Law Librarian Blog

Vote Flipping Reported in West Virginia and Tennessee

The New York Times is reporting that ES & S voting machines flipped recorded votes for Democratis as votes for Republicans in West Virginia while ES & S voting machines registered Republican votes as Democratic votes in Tennessee.

See also Electronic Voting: The Possibility of a Hack (electronic voting machines in New Jersey can be hacked in about seven minutes). [JH]

College Hiring Flat for Class of 2009

Not so good news from National Association of Colleges and Employers.  According to their special report Job Outlook 2009, "current projected hiring for the Class of 2009 shows very little growth over the hiring levels for the Class of 2008, but no expected decline."  Being optimistic, flat hiring should be considered a positive during the current economic struggles.  [RJ]

The Virtual Abbey Library of St. Gall

With a million dollar grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the CESG Pilot Project intends to digitize the Abbey Library of St. Gall, one of the oldest and most significant manuscript libraries in the world.  "The collection includes material as varied as curses against book thieves, early love ballads, hearty drinking songs and a hand-drawn ground plan for a medieval monastery, drafted around A.D. 820, the only such document of its kind" according to the NY Times.  The project intends to provide online access to all 355 of the manuscripts held by the Abbey Library of St. Gall written before the year 1000 and to develop a new web interface for the online collection.  The Virtual Abbey Library of St. Gall forms one component of a larger successor project, e-codices: The Virtual Manuscript Library of Switzerland, whose goal is to "provide access to the medieval manuscripts of Switzerland through a virtual library".  [RJ]

Legal Changes under a Obama presidency?

Forbes has an article out today discussing some possible legal changes that might occur if Barack Obama is elected as our 44th president. Included in the list are changes to the Bankruptcy Code, tax changes, alteration of some statutes of limitation regarding discrimination, net "neutrality" and several other possible changes.

While Obama obviously cannot create these changes himself his bully pulpit of the Presidency (if elected) and expected Democratic control of both houses could make these changes soon be a reality.{bb}

Barkley School of Law To Close

The ABA Journal is reporting that the Barkley School of Law, formerly called the American Justice School of Law (Paducah, KY) will file for bankruptcy and close its doors at the end of the year. Earlier LLB posts here and here. [JH]

Are Men Too Hormonal to Run Wall Street?

Yes according to Tim Harford, a columnist for the Financial Times and author of The Logic of Life: The Rational Economics of an Irrational World. Check out his NPR interview. Hat tip to Andrea Schneider (Marquette), Why Women Should Control Wall Street on ADR Prof Blog. [JH]

Friday Fun: Saturday Night Live on the Financial Bailout

Auction Basics: Background for Assessing Proposed Treasury Purchases of Mortgage-Backed Securities

The CRS recently released Auction Basics: Background for Assessing Proposed Treasury Purchases of Mortgage-Backed Securities (October 14, 2008)(OpenCRS). From the summary:

To address the turmoil in financial markets, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (EESA; H.R. 1424, P.L. 110-343), enacted on October 3, 2008, authorizes purchases of "troubled assets." The act passed the Senate on October 1, 2008, passed the House on October 3, 2008, and was signed into law the same day. The Administration proposed using reverse Dutch auctions to purchase troubled assets -- primarily mortgage-related securities from financial institutions. In reverse Dutch auctions, a buyer purchases multiple objects from private parties at a price set by the last accepted bid. The government has used reverse auctions since the Revolutionary War.

Designing efficient reverse Dutch auctions may present some tradeoffs between enhancing competition among bidders and overpaying for assets relative to their quality. Careful auction design, however, can help minimize these problems. Auctions are especially useful for selling assets whose value to potential owners is unknown to the seller. Reverse auctions are useful when a buyer does not know what value sellers place on assets. Auction results could clarify the market value of troubled assets. The price discovery properties of auctions could stimulate trading by reducing private traders' uncertainty about the value of troubled assets. A reverse auction program essentially swaps Treasury securities for troubled mortgage-backed securities.

