative histories.
• Updates HTML files for the Library Intranet as requested by research team staff.
• Processes F&D periodicals returned from routing; works with Duplicating staff to prepare articles for the F&D notebooks. Maintains integrity of the F&D periodicals. Update F&D indexes and lists using WORD and/or copy and paste in HTML format.
• Back-up in obtaining documents from FDA Dockets Management Branch in Rockville, MD when needed. File F&D special collection material including docket files, case files, GAO reports, and consultant files.
• Timely and regular attendance.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

EOE M/F/D/V

Salary: DOE.

To apply: Email resume and salary requirements to lawcareers@gmail.com.

Berring on Legal Research Podcasts

From Berring on Legal Research:

"Professor Berring, in conjunction with West, will be producing rich supplemental podcasts, which will explore the finer points of the key legal research topics already touched upon in the DVD set. Designed to be interactive, Professor Berring will respond to listener questions, discuss new research tools, and expound upon the essential “deep principles” that guide both experienced and developing legal researchers. These concise monthly podcasts provide the perfect means for fine-tuning research skills and for keeping abreast of new developments in the field of legal research."

[RJ]

New Sourcebook on Mediation & Conference Programs in the Federal Circuit Courts

Mediation & Conference Programs in the Federal Courts of Appeals: A Sourcebook for Judges and Lawyers, Second Edition

“This sourcebook is a reference guide on mediation and conference programs in the federal courts of appeals, programs that may offer a way for courts to deal with increasing filings. The sourcebook responds to requests from the appellate courts for a detailed description of all appellate courts’ mediation and conference programs as well as more general information about what happens in the courts of appeals. In addition, it provides a means for attorneys to learn more about these programs.”

[RJ]

Quote It! On Interpretation

"I take judge-made law as one of the existing realities of life." -- Benjamin Cardozo, The Nature of The Judicial Process 10 (1921).

Should Summary Judgment Be Abolished?

Loyola (Chicago) Law Prof John Bronsteen has posted Against Summary Judgment on SSRN. Here's the abstract: 

Summary judgment today is what settlement was twenty-five years ago: an increasingly popular and important form of dispute resolution, widely lauded for its efficiency, that has just begun to capture the full attention of civil procedure scholarship. Despite strong evidence that summary judgment violates the right to jury trial in civil cases guaranteed by the Seventh Amendment, no one is likely to call seriously for the abolition of the practice because all assume we need it. This Article calls that assumption into question, suggesting that summary judgment actually costs us more than it saves and that our civil justice system would be both fairer and more efficient without it. Most cases that now go to summary judgment would settle early rather than go to trial if those were the only two options. By discouraging early settlement, summary judgment imposes large costs because the lion's share of litigation takes place before trial. Moreover, summary judgment creates a systemic pro-defendant bias due to the pressure on judges to move their dockets along by terminating cases rather than letting them proceed to trial.

Law Firm Library Management Workshop: Solutions & Scenarios

AALL's Library Law Firm Management Workshop will take place October 18th, 2006 in Washington, D.C. "Learning outcomes" include:

• Identify the key constituents in the firm – both users and non-users—and to analyze the library’s current relationship with that constituency.
• Design a plan of improvement for library services.
• List key elements of a needs assessment for their firm.
• Outline an information audit.
• Describe the key ways law firms measure success.
• Develop a Return on Investment (ROI) analysis of their library services.

Space is limited to only 75 participants. Agenda | Registration

French Law Blogs Directory

JuriBlogs' Arnaud Dumourier has identitied and listed 120 blogs on French law. Check out the list. [JH]

Opening: Foreign and International Law Librarian, London

University of London Research Library Services INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED LEGAL STUDIES Library and Information Services

The Institute of Advanced Legal Studies Library has a central role in legal research provision in the UK and houses collections of national and international importance. The Library serves academic and professional lawyers and postgraduate law students in the UK and internationally.

FOREIGN AND INTERNATIONAL LAW LIBRARIAN
Salary: £24,245 - £33,659 p.a. incl. London Allowance

This new and exciting post based within the Academic Services department is part of a friendly team dedicated to supporting and promoting use of the excellent legal research facilities of the Institute Library. The post is responsible for providing reference assistance for foreign and international legal research, for liaising with our major database suppliers over content and user training, and for the selection of foreign law material. It will promote the library's extensive foreign and international collections by developing web research guides, training tutorials and webpage information, and contribute to the reference work and the training programmes on electronic resources.

Applicants should have a degree together with a qualification in librarianship or information science and at least two years experience working in an academic or law library. The ideal candidate will have reference work experience with law resources, both in paper and electronic format, and should be self-motivated and an effective team worker with excellent communication and IT skills. Knowledge of at least one western European language other than English is essential. An ability to liaise proactively with research staff and postgraduate students and proven presentation skills would be advantages.

Further details are available from <http://ials.sas.ac.uk/about/jobs.htm> or on request from ials@sas.ac.uk  or 020 7862 5801. Letters of application with a CV and contact details of two referees should reach the Library Administrative Officer by Friday 6th October 2006.