Law Librarian Blog

Salt of the Earth, Part II: AALL Patronage by Way of Handing Out Honoraria

Call me old school but I've always thought that folks who are willing to expend their blood, sweat and tears in AALL activities (ah, that would NOT be me because I don't like wasting that much of my time) should be doing so as voluntarily, uncompensated contributions to the our profession. I have no problem with our dues paying for travel and lodging expenses in the course of official AALL business. Hell, I even have no problem budgeting a minimum of $15,000 as a support fund "used at the President’s sole discretion to carry out his or her duties and to ease the burden of office," whatever that whole "ease the burden" may mean.

But I do have a problem when it comes to the euphemism known as "honoraria" handed out by AALL, be they for some sort of one-off such as a consultant-like report to a gainfully employed law librarian or a regular, on-going activity like editing LLJ, Spectrum, IFLP or serving as the Vendor Liasion. From the Approved Budget Guidelines for Fiscal Year 2012:

• Budget $12,000 for an honorarium for the Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals (IFLP) General Editor.
• Budget $12,000 for an honorarium for the Law Library Journal (LLJ) Editor.
• Budget $12,000 for an honorarium for the AALL Spectrum Editorial Director.
• Budget $12,000 for an honorarium for the AALL Vendor Liaison.

Quoting frm Investopedia:

What Does Honorarium Mean?
A voluntary payment that is given to a person for services for which fees are not legally or traditionally required. Honoraria are typically used to help cover costs for volunteers or guest speakers. 

Investopedia explains Honorarium
For example, when a guest makes a speech at a conference, he or she might receive an honorarium to cover travel expenses. In some countries, the honorarium may be considered taxable income.

I'm thinking the above honoraria aren't used to cover costs. For example, the AALL Vendor Liaison has a budget for travel and expenses. I've already stated my opinion of volunteerism above. Budgeted honoraria for just the four listed on-going regular activities totals $48K. It's not that I don't think any of the folks who are receiving this cash aren't qualifed to serve but should we be paying them? They all have regular jobs, right? They all volunteered in one way or another, didn't they?

Perhaps they wouldn't have volunteered without receiving an honorarium. Perhaps not. Granted there is plenty of work (IFLP has to be a particularly thankless job). Continuity is also important but perhaps the position holders should receive a much smaller portion of each budgeted honorarium with the balances paid to others for providing assistance. There are plenty of unemployed law librarians who would jump at the opportunity for a slice of this AALL pie.

My hunch is some unemployed law librarians are at least as well qualified to serve in most of the above-identified AALL compensated jobs filled by already gainfully employed AALL members. Let's add the our rank-and-file members (or former members if they can't afford dues) all would have more time to dedicate to provide assistance because they are UNEMPLOYED. By the way, isn't AALL thinking of hiring someone to do the heavy lifting for the Price Index?

I'm thinking a little taxable income from AALL to our unemployed colleagues would go a long way. You? Some of us miss you. [JH]

For Part I of this "Salt of the Earth" LLB series, see Need a Document, No Problem, Right?

Opening: Head of Serials, Tarlton Law Library

The Tarlton Law Library at the University of Texas at Austin School of Law invites applications for the Head of Serials position.

The Tarlton Law Library is recognized worldwide for its innovative programs and services and for its distinguished resource collections.  Tarlton occupies a newly remodeled facility that features the outstanding Hyder Art Collection.  More information about the University of Texas at Austin and the UT School of Law can be found at http://www.utexas.edu/about-ut and http://www.utexas.edu/law/ . Information about Austin and the surrounding area is available at http://austin.smallplanetguide.com/rentals/index.php?p=austin_tx_overview, among many other sites.

The Head of Serials coordinates serials control, oversees the creation and maintenance of online serials catalog records, and supervises the serials department. The Head of Serials will work closely with the Head of Acquisitions and the Head of Cataloging and will directly supervise three positions in the serials department. Essential and regular duties will include oversight of the daily check-in and processing of serials, continuations, and GPO depository materials, ensuring the quality and consistency of item record creation and maintenance, oversight of routing and claiming activities, and the development and maintenance of policies, procedures and training materials within the serials department. Tarlton’s librarians are encouraged to participate in continuing professional development activities and to keep current with developing technologies and best practices.

Qualifications: A Master's degree in Library or Information Science (MLS or equivalent degree) from an accredited program is required.   Applicants must have 3 to 5 years of progressively responsible experience in an academic or law library, including a minimum of two years in either an administrative or supervisory capacity. Experience with an integrated library system, familiarity with MARC format, Library of Congress classification and standard cataloging practices is required. Demonstrated experience and expertise with Innovative Interfaces Millennium is strongly preferred. Strong organizational and time and project management skills are preferred.

A full job description is available online for position 11-09-14-01-0080: http://utdirect.utexas.edu/pnjobs/pnjobsvw.WBX?job_nbr=11-09-14-01-0080

Applicants should submit a letter of interest, resume and the names and contact information for 3 professional references. All materials should be submitted to the University of Texas’ online job application system: http://utdirect.utexas.edu/pnjobs/direct.WBX?comp=0&job_nbr=11-09-14-01-0080

[JH]

Round-Up of Law Practitioner Blogs

Kansas City Injury Lawyer Blog
http://www.kansascityinjurylawyerblog.com
http://www.kansascityinjurylawyerblog.com/index.xml
Covers injury law news, reports and opinions in Missouri. Published by The Horn Law Firm.
 
Phoenix Injury Attorney Blog
http://www.phoenixinjuryattorneyblog.com
http://www.phoenixinjuryattorneyblog.com/index.xml
Provides opinion on motorcycle accident legislation, opinions and news in Arizona. Published by the Law Office of Vladimir Gagic, PLLC.
 
Florida Injury Attorneys Blog
http://www.florida-injury-attorneys-blog.com
http://www.florida-injury-attorneys-blog.com/index.xml
Discusses injury law news, cases and reports in Florida. Published by Brian Y. Silber.
 
Orange County Criminal Attorneys Blog
http://www.orangecountycriminalattorneysblog.com/
http://www.orangecountycriminalattorneysblog.com/index.xml
Reports on criminal law cases, legislation, and news in California.  Published by Lauren K. Johnson.
 
California Criminal Defense Attorney Blog
http://www.californiacriminaldefenseattorneyblog.com/
http://www.californiacriminaldefenseattorneyblog.com/index.xml
Examines criminal defense cases, news, and opinions in California. Published by Criminal Defense Team.

California Real Estate Lawyers Blog
http://www.calrealestatelawyersblog.com
http://www.calrealestatelawyersblog.com/index.xml
Examines real estate law cases, reports and opinions in California. Published by the Law Office of James J. Falcone.

Maryland Car Accident Lawyer Blog
http://www.marylandcaraccidentlawyerblog.com
http://www.marylandcaraccidentlawyerblog.com/index.xml
Reviews car accident cases, reports and news in Maryland. Published by The Kaiser Law Firm, PLLC.