If Treasury securities are exchanged for troubled assets at prices close to those assets' current market prices, costs to the taxpayer would be minimized. Financial institutions, however, may gain some liquidity, but might not receive much additional capital. Some economists have argued that other means of injecting capital into the financial sector, such as purchases of preferred stock or capital injections balanced by equity warrants (i.e., options to claim an equity stake), might be a better strategy.

Since passage of EESA, the U.S. Treasury has been working to design methods to inject capital into firms and restore market liquidity. The heterogeneity of troubled assets may present challenges to the Treasury auction program. The reverse Dutch auctions would need to be adapted to buy highly diverse and relatively small-volume securities, in a way that minimizes risks of trading manipulation. Reverse Dutch auctions may be vulnerable to adverse selection, meaning that the average credit quality of submitted assets of a given type may be systematically worse than the average credit quality of all assets of that type.

Auction mechanisms might be designed that could mitigate these problems. Recent academic research in auction theory and in experimental economics has examined how various types of auctions work. Auctions may capture higher revenues for governments and can often allocate scarce resources more efficiently than traditional methods of selling or purchasing. Different policy problems, however, call for different types of auctions. Government economists involved in designing reverse auctions to buy troubled assets have drawn upon academic research and internal Treasury research.

[JH]

Finding Time and Reasons to Learn About Emerging Technologies

For those of us who work closely with electronic resources, I highly recommend Kathryn Greenhill (Librarians Matter) presentation on the importance of emerging technologies in libraries.  The presentation covers:

• Emerging technologies
• Five reasons to learn about them
• Compass points to work out where to put your energy
• Preparation
• Tools
• Useful sites
• Convincing THEM (Taking it back to your organization)

Hat tip, Bonnie Shucha, WisBlawg [RJ]

New Pew Reports on Networked Workers and Families

Most working Americans use the Internet or email at work according the Pew Internet report Networked Workers. Just over half of American adults (53%) say that they are currently employed with full or part-time work. Among those who are employed, 62% could be considered “Networked Workers” who use the internet or email at their workplace. Networked Workers are not only connected while at work, but they are also more likely than average Americans to have access to a wide array of technological assets outside of the workplace. They are more likely to own cell phones, desktop and laptop computers, and personal digital assistants (PDAs). Among Networked Workers:

• 93% own a cell phone, compared with 78% of all American adults.
• 85% own a desktop computer, compared with 65% of all adults.
• 61% own a laptop computer, compared with 39% of all adults.
• 27% own a Blackberry, Palm or other personal digital assistant, compared with 13% of all adults.

The Internet and cell phones have become central components of modern family life, according to the Pew Internet report Networked Families. "Parents and spouses are using the internet and cell phones to create a “new connectedness” that builds on remote connections and shared internet experiences."  For today’s married-with-children households, ownership of multiple gadgets and communication tools is a standard feature of family life:

• 58% of those living in married-with-children households own two or more desktop or laptop computers. Nearly two-thirds of those living in multiple-computer households (63%) link those computers in a home network.
• Both spouses use the internet in 76% of married-with-children households, as do 84% of their children aged 7-17. Indeed, 65% of married-with-children households with a child between the ages of 7-17 contain a husband, wife, and child who all use the internet.
• 89% of married-with-children households own multiple cell phones, and nearly half (47%) own three or more mobile devices. Children in these households are somewhat less likely to own a cell phone than they are to go online: 57% of these children (aged 7-17) have their own cell phone.

[RJ]

LC's Disability Employment Awareness Month Resources

To mark its celebration of Disability Employment Awareness Month, the Library of Congress has launched a new website. The site notes upcoming events as well as Library resources pertaining to disability history. See also the new Library of Congress Experience that enables people with all types of abilities to experience the Library. [JH]

UC Irvine's Donald Bren School of Law Free for Entering 2009 Class

The UC Irvine Law School is giving full 3-year tuition scholarships worth about $100,000 to its first 2009 class of about 60 students, the National Law Journal reports. That's a $6 million write-off. Originally, the school had planned to offer full tuition scholarships to about half that class but in an effort to lure high-quality students and compete with top 20 law schools, the law school has expanded that program. How many other new law schools can afford to do this?

