Law Librarian Blog

A Little Light Reading on Best Practices for Government Libraries from Lexis

LexisNexis has released its 2011 Best Practices for Government Libraries. This year's theme is expressed in the document's subtitle: "e-Initiatives and e-Efforts: Expanding our Horizons." I would list the TOC but it is way too long. Granted the document is 280-plus pages but, like past annual editions, the articles tend to be very short, too brief to be all that informative. Many articles are written by practitioners but, of course, some of the articles are written by LexisNexis folks. This is light reading material that could be improved by asking practitioners to provide more detailed, longer contributions. If space is an issue, omit the LexisNexis generated content next year.

I had the same issue with last year's Best Practices for Government Libraries 2010: The New Face of Value ("Unfortunately the articles are so damn brief they leave me with little to think about except for wondering who hires the best looking models or buys the best stock photos of them: Lexis, TR Legal or AALL Spectrum?") At least the stock photos of models have been omitted by Lexis from this year's edition.

A very quick scroll through the PDF may be a good way to find something of interest to read. Lexis also has used Adobe properly to bookmark articles for easy navigation of this 280-plus page PDF.  [JH]

Sign of the Times and Trust in Law Library Relations with HeinOnline: No Shelving Units Required for Law Review and Journal Runs

Both Washington State Law Library and Case Western Reserve Univ. Law Library are offering law review and journal runs for the cost of shipping. For Case Western the scope of titles being removed from the collection can be measured by the the number of spreadsheet pages -- 11. Check this week's AALL law-lib archives, if interested. One might say because we trust HeinOnline, no shelving units are required for past volumes of law reviews and journals. Perhaps, someday, there will be no need for current issues either, at least at those law libraries that still see a need for them.

If Not Retained on Law Library Shelves, Why Publish in Print? In his FoLL presentation, Dick Danner (Duke) reviewed the current status of transitioning to digital-only publication of law reviews in the context of the Durham Statement on Open Access to Legal Scholarship. See his Open Access session presentation (Video 2, accessible from the Conference wiki main page). Despite some current resistance from members of the law review community (and academic law library community), does anyone really believe that law review articles will be published in print ten years from now? [JH]

Innovative Solution to Closure of Camden Public Library's Main Branch May Point the Way for Struggling County Law Libraries

The downtown "branch" of New Jersey's Camden City Public Library was closed in February when Mayor Dana Redd decided the city could no longer afford its 100-year-old public library system while facing a $26.5 million budget deficit. "As soon as the closure of the libraries was announced last year, county and city officials started brainstorming with Rutgers-Camden Chancellor Wendell Pritchett on how to provide library services downtown." The result: "Construction has begun on the basement of the Paul Robeson Library to make room for a 5,000-square-foot downtown Camden branch [of the public library]."

"This project is a manifestation that we are a state university," Pritchett said, adding that the library will help connect Camden residents to a higher-education campus.

Snips from and details here. Perhaps the best statement in the article is the opening paragraph:

Sometime this fall, Camden's youngest residents will be able to walk among Rutgers-Camden students and faculty on their way to the Camden County's newest branch library.

Perhaps struggling county law libraries trying to survive can align structurallly in a similar manner with local law school libraries. I believe at least one has done so (but damn if I can remember it) and perhaps there are more instances.

Win-Win-Win.This could a "win-win-win" solution. Academic law libraries typically have resources for their state jurisdictions (albeit many cannot afford the sort of practitioner resources most state litigators and some state transactional practitioners use in their law practice.) County law libraries are under budgetary pressures that oftentimes result is downsizing federal and comprehensive secondary sources.

So imagine a county law library structure administrating and financing an academic law library's in-state collection (cut those costs from the academic law library collection development budget) while the academic law library supports the federal and general secondary sources (cut those costs from the county law library collection development budget). That's could be a win-win. Then there is a possile third "win." State law pracitioners working in the same law library as law school students.

Such an innovated solution would probably work best in a public law school library for state financing bean-counter reasons but also for public access requirements. It would, IMHO, require the employment of county-state public law librarians for reference assistance -- meaning, some job security in addition to collective development savings by both law libraries through a "merger" of sorts. It most definintely could improve legal research instruction provided by county-state public law librarians expert in what state practitioners actually use in the the "real world."

In these fiscal times that are impacting both academic and county law libraries, it is not only do-able but is an opportunity that ought not be ignored is some situations because of the public sector law library-academic law library professional divide that certainly exists. It may look like a desperate move but it may yield very positive structural changes. Let's face, except for the top 10 (perhaps top 20) law schools, one hellva lot more law grads will be looking at state-focused law practices now and in the future than in the past.

Where there is a will, there is a way. The Rutgers-Camden and Camden public library system is showing that this is do-able. The article reports on how financing is being worked out. Obviously the downtown locations of Rutgers-Camden and the closed Camden public library was an important factor, too.

Thinking Outside the Box. With a hat tip to LISNews, the article about the public library-public university library solution in Candem was published in the Philadephia Inquirer, site of AALL's Cream Cheese Cheesesteak or Karaoke. Not exactly a forum for thinking outside the box. The more likely forum for similiar innovative solutions may be local AALL chapters.

A Very Small Illustration. At ORALL 2010, NKU Chase Law Library offered to participate in the county law library's pocket-part exchange program (read county law libraries who can't afford to maintain print continuation standard orders for pocket parts make do with the latest out-of-date pocket parts). NKU Chase Law Library's generous offer came on the heels of massive print cutbacks-in-process by many Ohio county law libraries. The Shed West Era threatened to substantially reduce the number of titles offered in the pocket-part exchange program. (NB: at the time, my little county law library had participated but last year we could not make any commitments whatsoever because we were still in the midsts of our Shed West era of cancelling print continuations).

While is this a small illustration? Because it is not a structural reformation. However, there is no doubt in my mind that NKU Chase Associate Dean for Law Library Services & Information Technology Mike Whiteman's impromptu offer to help out by contributing to the ORALL County Law Library SIG's program was (and is) very much appreciated. {JH]

"They're a victim of technology:" West Virginia shutting down regional public law libraries

The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register is reporting that West Virginia's regional law libraries are being closed due to lack of patron use. From Shelley Hanson's article, W.Va. Closes Book on Law Libraries:

[Steven Canterbury, administrative director for the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals] said it took the court three to four years to decide whether to close the law libraries. After conducting a study on the Huntington law library, it was determined after a three-month period that not one person used that library. The main law library in Charleston will remain open. Its librarian is Kaye Maerz.

The reason for the low use, he said, is because most law case books can be accessed via the Internet. And most law firms use Internet-based services to read case laws online, in addition to using their personal law libraries.

