Legal Research

EU selects its first President

Posted on November 20, 2009
The Council of the European Union selected its first President, Herman Van Rompuy, currently the Prime Minister of Belgium.  This new post was created by the Treaty of Lisbon which goes into effect on Dec. 1st of this year. Catherine Ashton from Great Britain will be the new High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy...

Google Scholar is Expanding into Legal Information.

Posted on November 19, 2009
Google Scholar now has available  legal opinions and journals.  Currently available are all US Supreme Court opinions, Federal Appeals opinions since 1924, and many Federal District Court opinions from Federal Supplement.  There are also opinions from state courts included since 1950...

Nobelists ask Congress for Open Access to Federally Funded Research

Posted on November 13, 2009
Forty Nobel Prize-winning scientists in medicine, physics, and chemistry delivered a letter to Congress this week asking them to support the Federal Research Public Access Act of 2009 (S.1373). Senate Bill  1373, introduced by Senators Lieberman and Cornyn, would, within six months of publication, provide online public access to peer-reviewed journals funded by eleven U...

Computer-based Testing: February 2010 Bar Exam

Posted on November 13, 2009
The Board of Law Examiners will allow a limited number of applicants to use laptops to complete their answers to the essay sections of the February 2010 Bar examination. One hundred applicants will be randomly selected from those applicants whose completed request to participate forms are received no later than November 23...

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Veterans Day ? History

Posted on November 11, 2009
Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009 is Veterans Day.  In 1919 President Woodrow Wilson first issued a proclamation recognizing veterans and marking the signing of the Armistice ending World War I.    For more history on this holiday, see this link at the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs:  http://www1...

Affordable Health Care for America Act

Posted on November 11, 2009
The House passed H.R. 3962 on Saturday, November 7th with a vote of 220-215. Read more on The Hill blog. The text of all bills presented in the House and Senate are available on the Library of Congress’s THOMAS website. A favorite bill tracking website ( See H...

The Justice Gap in America

Posted on November 06, 2009
The Legal Services Corporation recently released its 2009 update to the 2005 report Documenting the Justice Gap in America: The Current Unmet Civil Needs of Low-Income Americans. It comes as no surprise that the number of individuals in the U.S. living below 125% of the federal poverty level has increased from 49...

Treaty of Lisbon ratified (finally)

Posted on November 04, 2009
The President of the Czeck Republic signed the Treaty of Lisbon on Tuesday, November 03, 2009 —  the last hurdle in the long journey of ratifying this latest treaty governing the European Union.  The Treaty of Lisbon reforms the institutions of the European Union which has rapidly expanded to 27 member states from 15 member states [...

NEW SUPREME COURT DATABASE

Posted on November 04, 2009
Are you interested in a particular legal or political issue? Do you seek information solely about the current Court or about a particular year? Perhaps you are interested in the votes of the Justices in cases about religion, commerce, or another area of the law...

Assault with A Deadly Ferret

Posted on October 30, 2009
A Jacksonville Beach, FL, man shoplifted a pet-shop ferret by stuffing it down his pants. The perp exited the store and was confronted in the parking lot by a witness bent on rescuing the ferret. The bandit allegedly shoved the ferret into the witness’s face...

But, all the cool courts do it?

Posted on October 30, 2009
The 7th Circuit is, no doubt, a trendsetter, what with citing Wikipedia and all.  According to the Blackbook legal blog, it recently cited movies in the footnotes of two cases.  In Sutherland v. Gaetz it cited “My Cousin Vinny” and in United States v...

From the department of ?You don?t say.?

Posted on October 28, 2009
GAO has released a report that concludes that rankings, rather than ABA accreditation standards, drive law school tuition increases.  Oh, and state-level budget cuts drive tuition increases at public institutions.  Their summary of relevant findings says: “Multiple Factors May Affect Law School Cost and Access; Accreditation Requirements Do Not Appear to Be a Major Driver … ?According to [...

National Pro Bono Week

Posted on October 24, 2009
National Pro Bono Week is October 25-31, 2009. The celebration is sponsored by the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service. To learn more, check out the National Pro Bono Week website. A good resource for South Carolina Pro Bono Week Events is the SC Access to Justice Weblog (TC)

3L Law Student Speaks Out for Pro Bono Service for Students

Posted on October 23, 2009
Did you know that the SC Access to Justice Commission has a blog? It?s a great resource and worth checking out every day to stay in the know. However, you should really check out yesterday?s post by our own 3L Tiffany D. Gibson, Pro Bono Law Clerk for the South Carolina Access to Justice Commission...

Open Access to Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports

Posted on October 23, 2009
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) provides reports to members of Congress on a variety of topics to aid in the legislative decision-making process.  These reports are paid for by taxpayers, yet are not easily accessible to the public. Open CRS, a project of the Center for Democracy & Technology, in cooperation with several organizations and [...

Bar Exam Results Out at 4pm Today

Posted on October 23, 2009
The July Bar exam results will be available at 4pm today on the South Carolina Judicial Department’s website at http://www.judicial.state.sc.us/bar/. Good Luck!

It?s Open Access Week

Posted on October 22, 2009
This week is the first international Open Access Week. To read about the Open Access movement, visit the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) website. Did you know there is an Open Access Law Program (OAL Program), which is part of the Science Commons publishing project?  To learn more about the OAL Program and its [...