The National Law Journal story also reports that the law school, originally called the "Donald Bren School of Law" in honor of a $20 million donor, is dropping the name. The law school requested the change and Bren accommodated that request. Part of the reason to drop the name was to avoid confusion with other schools that are named after Bren on the campus of UC Irvine. [JH]

Kudos to San Bernardino County Law Library

The GPO named the San Bernardino County Law Library (California) the 2008 Federal Depository Library of the Year. The library services the largest county, in land area, in the US. The To meet the needs of its patrons for government information, the library has extended its hours of operation, developed a new website, and offers online reference service. Hat tip to AALL Spectrum Blog. [JH]

Pew Report Finds Voters Cannot Easily Locate Information in State Election Websites

The Pew Center on the States has released its report Being Online is Not Enough: State Elections Web Sites, a 50-state analysis of election websites' usability and finds that voters cannot easily locate voting information online.  The report offers recommendations to improve state websites before Election Day.

Some of the study’s key findings include:

• The average usability score for election Web sites in the 50 states and the District of Columbia is 58 percent—ranging from a high of 77 percent (Iowa) to a low of 33 percent (New Hampshire);
• When using popular search engines such as Google, only 38 states appear as the first search term when searching for “voting in [STATE NAME]”; and only 34 official state Web sites appear as the first search result when users enter in their state name with “polling place”;
• Thirty-four states have a poll locator tool, but only 11 states will identify a polling location for any address in the state—helping voters to easily find the basic information they will need to vote;
• Half the states including the District of Columbia (53 percent) offer a way for users to verify their registration online; and
• By not improving their sites, states are missing an opportunity to save money on voter telephone help lines—up to $100 per call.

The report also introduces the Voting Information Project, a joint effort of state and local election officials, Make Voting Work and Google, Inc., that aims to bring official voting information—polling place locations, ballot content and information about registration and absentee ballots—directly to voters via the Internet.  [JH]

Fulbright & Jaworski's 2008 Litigation Trends Survey

In its latest annual 2008 Litigation Trends Survey, the international law firm Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. predict a rise in corporate litigation.  “This year’s survey appears to mark an inflection point for American business, between the end of a prolonged period of prosperity and the start of a period of economic challenge that is likely to fuel litigation over who is to blame and who should pay for the consequences,” said Stephen C. Dillard, who chairs Fulbright’s global litigation practice. “Given that we were polling in-house counsel on the cusp of that transition, it’s no wonder that this year’s findings highlight both the evident calm before the storm, as well as the sense that disputes are on the rise.”  [RJ]

Political Ideology in American Universities

Contrary to popular belief, the problem with U.S. higher education is not too much politics but too little. Far from being bastions of liberal bias, American universities have largely withdrawn from the world of politics. So conclude Bruce L. R. Smith, Jeremy Mayer, and Lee Fritschler in Closed Minds?: Political Ideology in American Universities (Brookings Institution Press, Sept. 1, 2008) [JH]

Arizona State College of Law Faculty Scholarship Repository

From the announcement:

"I am pleased to bring to your attention a new service of the Ross-Blakley Law Library at Arizona State University. We have created a web based repository of the Sandra Day O' Connor College of Law faculty’s scholarship.

I know all of us are constantly looking for new ways to serve our law schools, and therefore we bring our repository to your attention in the hope that some of you might find it a useful project to undertake on behalf of your own law library.

The Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law Faculty Scholarship Repository Web Site

The repository is designed to capture the scholarly output of our faculty in a form that features excellent organization, permits subject and key word searching capability, and offers full text access to most publications.  Full text access is provided through links to SSRN, HeinOnline, Lexis/Nexis, Westlaw and other electronic services. To help facilitate use of  our collections we also provide call number links identifying print holdings of the publications located in ASU Libraries. The repository contains 1,355 articles, 222 book chapters, 200 books, 208 presentations, plus newspaper articles, reports, briefs and blogs. 