"They're a victim of technology," Canterbury said of the libraries. "Originally they were established to be a great equalizer for one-lawyer shops. ... They wouldn't be outgunned if they didn't have the materials."

[JH]

NOCALL Members Respond to Question: "How widespread is WestlawNext?"

21 law librarians representing firm, county and court libraries replied to the question Paul Lomio posed on the NOCALL listserv about WestlawNext use. Check out the results of his informal survey on Legal Research Plus. [JH]

Will Washington State Effectively Close Its State Law Library?

Could the Washington State legislature be so short-minded to essentially de-fund the Washington State Law Library in the budget currently under consideration?  That seems to be the case if this article in the News Tribune out of Tacoma is true.  The current budget for the years 2009-2011 is $4,436,000, and that represents a reduction from previous budget years.  It's reported that the Washington House is considering further reductions to $3,260,000 and the Senate proposed appropriation for two years is a mere $1,000,000.

Considering the Law Library pays expenses such as rent, insurance, and utilities to the tune of $450,000 per year, the leftover amount would barely pay for anything of substance.  If this is how Washington State legislators think of having a state law library, then what is the point of having one at all?

I have to hope that a budget compromise will come about that adequately funds the Law Library.  I'd like to think that this is typical of how budget negotiations start, and with reasonable funding secured in the end.  However, these days of what passes for governing and politics, I'm not so sure.  I hope this works out for the best.  [MG]

TR Legal's Big Free Love for Public Sector Researchers Discontinued "Effective Immediately"

Big Love has ended in the land of 10,000 invoices -- scratch that; Big Love is was one of the Blog Widow's favorite cable programs which ceased production recently. The writers and producers of Big Love explained they said everything they had to say so it was time to discontinue the series. Frankly, Big Love scared the hell out of me. Who would want to deal with 2-3-4 wives?

This, by the way, isn't some sort of anti-Mormon statement. If the airport in Salt Lake City is any indication, Mormons are pretty damn considerate. Imagine my surprise a couple of years ago when on a lay-over from Cincinnati to Las Vegas, I found a smoker's lounge right next to where I got off the plane. But I digress... .

Free love has ended at TR Legal. At least for "KeyPoints," legal research e-newsletters for federal, state and local government audiences. They have been discontinued "effectively immediately." Perhaps TR Legal has said everything they had to say, too

Ah, frankly I don't remember when I last received a KeyPoints issue. But I do remember receiving non-free TR Legal print materials because it has become a question of "what the hell are they shipping now and at what price." Is it just me or are you getting afraid to order any new print title from TR Legal because ya just never know what you can expect 3-6-12-? months out. Seriously, I'm just not a buyer of a new West title when I can find a comparable one from a more reliable and trustworthy vendor. That's not hard to do. But I digress again... .

"Effective immediately" tells me one thing. TR Legal knows how to act decisively. Too bad that doesn't apply to customer relations for discontinuing chronic business practices of outrageously dubious value to subscribers. Oh, wait, such matters would involve the prospect of reducing TR Legal's revenue stream. In the KeyPoints e-newsletter decision, it's about cost-savings for the Company. 

No explaination was given for ceasing publication of KeyPoints by TR Legal. Personally, I'm wondering if the e-newsletters were killed because their writers were drafted for becoming "Publisher's Editorial Staff" to spit out more updates. Yes, yes, I know the former worked in "marketing" or "communications," the latter in the "content commoditization" department. Probably not a difficult transition.

You might think I have it out for TR Legal. But I don't. It's just that our other major vendors are less likely to take, ah, "goofy" actions or at least to make public announcements about them, like this one. Had "KeyPoints" stopped appearing in my email in-box, I probably would have never noticed. [JH]

Some Thoughts on eBook Licensing Terms for Libraries

The news feeds picked up the move by HarperCollins to restrict library loans of ebooks to just 26.  After that, a library will have to buy an additional license for another 26 loans.  Rinse and repeat.  The magic number of 26 was derived by assuming a print copy of a book will survive that many loans before a library would have to replace it.  I think librarians everywhere would think that a book manufactured with basic quality would survive more than 26 check-outs.  But that's quibbling about the number and not the reason why the limitation on the license exists at all.  HarperCollins believes that ebooks, without the same overhead associated with print, without deterioration due to wear and tear, should be treated as an analog.  The company should not be deprived of that replacement revenue simply because it creates a product that remains pristine in its use.

Never mind that e-text can't be copied or pasted (legally).  Never mind that digital rights management enforces other restrictions on the text that do not exist in the analog world.  What's important is monetizing ebooks further by placing artificial restrictions borrowed from the old way of doing things.  How odd, to create value from a construct rather than finding ways to adapt to new forms and new market strategies.  There was a time when I characterized the music industry as one who hated its customers by assuming that every person out there was a pirate.  I think the publishing industry is moving into that same mind-set by punishing public libraries if it adopts these new licensing terms wholesale.

Consider that ebook vendors purport to sell texts for their proprietary devices "in perpetuity."  If this starts with public libraries, could not outright individual purchases turn into pay for view?  Why should the buying public pay only once in a system where the reader is replaced rather than the text.  Publishers may consider this imbalance as they as think of ways to recoup value from their product.  Portable electronic devices are created as consumption machines partially because of practical design considerations and, I think, partially to enforce a consumption mentality, one that is susceptible to constant tolls for access.  Charlie Brooker, noted Mac-hater, wrote recently that he has adopted the platform, but points out how lacking it can be when he wants to do something he can't by deliberate design of Apple.  Everything must go through iTunes, for example, even when it need not.  This is the evolving digital world, and not only from Apple.  It's called "control."  The revolution may not be televised, but it will be licensed.

I read an article once, I don't remember where, otherwise I would link to it, that suggested that piracy actually promotes preservation by allowing archiving where a rights holder deliberately prevents it.  Books can be scanned and DRM can be stripped from files.  It's a pity that the people who are trained to manage digital information collections (librarians) are the ones with the least legal right to apply that training.  In one hundred years, sadly, the richest archives of digital information will not be coming from libraries.  No wonder the publishing industry hates Google.  [MG]

Initial Thoughts on a Plan to Restore FTC Oversight of Publisher Trade Practices

Bryan Carson has recently made a compelling case to reinstate a contemporary version of former FTC Guides for the Law Book Industry [Download Text of FTC Guidelines]. In fact, he suggests expanding reinstated guides to cover publishers in "medical and other fields that need current information." Expanded guides would therefore concern unfair business practices of publishers of legal, scientific, medical, and technical (LSMT) literature. Because such guides would not address excessive price increases for subscriptions and new purchases, Bryan also suggests that library associations seek an antitrust exemption. The exemption would allow them to leverage threats of boycotts against specific LSMT publishers that continue to gouge prices. While I favor all of these proposals, I will limit my comments to how "we" - a coalition of AALL, other library associations, and allied organizations - might engage the FTC to end unfair business practices of LSMT publishers.