Halloween Reads: Get Your Spook On at Caroliniana

Posted on October 16, 2009
The historic South Caroliniana Library on the Horseshoe is South Carolina Ghost Central. If you need local legends and haunted history this Halloween, look no further than your USC online catalog. Scope the catalog to Columbia South Caroliniana Library and run a keyword search for: ghosts carolina You will notice that the catalog [...

Citation really does matter

Posted on October 16, 2009
However much you hate the Bluebook, hang in there and master it.  Citation really does matter in the real world.  A Wisconsin lawyer found this out to his dismay when he was hit with a $100 fine for citing a case incorrectly in a brief.  And take good research notes...

Agency Websites and Administrative Decisions

Posted on October 16, 2009
Federal and state agency websites can supply a wealth of information including enabling legislation, regulations, agency decisions, and advisory opinions. To find U.S. government agency websites, go to the LSU Libraries Federal Agency Directory. The UVA Library maintains a database of federal agency decisions arranged by agency and by subject...

Law prof blogs draw bigger crowds

Posted on October 13, 2009
Traffic reports and rankings for blogs edited by law professors can be found here: http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2009/10/law-prof-blog.html Unfortunately, our own Ann Bartow’s very popular Feminist Law Prof blog isn’t included, due to a lack of public user stats...

Firefox Add-ons for Legal Research

Posted on October 12, 2009
If you use Firefox, you might want to look at these tools. In recent months, developers have introduced several useful Firefox extensions for legal research. Here are three very good legal citation tools to look at for your research. -(Zotero)  Zotero helps authors collect, manage, and cite research sources...

Halloween Case Law Spooktacular

Posted on October 09, 2009
In honor of the festivities at the end of the month, here are some legal opinions that are creepy, eerie, or just plain fun. In U.S. ex rel. Mayo v. Satan and His Staff, 54 F.R.D. 282 (W.D. Penn. 1971), a plaintiff tries to sue the Prince of Darkness for his nefarious activities...

Tracking Your Government via Open Source

Posted on October 09, 2009
If you?re familiar with govtrack.us for tracking the activities of the U.S. Congress, you?ll appreciate the features of govpulse, which enables citizens to keep up with the workings of our federal agencies by searching the Federal Register by agency, topic, location, date published, or event date...

Wikipedia Limits Edits to Bios of Living

Posted on October 07, 2009
“Recently Wikipedia took a step away from the pure, platonic ideal of a wiki and a step toward the more traditional practices of online reference resources. It began limiting the ability of individuals to edit entries about living people, restricting the privilege to experienced volunteer editors...

Disease Outbreaks tracked on iPhone

Posted on October 07, 2009
If you own an iPhone and are interested in tracking diseases ? check out the new app from HealthMap. Download the new ?Outbreaks Near Me? app from HealthMap and you can watch the status of all health-related events in nearby locations. With the current status of the Swine Flu H1N1 being on everyone?s mind ? [...

BLOG OF THE WEEK

Posted on October 05, 2009
Here is a new legal blog (blawg) for your review. For of you who are interested Employment Law and discrimination issues, Ellen Simmons maintains The Employee Rights Post. This blog contains age discrimination, hostile work environment, retaliation, unions, whistleblower protection rights, civil rights, equal rights and many other related topics...

It?s Banned Books Week

Posted on October 01, 2009
Visit the American Library Association?s website for a list of frequently challenged books and court cases defending the freedom to read. You may also wish to check out the entertaining, yet informative Banned Books Video: Puppet Book Banners, featuring the Crash Pad puppets on ALA?s Office of Intellectual Freedom OIF Blog: Free People Read Freely...

Solomon Tenenbaum Lecture Tonight at 8pm

Posted on September 30, 2009
The 2009 Solomon-Tenenbaum Lecture “Global Vision:  Opening our Eyes to Injustice” will be presented by Ruth Messinger, President of the American Jewish World Service tonight at 8:00 p.m. at the University of South Carolina Law School Auditorium...

The Cradle to Prison Pipeline Campaign

Posted on September 29, 2009
The Cradle to Prison Pipeline refers to the unfortunate path of many minority children in the U.S. today. To learn more, attend the panel discussion at 7pm tonight at the Richland County Public Library?s Bostick Auditorium. If you miss tonight?s discussion, the SC Commission for Minority Affairs and the University of South Carolina is sponsoring “The [...

The U.S. Supreme Court?s Declining Docket

Posted on September 29, 2009
Scholars and other observers of the U.S. Supreme Court have noticed a decline in the number of cases being heard by the highest court of  the land over the last couple of decades.  A recent study by David R. Stras, a law professor at the University of Minnesota, examines how changes in the make-up of [...

Authenticated documents online from the GPO

Posted on September 28, 2009
For those of us with a particular fondness for authenticated documents, there’s cause to rejoice – courtesy of the Government Printing Office. Check out their official announcement of their new service: The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) is pleased to announce that the List of CFR Sections Affected, Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, and Daily [...

Brand-New Revision of SC?s Green Book

Posted on September 25, 2009
The second edition of A GUIDE TO SOUTH CAROLINA LEGAL RESEARCH AND CITATION arrived hot off the press on Tuesday, September 22. This beloved text is fondly known as the Green Book. In addition to citation examples to South Carolina materials both current and historical, it provides background information on the history, evolution, [...

