Legal Information

Legal Data and Information in Practice provides readers with an understanding of how to facilitate the acquisition, management, and use of legal data in organizations such as libraries, courts, governments, universities, and start-ups. Presenting a synthesis of information about legal data that will furnish readers with a thorough understanding of the topic, the book also explains why it is becoming crucial that data analysis be integrated into decision-making in the legal space. Legal organizations are looking at how to develop data-driven insights for a variety of purposes and it is, as Sutherland shows, vital that they have the necessary skills to facilitate this work. This book will assist in this endeavour by providing an international perspective on the issues affecting access to legal data and clearly describing methods of obtaining and evaluating it. Sutherland also incorporates advice about how to critically approach data analysis. Legal Data and Information in Practice will be essential reading for those in the law library community who are based in English-speaking countries with a common law tradition. The book will also be useful to those with a general interest in legal data, including students, academics engaged in the study of information science and law.

Library, information and knowledge professionals are often at the front line of managing and monitoring their organisation’s legal compliance and have roles and responsibilities in both complying with the law and taking advantage of its provisions. To do their jobs effectively, they need not only to understand the law, but also to develop the skills, confidence and organisational policy frameworks to apply the law’s principles to their context of use. They need the knowledge and skills to help them decide what is acceptable and to develop appropriate risk aware approaches when things are not clear-cut. Information Law: Compliance for librarians, information professionals and knowledge managers provides an overview of important information law issues along with tools and guidance to help readers establish a framework so that their organisation can both comply with its legal responsibilities and support a suitably risk aware environment which optimises access and use. Based on the authors’ many years in professional practice and on their proven ‘Compliance Methodology’, it will help readers understand the legal issues that are central to the information they hold or that they wish to access.

Given the vast amount of legal information available, it is sometimes very difficult - and certainly very time consuming - to know where to start looking for the specific information you require. This book, covering the most up-to-date information sources (printed and electronic), helps guide the reader towards the information they need. It is an accessible and easy-to-use directory of legal information sources for librarians, lawyers, students and anyone needing legal information. The book covers mainly British and European Union law and includes general material and the main subject areas, including online and internet sources. It also lists reference material, such as legal dictionaries and directories. The book is essentially a directory of information sources, with publishing details (including ISBN), and short comments where useful. Electronic sources are mentioned where relevant, with details of scope and any limitations of coverage. Comprehensive and up-to-date (covering electronic sources and important legal developments, including civil procedure and human rights) Covers the massive expansion of information on the web and online services Based on the author’s considerable experience – thus, he has gained a detailed and wide ranging understanding and appreciation of users’ needs and areas of interest

Around the world, legal information managers, law librarians and other legal information specialists work in many settings: law schools, private law firms, courts, government, and public law libraries of various types. They are characterized by their expertise in working with legal information in its many forms, and by their work supporting legal professionals, scholars, or students training to become lawyers. In an ever-shrinking world and a time of unprecedented technological change, the work of legal information managers is challenging and exciting, calling on specialized knowledge and skills, regardless of where in the world they practice their profession. Their role within legal systems contributes substantially to the administration of justice and the rule of law. This International Handbook addresses the policy and strategic issues with which legal information managers and law librarians need to engage in the context of the diverse legal environments in which they work. It provides resources, analysis, and considered studies on an international basis for seasoned professionals, those about to enter the field, and anyone interested in the evolution of legal information in the twenty-first century.

The second edition of this popular handbook has been thoroughly updated by the original team of experts and some new contributors, to provide current best practice guidance on the key legal information issues for every type of service. Each of the chapters is updated to reflect general changes in law libraries and their users in the past seven years. In particular, the handbook covers new information technologies, including social networking and communication. New chapters also focus on the key topics of outsourcing, and the impact of the 2007 Legal Services Act. The second edition of this valuable handbook continues to be an important professional reference tool for managers and staff of all types of legal information services, and will help them with the challenges they face in their work every day.