How can interested parties form a coalition of library associations and organizations whose members buy LSMT publications and services? Obstacles abound. AALL and its Chapters require ethical and other reforms to more effectively protect consumers of legal publication, and so may other library associations to protect consumers of LSMT publication. Perhaps these internal reforms can wait, as activist members of the respective associations enlist sufficient support to form a coalition, with the reforms to follow as a consequence. At any rate, librarians and their allies can build a coalition, no matter how formidable the obstacles. So while I defer the question of coalition-building, I aim to prompt further discussion of all our options, not just the three that I am about to identify. Moreover, any library association can independently pursue one (or more) of the options, even if a coalition would raise the odds of success.

First, we can take actions independently of the FTC to prompt its own initiation of an investigation. The FTC may investigate industries (16 CFR §2.1), and individual businesses and persons (15 U.S.C. § 46(a)), for alleged violations of laws under its jurisdiction, including the prohibition of "unfair or deceptive acts or practices." (15 U.S.C. § 45(a)(1)) It may undertake these investigations to develop guides or rules, or to decide whether it has justification to pursue enforcement proceedings. The FTC initiated its own investigation of legal publishers as result of widely publicized findings of their unfair and deceptive practices. Prompted by Raymond Taylor's article, Law Book Consumers Need Protection, 55 A.B.A.J. 553 (1969), the FTC launched an investigation of legal publishers in 1969. (See Peter M.Kempel, New Guides for the Law Book Industry, 54 Mich. B.J. 938 (1975), cited by Kendall F. Svengalis, Legal Information Buyer's Guide & Reference Manual, 2008 ed., at 22, n.6.) The ABA, two state bar associations, and AALL also pursued investigations or made recommendations. The FTC then proposed "Guides for the Law Book Publishing Industry" (38 Fed. Reg. 5351 (1973)), and adopted the Guides two years later (40 Fed. Reg. 33436, as corrected, 40 Fed. Reg 36116 (1975)). [Download Text of FTC Guidelines] We could try to expand the precedent of Taylor and his supporters. We could pursue our own investigations of anti-consumer practices by LSMT publishers, using or creating consumer advocacy committees to review past complaints, receive new ones, and hold hearings. We could focus on practices common to the entire LSMT publishing industry, and report our findings in professional publications, blogs, and news outlets. We could even run a "rapid response" operation if LSMT publishers spread disinformation. We could thus create grounds for the FTC to initiate an investigation.

Second, under 16 CFR §2.1 and §2.2, we have a right to petition the FTC for an investigation. Under 16 CFR §2.1, we may also engage sympathetic members of Congress to request investigation on our behalf, at least if (at this stage) we do not also allege antitrust violations. (Either the House or the Senate may direct the FTC to investigate antitrust violations. See 15 U.S.C. § 46(d).) Our petition should specify the unfair and deceptive business practices common to LSMT publishers, and include a robust record of evidence. As Bryan and Greg Lambert (here) point out, an obvious example involves the requirement of non-disclosure clauses in our subscription contracts. Evidence would include an affidavit by James Tonna, Reed Elsevier's Vice President for Marketing and Sales in the Americas. He states that

"Elsevier representatives apply pricing formulae and methods which are not generally known (to our competitors or potential customers), which proprietary information reflects Elsevier's pricing/business methods and constitutes data unique to its products and services." (Affidavit, Elsevier Inc v. Washington State University, Case No. 09-2-00137-3 (Wash. Whitman County Super. Ct. Jun,. 11, 2009))

Third, to protect ourselves from unfair or deceptive acts or practices by LSMT publishers, we may petition the FTC for guides (16 CFR § 1.6) or trade practice rules (16 CFR § 1.9). A petition for guides must convince the agency that legal guidance on particular practices "would be beneficial in the public interest and would serve to bring about more widespread and equitable observance of laws administered by the Commission." Trade practice rules would give the FTC authority to regulate LSMT publishers in advertising, billing, shipping, selling, and producing their publications and services. We could ask the FTC to adopt a contemporary successor to the "Trade Practice Rules for the Subscription and Mail Order Book Publishing Industry," (rescinded, among 41 sets of trade practice rules, at 43 Fed. Reg. 44483 (1978)). A petition for such regulation would presumably have to show that guides would not suffice to achieve the protection consumers need. That standard raises a high bar, especially under present political circumstances. The FTC would face a powerful deterrent - the likely prospect of a Congress ready to impose a moratorium on such rulemaking, or to ban the rule altogether.

Of course, all of these options carry risks of failure. The first option strikes me as the least risky, and the third as riskiest. If we fail, we may embolden LSMT publishers to continue practices that have been so costly to their customers. But if we do not try, they will continue these practices anyhow.

Librarians have a proud tradition of defending their values. We have opposed censorship and surveillance provisions of the PATRIOT Act, supported openness and transparency in government, and promoted the availability and preservation of government documents. But we have not done enough, as consumer advocates, to confront challenges to other of our defining values. For we also value the widest public access to copyrighted publication, consistent with copyright compliance and costs related to publishers' competitive, and fair, business conduct. And we value the highest editorial standards of accuracy and currency. As Bryan has said, anti-consumer practices by legal publishers cost "lawyers, firms, and libraries hundreds of thousands of dollars every year," and the same may be said of  similar practices by SMT publishers. In aggregate, such costs may annually reach millions of dollars, and over time they exact a heavy cumulative toll on public access. Consumers of LSMT publication also depend on rigorous editorial standards. Profit-driven departures from these standards, if widespread, cause them significant harm from reliance on defective products. By championing consumer advocacy, we champion our core values, whatever the risks of failure.

Guest post by Michael Ginsborg. Michael Ginsborg (michaelginsborg@yahoo.com) has been a law librarian and AALL member since 1989.

Interview Series with Law Library of Congress Staffers

A bit hat tip to Library Boy a/k/a Michel-Adrien Sheppard for calling attention to the on-going series of interviews with Law Library of Congress staffers on the Custodia Legis blog. The series of interviews started off on October 27th, 2010 with Roberta Shaffer. Ten so far. In addition to Shaffer, the following Law Library of Congress staffers have been interviewed. All current and forthcoming interviews can be accessed from this link.