The Scrivener: A Primer on Legal Writing, 3rd

Posted on September 25, 2009
Another exciting new release from the SC Bar is the third edition of The Scrivener: A Primer on Legal Writing, by our Professor Tom Haggard and attorney and adjunct instructor Elizabeth Scott Moise. For a complete description of the book, visit the SC Bar CLE Division?s Publication Store...

Cyber Law Website

Posted on September 21, 2009
If you are interested in keeping track of Cyber law and the leading cases in the area. Go to http://cyberlawcases.com/. The site has posts and commentary about the top ten leading cyber law issues and cases involved in litigation. It is a great place to keep current and also get links to the leading cases and [...

And the winner is??

Posted on September 18, 2009
Patrick Tucker has won a carrel by having his entry picked at random from the group of 10 entries with all the correct answers to the Constitution Day quiz.  Congratulations to Patrick and thanks to everyone who participated. The answers to the quiz are: THE QUIZ: 1)      Article III of the U...

Constitutions From Around the World

Posted on September 18, 2009
After thinking about our own Constitution and legal system on Constitution Day yesterday, you may be wondering about other countries? systems of government. A good place to start is the Gallagher Law Library?s research guide to Legal & Judicial Systems in Countries Around the World...

Happy Constitution Day & Citizenship Day

Posted on September 17, 2009
To read more, check out the webpage provided by the Law Library of Congress. For those of you who plan to enter our Constitution Day Contest, the Library of Congress maintains an informative webpage on the U.S. Constitution. (Post-TC)

Constitution Day Resources

Posted on September 17, 2009
Happy Constitution Day! The Law Library offers a veritable cornucopia of resources on the constitutions of the United States and South Carolina. The US Constitution is contained in the first volume of the official United States Code and in the constitution volumes of the United States Code Service and the United States Code [...

Fourth Circuit to hear arguments at USC

Posted on September 16, 2009
In support of the upcoming Fourth Circuit arguments, the library has created a TWEN web site that contains relevant documents for all three cases being argued here at the law school on October 15, 2009.  We have put together a collection for each case with the record, appellate briefs, district court documents, and other materials [...

Constitution Day contest

Posted on September 16, 2009
Tomorrow, September 17, is Constitution Day.  To celebrate, the Law Library is sponsoring a contest.  The winner will receive a study carrel for the 09-10 academic year.  Contestants have until the end of the day tomorrow (17th) to answer ten questions about the Constitution...

Open Source Congressional Resource

Posted on September 16, 2009
OpenCongress – http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Wiki_Home  Tom Miguell, writes  inter alia where he tracks blogs. He recommends this new one. It looks good to me. The OpenCongress Wiki describes itself as “an editable guide to Congress for the people, by the people...

Fighting flu with soap & hand sanitizers

Posted on September 15, 2009
It actually works, the New York Times reports here. [PRM]

Congratulations to the Cocky Law Blawg Winners!

Posted on September 14, 2009
Thanks to everyone who entered the contest! We have two winners Amanda Pittman and James Martin. Both of these people got all of the questions right and claimed the prize. We really appreciate your participation in this contest. We will try to keep current announcements, useful information, good websites, and legal tips for your use [...

Tax Court declines to ?just Google it.?

Posted on September 08, 2009
In a recent decision, Cunningham v. Commissioner, the U.S. Tax Court has ruled against a taxpayer who exhorted the court to Google the name of his financial adviser to find proof that the adviser was a “charlatan.”  In declining to Google, the court declared that it could not consider information not included in the record [...

New WestLaw Database Available

Posted on September 03, 2009
From the West Librarian’s Relations Newsletter 9/2/2009 Words and Phrases, New Westlaw Database Words and Phrases is a West publication that contains judicial definitions of words and phrases from both state and federal courts. This information was previously available on Westlaw, but only via searches in caselaw and statutes databases using the ?WP? field...

Showdown at the Copyright Royalty Board

Posted on September 03, 2009
Live 365, an Internet radio site, has filed a constitutional challenge to the Copyright Royalty Board, which determines the rates for statutory copyright licenses. The complaint alleges violation of the US Constitution’s appointments clause, because the members of the CRB’s panel are selected by the Librarian of Congress rather than by the President...

Blog Talk Radio: The Law Librarian

Posted on September 03, 2009
Tune in at 3 p.m. today on Blog Talk Radio: The Law Librarian, to listen to academic law librarians Richard Leiter and Marcia Dority Baker, Schmid Law Library, University of Nebraska College of Law interview law librarians from several different sized law firms about the research skills law schools should be teaching students to prepare [...

Today in Legal History

Posted on September 01, 2009
September 1, 1807 Aaron Burr Acquitted Of Treason Jurors quickly acquit Aaron Burr after Chief Justice John Marshall instructs them that the U.S. Constitution requires the testimony of at least two witnesses for a treason conviction (Article III, Section 3)...

Library Blawg Contest ? Find the Answers

Posted on August 31, 2009
The Library has a blawg contest with prizes. (See The box at the circulation desk.) Procedure: - Get a Card at the Reference desk in the Law Library. ?Include: ?Your Name, email,  and Class ( 1L – 2L or 3L.) ?All of the answers (1-4) to the questions from the Cocky Law Blawg...