We are in the process of adding enhancements to the repository. SSRN links are being added for articles and book chapters.  We are also going to build Shepardize and Keycite links to entries which will allow one to quickly conduct citation studies of individual articles to survey scholarly impact.

Members of the Ross-Blakley Law Library staff designed and implemented the project completely in-house. The major contributors were Leslie A. Pardo, Access Services Librarian  and Faraz Khan, Principal Systems Developer.  Special recognition should also go to the following members of the Access Services staff:  Serene Rock, Nicole Sandberg and Mariko Bigler.  This project was a complex and time consuming endeavor. Countless hours were spent with enormous attention to detail to develop the repository. 

We believe it will prove a lasting, well-used and much appreciated resource for our faculty and students, as well as a way for the law school to market the expertise of the faculty. 

If you are contemplating your own faculty publications database project and would like to consult with us, please don’t hesitate to let us know. We would be happy to share our experience and/or offer advice to you. You can direct your questions to Leslie A. Pardo, Head of Access Services and Repository Project Manager.

Victoria K. Trotta
Associate Dean for Information Technology and the Ross-Blakley Law Library
Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law
Arizona State University
P.O. Box 877806
Tempe, Arizona 85287-7806
Voice          (480)965-2521      
Fax(480)965-4283
victoria.trotta@asu.edu

Opening: Technical Services/Reference Librarian, Texas Legislative Reference Library

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES: Primary responsibilities include serials management, cataloging, and reference. As a member of the Legislative Reference Library team, serves as an information consultant to legislative staff, state agency staff, and the general public.

ESSENTIAL TASKS

• Coordinates and manages serials using library's automation system.
• Provides reference assistance in person and over the telephone.
• Performs original and complex cataloging of library materials in all subject areas and in all formats, utilizing AngloAmerican Cataloging Rules, Dewey Decimal Classification, Library of Congress Subject Headings, and USMARC.
• Conducts in-depth library reference/research using primary and secondary sources.
• Indexes and catalogs legislative documents and library materials.
• Serves as claims coordinator for library and for serials jobber.
• Reviews journals and internet sites to select appropriate articles for current awareness service.
• Coordinates maintenance of library collection.
• Assists with training library assistants.
• Works extensive evening and weekend hours during legislative session.

OTHER DUTIES

• Assist in developing new library services.
• Assist in developing manual and online research aids.
• May assist with library acquisitions and database maintenance.
• May supervise library assistants.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Master's degree from a library school accredited by the American Library Association.
• Knowledge of current cataloging and classification standards (Anglo American Cataloging Rules, Library of Congress
• Subject Headings, Dewey Decimal and/or Library of Congress classification).
• Knowledge of MARC record formats.
• Experience with one or more library automation systems.
• Experience providing reference services.
• Experience searching LEXIS/NEXIS.
• Basic knowledge of legislative process and/or legal research materials.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience in original cataloging.
• Experience with OCLC for cataloging.
• Experience in cataloging or serials management of government publications or technical reports.
• Experience in library technical services areas of cataloging, serials, acquisitions or database maintenance.
• Thorough knowledge of Texas state government and the Texas legislative process.
• Knowledge of Texas Documents Classification Scheme

To apply, mail or fax a completed State of Texas Application for Employment, resume, and letter of interest to Donald Brower at the Legislative Reference Library. Applications may be found at http://www.workintexas.com.

Donald Brower
         512-463-1632       phone
         512-475-4626       fax

Who Are Accidental Librarians?

Accidental librarians are library staffers who are doing the job of a librarian without the advantage of a professional education. Pamela H. McKellar, a 25-year library veteran who has mentored accidental librarians in all types of settings, covers library principles, practices, and tools of the trade in The Accidental Librarian (Information Today, October 13, 2008). [JH]

Mark Cuban Launches Bailout Watchdog Blog

Mark Cuban launched BailoutSleuth this month to "keep an eye on our taxpayer dollars and call Bullshit when necessary." Chris Carey edits the blog, which looks promising. Recent watchdog posts include The End of Bailout Transparency Already? and More Bailout Contracts Contain Blacked Out Portions. [JH]