• Henry Rossman, Director of Information Technology
• Betty Lupinacci, Lead Technician for Legal Processing Workflow Resolution
• Debora Keysor, Legal Reference Specialist
• Edith Palmer, Senior Foreign Law Specialist
• Shameema Rahman, Legal Reference Specialist
• Kevin Long, Information Technology Specialist
• Pamela Barnes Craig, Senior Legal Reference Librarian
• Brian Kuhagen, Lead Technician for Legal Processing Workflow Resolution
• Mark Strattner, Chief of Collection Services Division

[JH]

Riverside County Law Library's Legal Research 102: For Those Who Have Been There and Done That but Forgot How

Kudos to the winning entries in 2010 AALL Excellence in Marketing Awards. My favorite, yes, for its catchy title but more importantly for responding to the need is Riverside County Law Library Best Campaign award-winning entry: “Legal Research 102: For Those Who Have Been There and Done That but Forgot How”

The Riverside County Law Library created the Legal Research 102 course to better serve its constituents, the citizens of the County of Riverside—especially lawyers. Factors that contributed to the course’s creation included a noted lack of legal research skills among practicing lawyers and requests by other agencies including the County Counsel. The three part course provides mandatory continuing legal education credits, which is another benefit to the legal community. The course has been positively received, and there are plans to offer it every quarter to reach a larger audience, including paralegals.

Quoting from Karen Brunner's Promoting Excellence: Announcing the 2010 Excellence in Marketing Awards Winners, Spectrum, Sept/Oct 2010. The Riverside County Law Library offers additional outreach programs including free family law seminars and public education forums regularly. See the Library's website.

The Spectrum article provides brief descriptions for all 2010 marketing award winners:

• Best Brochure: Yale Law School Lillian Goldman Law Library, Biennial Report 2007-2009
• Best Newsletter: K&L Gates Library and Research Services, AsktheLibrary: News from K&L Gates Library and Research Services
• Best Use of Technology: Arizona State University Ross-Blakely Law Library, Indian Law Portal
• Best PR Toolkit: Thomas M. Cooley Law Libraries, Food for Fines

[JH]

Outcomes-Based Approaches to Articulating Library Value to External Audiences

The primary objective of ACRL's The Value of Academic Libraries: A Comprehensive Research Review and Report (September 2010) "is to provide academic librarians and institutional leaders with a clearer understanding of what research about the performance of academic libraries already exists and where gaps in this research occur. The report additionally identifies the most promising best practices and measures correlated to performance and represents a starting point to assist college, university and community college librarians in gathering evidence to tell the story of their libraries and promote dialogue on the value of the academic library in higher education." [Press Release] Report author Megan Oakleaf of the iSchool at Syracuse University and ACRL President Lisa Hinchliffe discuss the Report in a podcast available from this web page.

From the Executive Summary:

This report is intended to describe the current state of the research on community college, college, and university library value and suggest focus areas for future research. The report emphasizes library value within the context of overarching institutions.  ... [T]his report includes significant research from other library types: school, public, and special (e.g., corporate, medical, law) libraries. The literature of school, public, and special libraries offers examples of numerous library value approaches and lessons learned from each. Academic libraries in universities, colleges, and community colleges would do well to learn from those experiences. Furthermore, because this report is focused on the articulation of library value to external audiences, this report does not emphasize measures of internal library processes such as input and output measures, external perceptions of quality, and satisfaction with library services. Internal, service quality, and satisfaction measures are of great utility to librarians who seek to manage library services and resources, but they may not resonate with institutional leaders as well as outcomes-based approaches.

The Report's Special Libraries Section. "Special libraries have found that they must demonstrate their value in terms meaningful to organizational management." Law librarians may find the Report's Special Libraries Section (pp 84-93) interesting. It provides a review of the literature on working with managers, economic and impact studies, and reporting results that communicate library value within the context of the institution's mission and outcomes.

Hat tip to Digital Koans. [JH]

Summer's Over, Time to Get Back to Work (Really?)

"September is a time of change—the more relaxed dress codes and slightly slower pace of summer have given way to the normal hustle and bustle of our workday lives." Quoting "From the Desk of," yup, our association president's latest message. What relaxed dress code? What slightly slower pace? What back to normal workday lives? I must have missed the memo. Does anyone look over these messages before they get published?

There are no relaxed dress codes in either the private or public sectors (well, maybe Fridays). The summer is the busiest season of the year in the private sector because those law librarians have to deal with the arrival of students who are summer associates and grads who are first year associates ill-prepared by the legal academy for the real world. Vacations? Well, if you call attending AALL a "vacation," perhaps.

The "normal hustle and bustle of our workday lives" does not change one iota for public sector law librarians during the summer. While one season of the year may not be busier than another, the government remains open for business. So if some public sector library staffers are taking vacations, others are pulling double duty to get the work done.

Oh wait, our president's statement may represent the rhythm of academic law library work from early May to early August. Students have migrated after taking their finals. Profs are more likely to be working on their next law review article at home or staring at a stack of ungraded exams behind closed office doors. A collective sigh of relief is heard in the law library because it's summertime, time, time, the living's easy. Or so it seems.

Yes, there is no denying the fact that particularly the public services staff are counting down the days to reading-and-exams weeks by early April. But most academic law librarians start the summer off gazing at their offices and wondering if the collective debris of the academic year can be cleared away before their 9-month long patrons return. Many do head off to take as much of their four weeks per year vacation as possible because the typical academic law library is too short staffed for vacations any other time of the year (expect during December and January). Some actually use the summer's opportunity to get more work done. They do not allow themselves to fall into the trap that there's nothing to do because there's no patrons in the law library. Those are the "keepers," the ones who are self-motivated.

Alas, for a minority, the pace does slow down, down to a crawl unless management has been paying attention and has come up with a to-do list of summer break projects. Of course, the same sort of "non-keepers" can also be found in the private and public sectors as well. It's just less likely to not be so seasonal because there is no decline in foot traffic, phone calls, emails, deadlines. In those sectors, catch-up time or to-do list managerial moments are occasional day-long events when courts are closed, not an entire season of the year.

I know this to be the case because between being a BigLaw firm librarian and a public sector law librarian, I was an academic law librarian. But one doesn't need have worked in all three major library sectors to know better than sending out this "summer's over, time to get back to work" message. It is, however, time to cue the music video (Janis but I doubt it's Jimi) for the "keepers" who have to put up with the "slightly slower pace of summer" notion that gives many the impression that academic law librarians just hang a "gone fishing" sign on their doors for three months of the year because "fish are jumping out and the cotton's so high." [JH]

AALL Petition for By-Law Amendments Regarding SIS Fees

Here is a petition asking AALL for a vote by distributed ballot (simple majority of those voting) to:
 
1.  Increase the percentage of SIS fees given to each SIS to 80% (this allows AALL 20% as an administrative fee) and provides that it be paid quarterly instead of once a year.