The South Carolina State House: Are You Connected?

Posted on August 29, 2009
Did you know there is a South Carolina State House Student Connection Website? Hey, you?re never too old to learn. The FAQs are pretty cool (Find them under cool stuff)! What does the SC Legislature do? The Student Connection website gives it to you in a nutshell...

Labor Day weekend hours

Posted on August 27, 2009
The Law Library will be open the following hours over the Labor Day weekend: Friday, Sept.4       7:00am-9:00pm Saturday, Sept.5  10:00am-6:00pm Sunday, Sept.6      1:00pm-9:00pm Monday, Sept.7    1:00pm-9:00pm Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, Sept...

The HAPPY Law Journal Article

Posted on August 26, 2009
When was the last time you read a law journal article that lifted your spirits? Maybe brought a tear to your eye (from laughter that is)? If it has been awhile (or never) take a moment and read this brief submission in the recent Journal of Legal Education: ?I do not like the U...

Questions for 1L Blawg Contest!

Posted on August 26, 2009
Here are the questions for the 1L Blawg contest. Answers are due by September 1st at 5:00 PM. 1.  What is the definition of ?American Digest System? given in Southern Illinois University School of Law Library?s Glossary of Legal Research Terms posted by Terrye Conroy? 2...

An easy way to improve law school grades

Posted on August 26, 2009
Advice from The Volokh Conspiracy, a blog written by law professors.  If they don’t know how to get good grades, who does? (1) Take at least one class with a paper requirement/option. (2) Get to work on the paper right away. (3) Ask the professor in advance if he will give you comments on your paper [...

EarthTrends ? environmental information from the World Resources Institute

Posted on August 26, 2009
This web site http://earthtrends.wri.org/ compiles environmental informaiton from various government sources.  This “comprehensive online database, maintained by the World Resources Institute, that focuses on the environmental, social, and economic trends that shape our world”  was recently rated as one of the 25 best reference sources on the Web by the New York Public Library...

Geneva Conventions ? 60th Anniversary

Posted on August 26, 2009
Wed, August 12th, 2009 was the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Geneva Conventions. A landmark in international humanitarian law, these series of treaties, have been the basis for the law of armed conflict in the 20th (post-WW II) and 21st centuries...

Not Exactly Like Vegas

Posted on August 26, 2009
What happens on your social networking site does not always stay there (exclusively).  A recent case from the Eastern District of Virginia points up the fact that one?s virtual life and one?s literal life don?t always mix well. The plaintiff was a law student at a private law school in Virginia...

Mandatory WEXIS Training for 1L Students

Posted on August 24, 2009
This year there is a mandatory training requirement for all 1L students. Here is the schedule: Groups 1 – 4  Westlaw Training:        Friday, August 28th        (12:40 to 1:40 in Room 344) Lexis Training:              Wednesday, August 26th   (12:40 to 1:40 in Room 345)   Legal Writing Professors:  Virzi ? Baker       Legal Research Professors:  Maxwell ? Conroy  Groups 5 – 8  Westlaw Training:  [...

Fall 2009 Library Hours are Now in Effect

Posted on August 24, 2009
The library hours are as follows: Monday – Wednesday: 7 AM to 11:00 PM Thursday: 7 AM to 10:00 PM Friday: 7 AM to 9:00 PM Saturday: 9 AM to 9:00 PM Sunday: 1 PM to 11:00 PM NOTE: Reference Assistance will be available Monday through Friday till 5:00 PM...

Welcome 1L?s: Three Useful Intro Tools

Posted on August 21, 2009
If  you?re new to the terminology and citation format for legal materials, check out the following online resources: Law.com?s Legal Dictionary Southern Illinois University School of Law Library?s Glossary of Legal Research Terms Cornell?s Introduction to Basic Legal Citation (Post-TC)

Today ? August 18 ? in legal history

Posted on August 18, 2009
August 18, 1948 – Congress Establishes the Bureau of Immigration On this day in 1948, Congress established the Bureau of Immigration. Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a division of the Department of Homeland Security, is responsible for the administration of immigration and citizenship issues in the U...

Carrel Lottery

Posted on August 17, 2009
The Law Library is pleased to announce that additional study carrels will be available in the carrel lottery this year. We encourage students to enter the lottery as your odds of being drawn for a carrel have improved! Sign- up for the lottery will be Thursday, August 20th through Thursday, August 27th at the Circulation Desk [...

Entries Updated in HeinOnline

Posted on August 17, 2009
Taken from the HeinOnline Weblog (8/12/2009) More than 200 Entries Updated in the Subject Compilations of State Laws Database Entries Updated to Reflect NCSL’s Major Website Revisions The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) is a major producer of free 50-state law surveys...

The Public Library of Law

Posted on August 14, 2009
The PLoL by Fastcase claims to be the largest free law library in the world. I love the concept, particularly given the fact that we the public pay to run the three branches of state and federal governments that create the laws. You must register, but it?s free to do so...

Library Hours for August 17-19, 2009

Posted on August 14, 2009
The Law Library will be open 8:00 am – 8:00 pm on Monday, August 17th and Tuesday, August 18th. Regular hours will resume on Wednesday, August 19th. Regular hours are: Sunday 1:00 pm – 11:00 pm Monday-Wednesday 7:00 am -11:00 pm Thursday 7:00 am – 10:00 pm Friday 7:00 am – 9:00 pm Saturday 9:00 am – 9:00 pm (KT)

FREE Internet Resources

Posted on August 12, 2009
Have you ever read a word (especially a medical term) and wondered how to pronounce it? Most of you have probably seen Merriam Webster?s web site which is not only a dictionary and thesaurus but will also allow you to hear the pronunciation. And don?t forget The Free Dictionary that will pronounce some legal terms...

What?s going on in my 1L classes?

Posted on August 11, 2009
Brand new law students may be confused and frustrated by their professors’ methods of instruction.  A recent blog post by a torts professor sets out to reveal the underlying reasons for their pedagogical choices.  I summarize below. ***** What will you be asked to learn in the next three years, and in this class in particular? 1...

Dreadlocks Are In?At Least for Now

Posted on August 07, 2009
The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this week in Smith v. Ozmint that the forced grooming of a Rastafarian man’s dreadlocks by South Carolina correctional officers violated his rights under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA)...

Senate Confirms Sotomayor

Posted on August 07, 2009
Sonia Sotomayor was confirmed yesterday by a vote of 68-31 to serve as the third woman and the first Hispanic Justice of the United States Supreme Court. She will be sworn in tomorrow. Read more about it and much more on the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) blog...

Historical Newspapers

Posted on August 07, 2009
Do you need to find something from an older American Newspaper, well check out Chronicling America from the Library of Congress http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/. Currently there is little content, but it is growing quickly and will soon provide access to newspapers published between 1836 and 1922 from each of the 50 US states and the US territories...

Quick Rules for the Reference Desk

Posted on August 05, 2009
As we prepare for another batch of new 1Ls ? I wanted to share a quick video created by Mary Rumsey. ?My Rules for Using Law Library Reference? is good advice for everyone who plans to ask ?a quick question? at the Reference Desk. Hat tip to the Law Librarian Blog! (Steph)

South Carolina Access to Justice Website

Posted on July 31, 2009
South Carolina Access to Justice recently launched its new website at www.scatj.org. The S.C. Access to Justice Commission was formed in 2007 to address the need to expand access to civil legal representation for people of low income and modest means in South Carolina...

Decrypting Findlaw?s Interface Makeover

Posted on July 31, 2009
Findlaw has long been a useful portal to free legal resources on the Web, and its US Supreme Court archive is one of its best features. It was purchased a few years ago by Thomson Reuters and, while access remains free, the interface grows evermore Westian, which means that the summer generally brings [...

Bing!

Posted on July 30, 2009
Microsoft and Yahoo have teamed up to challenge the search engine giant Google.  Their  recently unveiled search engine, Bing, hopes to chip away at Google’s dominant market share.  I have to admit that Bing’s home page is prettier than Google’s, but is that enough?  I did a very simple comparison test and here are my [...

Incoming 2009-2010 Law Students: Get a Head-Start

Posted on July 29, 2009
LexisNexis has created a web site called ?Get a Head-Start on Law School? for NEW students. Most law schools require incoming students to attend an Orientation program, hoping to reduce the culture shock of attending law school. After reviewing this site, incoming law students will actually understand the vast amounts of information thrown at them [...

Wesite of the Week

Posted on July 27, 2009
Tom Mighell has always been active in providing internet web site, information, and blogs. He has now started Tom Mighell Linkstream, http://linkstream.inter-alia.net/  a collection of links on legal technology, e-Discovery, social media, and the Internet...

Where Have All the Law Librarians Gone?

Posted on July 24, 2009
If the law librarians seem a little scarce next week, it?s because several of us have gone to Washington D.C. for the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Annual Meeting and Conference. We go every July to a different location to learn about current issues in law librarianship and new and improved legal resources and [...

Prior Versions of the SC Code of Laws at SC Statehouse Website

Posted on July 23, 2009
The Website of the South Carolina General Assembly (www.scstatehouse.gov) offers free online access to prior versions of the site’s online SC Code from 2007 back to 2000. To access, go to the site, click the link to “Archives,” then choose the link to “Code of Laws, South Carolina – Previous Versions...

Resources for Unemployed Lawyers and New Graduates

Posted on July 22, 2009
Due to the current economic situation, West has created a new website called Between Cases. This site will assist attorneys who have delayed start dates for their upcoming employment or attorneys that have currently found themselves unemployed. The site contains free research resources, legal news updates, information on starting a private practice and legal job [...

Legal Tweets!

Posted on July 21, 2009
If you are  registered with Twitter, the following two websites list a number of law related feeds that you might want to sign up for.  The first site – http://scoop.jdsupra.com/2008/10/articles/another-category/legal-news-feeds-on-twitter/ – lists Twitter accounts that automatically stream links to articles, alerts, and news on legal subjects...

West Headnote of the Day

Posted on July 17, 2009
We librarians continuously talk about topics and key numbers as they relate to finding cases by subject using the West Key Number System®. Students, however, seem to have a hard time wrapping their heads around the concept; particularly when Westlaw adds the number assigned to the topic at the beginning of the topic and key [...

New Westlaw Account Manager

Posted on July 17, 2009
We are saddened to bid farewell to our excellent Westlaw account manager, Kim Wolenberg,who has taken a different position with the company. Our new account manager is Hollye Clark. We hope to meet Hollye in person in the near future, but if you need her help you can contact her at hollye...