2.  Requires any changes to SIS fees be voted on by the members of AALL.
 
Why make this proposal? See my LLB post, Results of Law Librarian Blog SIS Fees Poll.
 
AALL requires original petition signatures.  Only members in good standing may sign the petition. 
 
Please feel free to pass this petition along. All signed petitions should be returned to me by snail mail at the below address.   
 
Caren J. Biberman
Director of Library and Information Services
Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP
80 Pine Street, Room 1829
New York, NY  10005

Legal eBooks and the Institutional Buyer: An LLB Poll on Use, Acquisition Interest and Market Penetration

Since the advent of full-text search in the late 1970s-early 1980s, law libraries have tended to be at the forefront of technological innovation in the provision of resources to its users. When one reads what general public libraries are doing with respect to eBooks, one has to wonder if law libraries are "behind the curve" in providing legal eBooks. By legal eBook, I am not referring to the fantasy island that is the "there's a legal app for that" mentality. Nor am I referring to research apps for providing access to reliable legal database search services, such as iPad apps for WestlawNext, Fasecase, etc. I'm referring to the legal eBook comparable to what is sold by popular, trade and textbook publishers regardless of distribution channels used.

Where Do We Stand in Use, Acquistion Interest and Market Penetration?Legal eBooks for purposes of this utterly unscientific LLB poll may include hornbooks and casebooks for instruction, primary source materials such as topical statutory, regulatory and court rule compilations, and secondary legal sources including but not limited to legal practitioner materials such as practice handbooks and treatises, etc. The below questions may not answer all facets of legal eBooks but the answers may be a measure of where we are and where we may be heading. As some of our major vendors start executing unannounced until shippped print format switcheroos like the one mentioned in yesterday's LLB post, law librarians can easily see where these print format changes are probably heading.

If you have a moment, please take our poll and thanks in advance for participating. Sorry about the ads. Our blogware provider's "improved" composing interface has made a mess of the free pollware we used in the past. If this pollware works and if the Blog Widow allows, future polls will be ad free. [JH]

NB: After voting, hit the back button to return to this post to take the next question.[JH]

How prevalent is legal eBook use in your institution's population?
	Very prevalent
	Somewhat prevalent
	Not prevalent
	Almost nonexistent or nonexistent
pollcode.com free polls

Does your institution acquire legal eBooks for its employees' office use (eg, attorneys, judges, faculty)?
	Yes, but not with library funds
	Yes, with library funds
	No
pollcode.com free polls

Does your library acquire legal eBooks for lending to patrons?
	Yes
	No, but we plan to start doing so soon
	No, we do not plan to do so at this time?
pollcode.com free polls

Does your library use its funds to acquire eReaders at your institution?
	Yes, for employees' individual use only (eg, attorneys, judges, faculty)
	Yes, for lending to library patrons
	Yes, for lending and individual employee use
	No
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The current selection, quality and pricing of legal eBooks is
	Very poor
	Poor
	Average
	Good
	Excellent
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Legal eBooks are going to be an important facet of law library collection development
	Strongly agree
	Agree
	Disagree
	Strongly Disagree
	No opinion
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The most significant deterrents to the rapid growth of legal eBooks for my institution's user population are (select multiple answers)
	The availability of titles from reputable vendors
	Licensing instead of owning the legal eBook outright
	Proprietary formats instead of open source file formats
	The inability to integrate eBook content into work product directly
	The cost of eReaders
	The cost of eBooks
	pBook usability is better than current eBook interfaces
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My institutional affiliation is
	Academic law library (public or private)
	Private sector law library (law firms, corporations, etc.)
	Public sector law library (agencies, courts, state or county library etc.)
	Other
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Fox News Asks "Is It Time For Public Libraries To Go?"

This item was sent to me a while back by Claire Membiela at the Cooley Law School.  It's a report/editorial from Fox Chicago News titled Are Libraries Necessary, or a Waste of Tax Money?  The basic premise of the story is that Illinois is in a budget crisis with billions of dollars in debt.  How bad is it?  The Illinois Legislative Reference Bureau doesn't have the cash to cover postage for mailing out the Legislative Synopsis and Digest.  The publication has been issued since 1921 and tracks all bills through the General Assembly.  We are referred to the web for PDF versions instead.

Fox didn't focus on this aspect of the crisis.  They acknowledge the historical value of libraries and note that 88 million books get borrowed every year in the state (Illinois' population was 12,910,409 as of July, 2009).  But, they ask "should these institutions...be on the way out?"  Their expose consisted of counting the visitors to the Harold Washington Library in downtown Chicago noting 300 in an hour.  Their point is that most people they say were using the free Internet services and not the bookshelves.  Fox would rather see the $120 million the city pays annually to support public libraries go to schools, public transportation, police, or pensions.

Chicago Library Commissioner Mary Dempsey responded, calling the the story's lack of understanding of public libraries "astounding."  I have to agree with her.  Fox appears clueless as to the purpose of a public library especially in a large urban setting.  From her response:   

Last year, Chicagoans checked out nearly 10 million items from the Chicago Public Library’s 74 locations and the majority of those items were books. (Your ‘undercover cameras” shots were taken in a series of stacks devoted to bound periodicals used for reference. Next time, try looking at the circulating collections throughout the building.) Especially in times of economic downturn, smart people turn to the public library as their free resource for books, information and entertainment in multiple formats – print, online, in person.

And yes, we proudly provide free access to the internet because so much information today is found online, something you should know from your own work. In fact, the Chicago Public Library provided 3.8 million free one hour Internet sessions to the people of Chicago in 2009. The Internet has made public libraries more relevant, not less as your story suggests. There continues to exist in this country a vast digital divide. It exists along lines of race and class and is only bridged consistently and equitably through the free access provided by the Chicago Public Library and all public libraries in this nation. Some 60 percent of the individuals who use public computers a Chicago’s libraries are searching for and applying for jobs. We’re proud to continue to be able to use our resources to help them do so.