New Look for Westlaw

Posted on July 17, 2009
It’s that time of year again: the Summer of R&D. All of our online sites are doing the usual maintenance and enhancement. So far, Westlaw is showing the greatest effect; the interface has changed radically in appearance. Not to worry, though; the differences are cosmetic only...

Sotomayor: Her Record Speaks Volumes

Posted on July 15, 2009
The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law has compiled a comparative study of Judge Sotomayor?s opinions. After reviewing more than 1,000 rulings, the empirical study found Sotomayor to be ?squarely within the mainstream of the Second Circuit...

Searching for people in Westlaw

Posted on July 13, 2009
Westlaw can provide a great deal of useful information about individual lawyers and judges and even law firms.  There are a couple of ways to make these searches more effective.  Take a look at the fields that are available in the particular database...

Judge Sonia Sotomayor

Posted on July 13, 2009
Hearings began yesterday on Judge Sotomayor?s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. If you would like to read and listen along as the hearings progress, NPR?s website has commentary and audio. If you would like to find more web resources on Judge Sotomayor , peruse articles she has written, or read cases she has decided, [...

Appellate Blogs

Posted on July 12, 2009
Staying current is essential for all law students and lawyers. Here are two very good appellate Blawgs (Blogs). First, the South Carolina Appellate Law Blog, http://southcarolinaappellatelaw.blogspot.com. This is an excellent blog that gives you new South Carolina and 4th circuit cases in appellate law...

Studying for the SC Bar?

Posted on July 10, 2009
Graduates studying for the bar who wish to familiarize themselves with the latest South Carolina case law may find the following resources helpful: The South Carolina Lawyer magazine includes summaries of recent developments in the law by topic. It is published bimonthly...

Using E-books in the USC System

Posted on July 10, 2009
If you run across an e-book in the online catalog and hit a wall when trying to use the link in the catalog record, don’t despair. If the book is offered through NetLIbrary, there’s a work-around. Go to the “Electronic Index” link on the library’s homepage...

Easy Access to Government Happenings

Posted on July 08, 2009
Have you seen the White House Blog? The White House Briefing Room has created a Blog to ?expand and deepen? online engagement and keep the public current on government information. The Blog covers current events for the President, Vice-President and various Administrative Agencies...

The Mark of Zotero

Posted on July 07, 2009
The biggest problem with doing research on the web is the evanescence of web content.  Zotero [http://www.zotero.org/] is freeware that works with Firefox [http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/upgrade.html] to capture web pages, preserving the content as it was when you found it...

Two Good Research Websites

Posted on July 06, 2009
Here are a couple of  good research websites to find  articles and  useable copyrighted  material. ByArticles Search (http://www.byarticles.com) ByArticles has several top articles websites include FindArticles.com, GoArticles.com and ArticleCity.com...

Historical SC Newspaper Articles

Posted on July 06, 2009
Students who are cardholders of the Richland County Public Library can access a database of pdfs of historical archives of SC newspapers. Please see a reference librarian for a demo of the access process.  (Post – Rebekah)

Displaying the United States Flag

Posted on July 03, 2009
It is customary to display the United States flag on the Fourth of July. We intuitively know that the flag should be treated with respect and that there are rules about such things ?somewhere.  We plan to look them up, particularly when we see one blowing in the wind at night, in the rain, in [...

FACULTY & STUDENTS: Update your Westlaw Password!

Posted on July 01, 2009
Westlaw has issued new security requirements ? effective this FALL ? you will no longer be able to use your West issued password. When you log on using your West issued password, you will be prompted to create a new ?ONEPASS? USERNAME and PASSWORD. Requirements for these can be found here...

The ?Grammar Nazi? Speaks

Posted on June 30, 2009
I recommend this article ["Correcting Students' Usage Errors Without Making Errors of Our Own" - http://www.law.ucla.edu/volokh/errors.pdf], in which UCLA professor Eugene Volokh corrects (or debunks) a number of grammatical myths. (PRM)

4th of July Library Hours

Posted on June 30, 2009
The library will be open the following hours over the 4th of July holiday: Friday, July 3             8:00 am - 6:00 pm Saturday, July 4        CLOSED Sunday, July 5          1:00 pm - 9:00 pm (Post - KT)

Entire 2006 United States Code Available on GPO Access for Free

Posted on June 29, 2009
The entire 2006 edition of the United States Code is now available on GPO Access. (http://www.gpoaccess.gov/uscode/index.html) The 2006 edition contains the laws enacted through the 109th Congress (ending January 3, 2007, the last law of which was signed January 15, 2007)...

GPO Access v. FDsys: What?s in a Name?

Posted on June 26, 2009
I use GPO Access a good bit for accessing federal regulations. In fact, I like various features within the resources provided for each of the three branches. However, because I find its search capabilities less than optimal, I?ve always used GPO Access mainly for browsing and retrieving documents...

USC Library RSS

Posted on June 26, 2009
Keep current with new resources available from Thomas Cooper Library. Many resources that are available at Thomas Cooper are available also at the Law Library and via the proxy server. This means more information is available for research and recreational reading, and its available right at your finger tips...

Looking for Articles from Non-Legal Journals?