What Fox is suggesting is not unique to Chicago.  Public libraries across the country are feeling the financial heat.  While public administrators weigh costs in a recession, it's not time to throw public libraries under the bus.  Author Marilyn Johnson wrote thisin the July 6th issue of the Los Angeles Times:  "The U.S. is beginning an interesting experiment in democracy: We're cutting public library funds, shrinking our public and school libraries, and in some places, shutting them altogether. * * *  We won't miss a third of our librarians and branch libraries the way we'd miss a third of our firefighters and firehouses, the rationale goes … but I wonder."  Her whole piece is an excellent description of the value of public libraries and worth reading.  She speaks to the service efforts of libraries and librarians beyond the traditional book services that Fox singled out. 

My favorite statement in Johnson's piece is "While they help us get online, employed and informed, librarians don't try to sell us anything. Nor do they turn around and broadcast our problems, send us spam or keep a record of our interests and needs, because no matter how savvy this profession is at navigating the online world, it clings to that old-fashioned value, privacy."  The private market thrives at providing information over the Internet.  Isn't it great, however, to go to a place where multiple logins, fees, and ads aren't intruding every page?  Support your local library folks.  It does way more than people would think.  [MG]

"Saving" Ohio County Law Libraries: An AALL "Case Study" By Selective Omission Produces Something Less Than an Accurate Depiction

The June 2010 issue of AALL Washington E-Bulletin reports that the "ORALL County SIG [is] receiving this year’s AALL Robert L. Oakley Advocacy Award for their remarkable efforts." Deserving? Yes, particularly when compared to what happened to county law libraries in Florida. Remarkable? Well, perhaps not in the way the announcement was intended. The bulletin, however, links to an AALL "case study" entitled  ORALL Protects Future of County Law Libraries that is so full of self-congratulatory happy talk that it fails to inform readers.

By way of background, I came into this situation near the tail end of the legislative process that resulted in the statutory reformation of the Ohio county law library system. In fact, I wouldn't have accepted the offer to serve as the director of our little Ohio county law library if I hadn't thought the statute would be enacted.

Before Ohio county law libraries were "saved," they were operated by that 19th century anachronism known as the non-profit library association. For Ohio county law libraries these were funded by public monies -- fines and forfeitures -- plus in some instances by sizable annual contributions by county law library associations associated with local bar associations directly or indirectly. While library associations served a very useful purpose in the 19th century for the creation of general public libraries, most were replaced in the 1920s. They lingered on in Ohio for county law libraries until Jan. 1, 2010. They operated by statutory requirement under a spend-it or refund-it annual mandate for public monies received. Many spent it even when, for a few, refunding might have been a less wasteful alternative.

The situation presented in the AALL "case study" hardly represents what actually is happening. Several of the major Ohio county law libraries are struggling to survive and will end up being substantially less than what they once were. Many will survive only because one county law library solicited and received an Ohio attorney general opinion that prohibited county governments from charging county law libraries crippling rental fees, a ruling that also instructed Ohio legislators how to redraft the statutory mandate. Some county law library associations that once provided substantial financial resources to supplement public revenues are refusing to continue doing so. Saved? If barely surviving is your definition of saved, sure.

The AALL case study notes the following:

Some CLLRBs [County Law Library Resources Board appointed by representatives of County government, County and municipal courts] coordinate the purchase of legal resources county-wide and pay for them themselves, which has allowed for some bulk purchasing discounts; others coordinate the purchase, make the initial payment and then charge each agency their share (still allowing for the bulk discounts); and others simply deny the purchase of any legal resources not housed in the library.

The verb tense is wrong. Future tense would be more accurate. As of now, not much "bulk purchasing discounts" is taking place, perhaps in a year or two or three and then depending on the vendor. At the moment, WEXIS vendors are still grappling with the reality that different reps who once dealt with county law libraries, county agencies, county courts and municipalities now have to deal with professionals, ah that would be law librarians, across these segmented markets for purchasing. I, for one, have told some reps for accounts now under my management that I will be be dealing only with my reps, "sorry about any sales commission losses." Our little county law library is one of the very few who can afford to pick up the tab for purchasing resources used in-house by county agencies and courts and municipal courts and law departments. Most simply cannot.

The AALL case study notes that a statewide a county law library consortium will be created:

The consortium has until January 1, 2011 to hire an executive director and find a location for their operation. Starting in early 2011, CLLRBs will be required to turn over 2% of their 2010 revenue to the consortium.

The mandatory 2% contribution to this consortium is a major point of contention with some county law libraries. Will this consortium ever get all county law libraries on the same page for potential volume discounting? Do we need to provide infrastructure services like cataloging to smaller county law libraries? Is staff really needed to be hired?

I, for one, do not see the need for full or even part-time employment for anyone associated with this consortium -- let the appointed members do the work. Our little county law library, along with Cincinnati and Columbus are one of the three best funded from public funds in the state. Next year we will pay something like $20K to this consortium and by the time it is up to speed, we are not likely to see a return on our investment. Other county law libraries are substantially less well funded and need every penny they receive to fulfil their statutory mandate at the county level. Maybe the first order of consortium business should be to reduce this mandatory contribution. The Consortium can by ask county law library resources boards to vote to ratify requests to increase the annual percent contribution. Will that ever get a thumbs up? Doubtful. The Consortium can also request by vote to ratify reduction of the annual percent contribution. That would probably get a thumbs up approval but are we likely to see that happen in the Buckeye State?

 "Saved" means the county law library is first and foremost an in-house law library for county government that coordinates purchasing county-wide, provides libraries services to county offices and courts while being open to the public. "Saved" in the context of Ohio county law libraries means substantial collection downsizing, employee terminations, and the redirection of county public funds for purchasing legal resources for in-house use by county offices and courts if funds are available and for a micro-bureaucracy at the state level even if funding is not available.

The legislation was passed to make county law libraries more "accountable." Some county law librarians think that means, "well, we were audited every two years, that's accountability, isn't it?" That wasn't the point. The point was to use public funds to provide legal resources to county government as directed by public appointees instead of a board of trustees elected by a non-profit law library association that was not accountable to county government for the decisions it made. County law libraries could have been providing legal resources and purchasing services under the former statutory mandate. Most were not. I can think of only one county law library that served its county government under the former statute as systematically as is now more explicitly mandated. Now we all must do what that county law library had been doing for years and I whole-heartily subscribe to this although the downside is being felt across the state as each county law library addresses this reform in its own way. Like I said, I wouldn't have accepted the offer if I hadn't thought the statute reforming the Ohio county law library system wasn't going to be enacted into law. See The Shed West Era in Execution.

 In some respect, the Ohio statute "saved" county law libraries from an archaic structure, the non-profit law library association that used most of the public monies it received for the benefit of the local county bar and members of the general public while having benefited for decades by receiving a public facility free of charge and employment costs being covered by a separate statutory mandate for up to three law library employees. In those instances where county law library associations supplemented public funds in a substantial way but now are reluctant or refuse to do so, "get over it."