Posted on June 25, 2009
If you are in need of articles from journals that are not included in familiar legal database services, consider these sources: JSTOR is an archive of scholarly journal articles from numerous disciplines. It includes legal journals, but should be your first stop for articles beyond the legal profession ? such as history, political science, philosophy, anthropology, [...

Infrastructure Investment & Policy Report ? New BNA offering

Posted on June 24, 2009
The Infrastructure Investment & Policy Report has recently been added to our BNA subscription. This daily publication reports about federal spending on transportation and other infrastructure projects across the country including oversight and use of stimulus funds...

The value of ?good law?

Posted on June 23, 2009
For those of you who are clerking this summer, a reminder why good law is important, from the Lexis ?Introduction to Shepard?s? page. Following the doctrine of stare decisis, legal researchers cite to cases in support of their arguments to convince the court that the issues or facts presented in their cases should be decided [...

America News Database Now Available

Posted on June 22, 2009
If you are searching for a newspaper or information on people, issues and events in the local area or around the country. Look at America?s News.  It is a, is a new database available to All USC Law school users. This database offers current and archived articles and video clips from news sources nationwide in [...

Staying Current - Blawgs & RSS Feeds

Posted on March 31, 2009
Staying current is an essential requirement of all law students and lawyers. There are a number of blawgs that will help you stay current with legal issues. See the following for lists of specialty blawgs. ?          ABA Journal’s Blawg Directory...

S.C. Self-Represented Litigant Simple Divorce Packet

Posted on March 26, 2009
The S.C. Supreme Court Access to Justice Commission, along with S.C. Legal Services, the S.C. Bar and S.C. Court Administration, have just finalized the  Self-Represented Litigant Simple Divorce Packet. The Packet provides instructions and forms for plaintiffs and defendants who cannot afford an attorney but would like to file for divorce based on one-year continuous [...

Announcement of National Student Essay Competition

Posted on January 15, 2009
The Legal History and Rare Books Special Interest Section of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) is pleased to announce the first annual Morris L. Cohen Student Essay Competition.    Currently enrolled students attending accredited graduate programs in law, history, library science, or related subjects are eligible to enter the competition...

Three Useful Intro Tools

Posted on September 02, 2008
If you?re new to the terminology and citation format for legal materials, check out the following online resources: 1.    Law.com?s Legal Dictionary 2.    Georgetown?s Legal Research Definitions 3.    Cornell?s Introduction to Basic Legal Citation        (Post-Conroy)

Return of Late Reference

Posted on August 12, 2008
Beginning on August 25, the Reference Department will be open until 7:00 pm Monday through Thursday (holidays excluded).

Coleman Karesh Legal Research Institute

Posted on April 30, 2008
The Coleman Karesh Library is offering its annual summer Legal Research Institute on Monday, May 12th and Tuesday, May 13th in Room 333.  If you are a research assistant, journal editors, or a students who is interested in additional legal research information you should plan on attending...

Summer Reference Hours

Posted on April 14, 2008
Beginning on Tuesday, April 15, the reference desk will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., M-F.  Late reference (unti 7:00 p.m., M-Th) will resume with the beginning of the fall semester.  Good luck on exams, everybody.  Don’t forget that, whatever you’re doing this summer, you are invited to call, email, or drop in with your reference [...

Coleman Karesh Library - Final Exams Hours

Posted on April 10, 2008
The law library will be open the following hours  during Spring exams: Thursday, April 17: 7:00 am - 1:00 am  Friday, April 18: 7:00 am - 10:00 pm  Saturday, April 19: 9:00 am - Midnight  Sunday, April 20: 10:00 am - 1:00 am  Monday - Thurs: 7:00 am - 1:00 am  Friday, April 25: 7:00 am - Midnight  Saturday, April 26: 9:00 [...

Final Lexis Class for Semester

Posted on April 08, 2008
This is your last chance for Lexis class on Cost-effective research Wednesday, at 10:30 in room 138. Don”t miss out. These  techniques wil serve you well in the summer. (Post-del)  

GPO and the Authentication of Online Legal Resources

Posted on March 31, 2008
Law librarians have long been concerned that legal resources appearing on the web are not being ?authenticated? (certified as official and authentic), as brought home by the state-by-state report issued by the American Association of Law Libraries is in March, 2007...

Library Easter Hours

Posted on March 20, 2008
The Law Library will observe the following schedule this weekend: Friday, March 21 - 7:00 am - 6:00 pm Saturday, March 22 - 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Sunday, March 23 - 1:00 pm - 10:00 pm Regular library hours will resume on Monday, March 24. Rebekah Maxwell, Associate Director for Library Operations (Post-david)

PREPARE to PRACTICE with Lexis!!

Posted on March 19, 2008
Earn 800 Lexis points and 3 DAYS of FREE LEXIS TIME to use this summer *Many firms require this class! Attend this 30 minute session to learn tips to save you time and your client money. ** 800 points for attending! (800 point offer good for one cost effective class this semester) ** 3 days of FREE [...

WESTLAW TRAINING

Posted on March 12, 2008
Here is the Westlaw traning schedule for next week:  Monday, March 24th   12:45-1:15 pm; room 231 3:30-4:00 pm; room 334 4:30-5:00 pm; room 230   Tuesday, March 25th 8:30-9:00 am; room 230 9:30-10:00 am; room 230 (class at 10:20) 12:45-1:15 pm, room 231 Wednesday, March 26th 8:30-9:00 am, room 138 10:15-10:45 am, room 338 (class until 10:10) 11:30-12:00 pm; room 338 12:45-1:15 pm; room 344 Thursday, March 27th 8:30-9:00 am; room 135 12:00-12:30 [...