Unfortunately the back-story is not revealed in AALL's way too pat-on-the-back so-called case study. In other words, it is a case study that misleads more than informs. [JH]

The Shed West Era in Execution

Over 97,000 pounds of print were sent off to the recycling center from our little county law library in recent weeks and that doesn't include several thousands of pounds of recycled loose-leaf pages and books removed earlier this year. Easily 110,000-plus pounds in total. The bulk of the work is now completed. The results are displayed in the below images. Missing from the snapshots are an entire large room emptied of its "archival" contents and a second smaller space half-emptied of the same sort of materials. The images below are from our open stacks.

The Shed West Era in Pictures

For a little context, we are downsizing our footprint and print collection to save on print spend and leasing costs. Now that we are an official county agency that is acquiring legal resources for in-house use by county offices, county and municipal courts, and municipal law department, plus paying all library employment costs from our statutory fines and forfeiture revenues cost-saving measures had to be taken. However, the Shed West Era at our little county law library wasn't entirely driven by financial necessity.

Our Objectives. Our existing facility covers 7,000 square feet on one floor with 8,400 linear feet of shelving and and our occupied shelving was 96%. Now we all know as a rule of thumb that when 80% of shelving is occupied by print materials, the library is for all practical purposes “full.” My most immediate predecessor apologized profusely for not weeding the collection. Apology accepted; her plate was full with other more pressing issues. However, regular weeding should have been practiced long before she arrived on the scene.

So we started with something like 45-50,000 volumes and a downsizing plan that called for reducing our footprint from 7,000 to 5,000 square feet, our linear feet of shelving from 8,400 to 3,500 and our occupied shelving from the whopping 96% to 80-85%. We shredded the de facto collection development policy that purchased multiple secondary sources in most every legal specialty in order to answer about any legal question that just might come in the door for one that more appropriately focused on serving county and court needs and the more common practice areas of our local bar. We also shredded the de facto retention policy which tended toward the archival for one that more squarely focused on maintaining a law library to serve practitioners’ everyday needs in our county. This isn’t a criticism of prior administrators but the times they are a-changing (actually they already have), and the mission of this library has changed to reflect the era we have been living in for some time and the new statutory mandate we operate under.

And Their Execution. There were a lot of no-brainer decisions. Gone are 50 years worth of Martindale’s (full sets mind you, not just the law digest volumes), superseded editions of current treatises on the shelves, 10 year runs of annual Ohio practitioner desk books, CLEs older than five years, PLI course books dating way back, CCH and BNA back files, case reporters, etc., for services previously cancelled, West specialty reporters, most previously cancelled but still on the shelves, the last one and its digest cancelled about six months ago.

Also gone, all regional reporters. They had been cancelled a few years ago.  USCA, SCT and the Supreme Court Digest (!), cancelled and discarded because, well, Matthew Bender’s alternatives are one hellva lot less expensive and we had both. All decennial digests from the Century Digest to the current edition and that one cancelled and discarded. All Sheppard’s in print gone (most cancelled a few years ago but sitting on shelves, the remaining ones now history too). Several little as in almost never used West legal encyclopedic titles including two form sets cancelled and gone, more once they are off the WestPack Print plan. Several remaining ones now on print volume-only, no more pocket-parts, thank you very much. All ALRs, including ALR Fed gone. All law reviews, bar journals, etc. gone. Current issues of Ohio law reviews and ABA journals only and only the last 12 months. All supplemented secondary sources in the treatise collection that had been cancelled in 2003 and 2006 but were left on the shelves now gone.

None of the above made for difficult decisions. It’s the 21st Century after all. We have Lexis and Westlaw although we might be down to just Lexis with the addition of AmJur, ALR and OHJur to our license because, based on usage and costs, we’re going to cut back our Westlaw plan or just shed Westlaw and reconsider WestlawNext when it is ready for prime time and after evaluating “New Lexis.” We have HeinOnline with several à la carte libraries. We have BNA Online for specialty areas where they excel in providing primary and secondary sources. Alas, we still have a couple of CCH loose-leaf services where they excel because IntelliConnect’s UI isn’t ready for our patrons yet. And then there’s that whatca call it thing, the Internet, for reliable if not yet authenticated web-accessible resources.

We’ve also pared back our treatise collection substantially based on usage, costs and our revised collection development objectives. My colleagues provided me with usage stats (circulation and in-house use) upon request, a lot of requests. I checked circ cards too – got to love a title that hadn’t been check out in 50 years, titles in hot topic areas some quarter of a century ago that are now well-settled areas of law, supplemented works that look like they were acquired 10-15-more (?) years ago because a patron asked for them and after being used for the project-at-hand, never needed again but nonetheless were updated year after year after year. These were not, unfortunately, uncommon discoveries.

I climbed up and down and around the stacks in our treatise collection like some 57-year old monkey to physically inspect every damn title, many of which had only been touched by human hands when my colleagues had to update them. Physically, this was a tad demanding for this aging and decrepit Baby Boomer director, so much so, I started warning my staffers that I had just taken a Percocet (bad knee needing replacement) so don’t allow me to make any “executive decisions” unrelated to the damn print collection this afternoon. They really work better with a beer but this was a pain meds only process.

Multiple supplemented secondary sources are history in many areas. One and only one remains and those decisions rested on usage patterns, editorial quality and annual upkeep costs. In most instances, West lost out to Matthew Bender or another publisher. The one exception being UCC. OMG, has TR Legal let the editorial quality of some of the titles they gobbled up decline. In some areas, no supplemented secondary sources remain whatsoever and that gap is being filled in by a single volume comprehensive treatise and/or practitioner’s handbook but only when warranted. A few illustrations in areas that are not exactly hot beds of legal practice in our little county:

• About 21 linear feet of patent law materials containing about a half dozen mostly multi-volume, all supplemented titles plus more linear feet and titles on copyright law, trademarks, etc., going, going, gone. These resources are being replaced with a couple of BNA comprehensive single volume supplemented works and, maybe but only maybe, a general practitioner's handbook or two.
• The hodgepodge that was the labor and employment law collection of little used single and multiple volume titles of varying quality. The garbage that is Employment Coordinator and Employment Discrimination Coordinator, for example, to be going, going, gone when they off the WestPack plan. Simply not used but even if they were I would slap them out of a patron’s hands and put them in front a workstation to use BNA Online. BNA supplemented treatises and a couple of Apsen titles will remain on the shelves.
• The bankruptcy collection once included West’s Bankruptcy Reporter and its digest – gone. Still includes Collier’s but not the case reporter service any longer, still includes Norton’s and West’s Bankruptcy Service, Lawyers Ed. but at least one if not both will be going, going, gone when they are off the WestPack plan. The shelves still hold some recently cancelled West practitioner titles, one may be purchased new in a couple of years, emphasis on "may" because they all were little used. In a nutshell, based on usage, cost and editorial quality, Collier's fulfills our patrons' needs, meaning the print spend for the bankruptcy law collection will be reduced about no less than 75%.

And the Results. The bottom line is this. Our resources will be able to address the usual questions that walk in the door but not the atypical ones. Issues may be researched by way of electronic resources instead of print in some instances so some patrons' research preferences will have to adapt to the change but our collection of print and online resources generally remains adequate to fulfill our statutory mandate to provide library services. In the most common practice areas, our resources remain fairly strong Those areas are criminal law and procedure, family law, commercial litigation, wills, trusts, estates and probate, civil practice and procedure, tax, plus more than enough encyclopedic legal form sets for transactions and pleadings and a comprehensive Ohio state law collection of primary and secondary sources, although several multiple copies will be gone, yes, once they are off the WestPack plan.

To put this in context, due note that our little county law library is not located in a major metropolitan area. Our county government is relatively small. Our two largest "law firms" of any note are the County Prosecutor's Office and one firm with less than 20 attorneys. Our county bar association membership is in the 300s. Our county law library association before it disbanded had about 130 members. We have a state appellate court in our county but no federal courts whatsoever. The local bar's practice is primarily state litigation focused with some wills and estate planning, tax, and a very small amount of corporate transactional activity. 

Cost savings? Well over $250,000 annually based on 2009 print spend. West print spend cut 50%, Matthew Bender print cut about 25%. CCH loose-leaf print cut around 40%, BNA print about 20% (but we had already gone to BNA Online for everything we needed except for some of their supplemented labor and employment law treatises and tax portfolios which we are keeping in print). All PLI supplemented treatises history because their target audience is not our patrons. Ditto for many Aspen titles.

And more cuts to come. At least half the current cost of WestPack Print titles will be gone. Probably more if we do not keep Westlaw, plus some additional West titles as we give the entire collection a second look-see. Probably 20% in current Matthew Bender print spend will also be cut.

Any tough calls? One or two and a few, a very few, cancelled West titles may be resurrected in a couple of years. With West's annual supplementation costs running in the 70%-plus range of buying new, well, I think you know where I am heading. Of course, when resurrected, no supplementation, thank you very much. Plus some more current West continuations will be going the just-new-bound-volumes route too.

Did I lose any sleep over this? Nope. Do note, I am not one of those wild-eyed “let’s do it all online” legal researchers. For 30-years, I’ve had one foot firmly planted in print, the other in online. That’s not going to change and hasn’t changed by the Shed West Era as executed in our county law library. Also note, we are one of the three best financed from mandated court fines and foreitures revenue county law libraries in the state so while we needed to reduce print spent to redirect funds elsewhere, many of our executed Shed West Era decisions were made to stop wasting public monies on maintaining print materials rarely being used and/or readily available electronically.

It Takes a Hard Working Library Staff in the Shed West Era. This project took no small amount of work and most of it was performed by my colleagues, Julie, Dan and Angie. They worked hard generating circ stats from our OPAC at my beck-and-call, updating our catalog and serials records to reflect changes made to the print collection, stamping “Discarded” on volumes, labeling "Cancelled Effective..." on the spines of print continuations, shifting the soon-to-be discarded materials around to make for convenient disposal, stripping loose-leaf and compression-bound volumes so we could recycle the paper because we couldn’t toss metal into the recycling bins all the while keeping the law library up and running without disruption to our patrons while also adapting how we once transacted business to our county's way of doing business. More work to come as we reclassify some of the collection to improve browsability after I personally shift the treatise collection. More Percocet afternoons ahead.

We started the print continuation cancellation process in late 2009. The discarding process started in early 2010 and was dialed up to “11” when our Board called for completing the project as expeditiously as possible in March. The recycling crew at our local university, Miami University, offered to do the heavy lifting by pulling the materials off the shelves, taking them to the recycling center, and crediting the County with recycled paper tonnage. Because the crew was going to be more readily available once the academic year ended, we completed the project by late May and they hauled everything out by mid-June.

Shedding Westlaw? Well, the Miami crew didn’t haul out everything. Yes, in the above right photo, that is Words & Phrases! Now, there's a valuable 21st Century research tool! Yup, another unneeded, unwanted, unused  WestPack title; 50% off, such a deal! I might help my West rep carry the volumes to the trunk of his car after we have discussed the possibility of keeping or shedding Westlaw and after taking a Percocet.

Please note that while critical of the bloated Westlaw licenses with WestPact titles I inherited upon arriving on the scene, this criticism in not directed at the former occupant of my office. Her law library association board was "wowed" be the alleged cost savings offered by TR Legal and the misguided notion that Lexis and Westlaw were "duplicative." Professionals, that would be law librarians, ought never let amateurs negotiate with duopolists. Lesson learned.

Hello, TR Legal, my Board chair suggested months ago that we save staff time by simply tossing updates to WestPack titles that will be cancelled at the end of the current three-year license in December. That should tell you where we may be heading with Westlaw. And obviously, an LMA or any other multi-year print committment in our County is out of the question considering (1) the current economy and (2) TR Legal's refusal to allow the Spokane County Law Library out of its Westlaw license. [JH]

2010 Best Practices for Government Libraries

Best Practices for Government Libraries 2010: The New Face of Value is now available as a free PDF download from LexisNexis. The 2010 edition includes "over 70 articles and other submissions provided by more than 60 contributors from librarians in government agencies, courts, and the military, as well as from professional association leaders. etc." Unfortunately the articles are so damn brief they leave me with little to think about except for wondering who hires the best looking models or buys the best stock photos of them: Lexis, TR Legal or AALL Spectrum?

Lexis	TR Legal	AALL Spectrum

All these shiny happy people makes me want to hold hands with ... well, the young woman in TR Legal's WestlawNext photo, above, looks like she has some regrets. [JH]

Contributions Made by Law Librarians Featured on The Federal Judiciary YouTube Channel

Following up on LLB's The Evolving Federal Circuit Courts Library System: More About Knowledge Management as Libraries Place Greater Reliance on Electronic Resources, here's a Federal Judiciary YouTube Channel video featuring the contributions made by federal court law librarians.

Hat tip to Cleveland Law Library Weblog. [JH]