WESTLAW Classes March 24th ? March 27th

Posted on March 12, 2008
WESTLAW CLASS DESCRIPTIONS:   Prepare to Practice - Learn the cost-effective research skills that employers expect you to know. The first 100 students who attend Prepare to Practice will receive a leather padfolio. All students who attend will receive 500 WestlawRewards Points! Top 10 Things I Wish I Knew as a 1L - Learn 10 helpful tips that [...

South Carolina Attorney General Opinions

Posted on February 25, 2008
The SC Attorney General Opinions had disappeared from the office?s website, which made this Public Services/Reference Librarian very unhappy. Well, at least the current (2007-2008) ones are back via a link for Opinions on the SC Attorney General?s Homepage...

Hein Online and the Congressional Record

Posted on February 25, 2008
We?re all accustomed to using Hein Online to access the scanned pages of law review articles, particularly those pre-dating Westlaw and Lexis coverage. And by now, most of us know to check Hein Online for the digitized images of the Federal Register and Code of Federal Regulations...

Keeping Up in the New Year

Posted on January 18, 2008
The SC Judicial Department has a new and improved website. Court news is displayed at the top of its home page and separate categories are provided for the General Public, Legal, and Judicial communities.   Bills pending in the SC House and Senate are available on the SC Legislature Online?s Current Legislation page and are summarized by [...

Intersession and Holiday Library Hours

Posted on December 12, 2007
During the Intersession and Holiday Period the Law Library will observe the following hours:                                                                                     Thursday, December 13 through Friday,  December 21: Monday - Thursday                8:00 am - 6:00 pm Saturday                                 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Sunday                                   CLOSED Saturday, December 22 through Tuesday, December 25: CLOSED All Days Wednesday, December 26 through Friday, December 28: Wednesday - Friday               9:00 am - 5:00 pm  Saturday, December [...

Westlaw Training

Posted on October 18, 2007
Monday, October 22nd - Statutory Research 8:30-9:00 am in Room 231 12:45-1:15 pm in Room 231   Here is a list of the current Westlaw training sessions being offered next week:  Tuesday, October 23rd - Secondary Sources Online 8:30-9:00 am in Room 231 12:45-1:15 pm in Room 231   Wednesday, October 23rd - Job Search Training 8:30-9:00 am in Room 231 12:45-1:15 pm in Room 135

Legislative Updates

Posted on October 11, 2007
Interested in the laws passed or pending in South Carolina? Go to the Legislative Information page under Member Resources to the SC Bar?s website.  The 2007 Legislative Update provides a summary by topic of all legislation recently signed into Acts in South Carolina...

Additional Westlaw Training Sessions

Posted on September 27, 2007
Kimberly Wolenberg, Our Westlaw representative is scheduling more training for all law students. Here is the schedule: Tuesday, October 2nd - Basic Westlaw Training - This class covers all the basic online research skills that a 1L should know by the end of fall semester...

New Lexis and Westlaw Classes

Posted on September 17, 2007
Be sure to sign up and attend these sessions.  Two new Lexis classes have been added to the schedule: Shepard’s & Basic Research Skills class this Wednesday. Wednesday, September 19th, 2007 at 12:45 in room 333! Danielle Eckelt, Lexis Representative will show students how to search for cases, narrow their results to the most relevant results and then Shepardize...

Interested in Learning Lexis?

Posted on September 06, 2007
Danielle Eckelt, our Lexis representative is giving a class in basic LexisNexis.  Learning LexisNexis Class: The Learning LexisNexis class is a 30 minute introduction to Lexis. I will show students how to navigate the Lexis website, pull cases, case briefs, study outlines and how to print...

Need Training on Westlaw?

Posted on September 06, 2007
Here is your chance for lunch and learn.  Kimberly Wolenberg (Kim), our Westlaw representative, will be giving training classes during lunch with pizza ! The following classes are schedule for students on Westlaw Training:   Tuesday, September 18th, 12:40-1:30 pm - room 135 — 1L Basic Training (30 Minutes, 12:45-1:15 pm) — 1Ls ONLY  Wednesday, September 19th, 12:40-1:30 [...

Where do all these cases come from?

Posted on August 26, 2007
Typically, the process begins with an appeal. Both parties file briefs and present their respective written and oral arguments before an appellate court. The court then issues its opinion. Law students are required to read these opinions ad nauseam.  If you can find just a little time to put it all in perspective, try listening to [...

WELCOME TO THE USC LAW LIBRARY BLAWG

Posted on August 16, 2007
Welcome back to all returning students and hello to all of the new students. We have been very busy over the summer with presentations and classes and not as diligent at updating the Blawg. We will be updating the blawg regularly the rest of the year...

South Carolina Blogs

Posted on July 20, 2007
If you?re interested in technology, check out the South Carolina Trial Law Blog: Using Technology to be a Better Trial Lawyer . For weekly updates on current topics in appellate law, try South Carolina Appellate Law Blog: Following the Opinions of the South Carolina Appellate Courts, the Fourth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court...