Maximizing Law Library Productivity

This report looks closely at a broad range of management practices of law firm libraries including those from the following institutions: Foley & Hoag; Northwestern Mutual Insurance; Nelson, Mullins Riley And Scarborough; Cornell University Law School; Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt; Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw; Loyola University Law School; Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal; Brinks, Hofer, Gilson & Lione; The Civil Court of the City of New York; Beus Gilbert The many issues covered include: trends in the physical space allocated to the library, print vs. electronic information spending, retention policies on print reporters, uses of blogs, personnel and training policies, outsourcing, relations with records and knowledge/content management, ways to serve multiple offices and locations, use of RSS feeds and weblogs, uses of intranets and other shared workspaces, information literacy training, favored databases, optimizing librarian time management, management of the flow of reference requests, software selection and other issues impacting the performance of law libraries.

This report looks closely at legal records management, and provides information and analysis on staff size and training, attorney-records staff relations, outsourcing, negotiations with warehouse suppliers, use of digital imaging, use of RFID, retention policies, equipment purchasing plans, and other facets of legal records management. The study is based on detailed interviews with records and practice management professionals and partners at some of America's most prestigious law firms, courts and law schools. Among the organizations profiled: Thompson Hine, Dewey Ballantine, Kay Scholer, Fulbright & Jawarski, The National Archives & Records Administration, Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin, the U.S. Court System for the District Courts, Thomas M. Cooley Law School and Darby & Darby.

The 155-page study gives extensive data and commentary on law library spending plans and management practices including current and future expected budgets, spending on salaries, and materials such as online databases, print reporters, online and print directories, books, e-books, journals and other information resources. The report also looks at use of particular types and brands of information resources, at cost recovery efforts and at law library effort to reduce costs and improve productivity through better negotiation and other tactics. The study also presents detailed data on library measures to enhance mobile device access and to use social media, blogs and other internet resources in the law library service effort.

Here is an essential introductory guide on all aspects of law librarianship written especially for non-law librarians, library school students, and beginning law librarians. Although there are several excellent practical handbooks and numerous articles on specific topics of law librarianship for practicing law librarians, Basics of Law Librarianship is the only resource that addresses the information needs of the student or new law librarian. Author Deborah Panella, managing librarian of a large, prominent New York law firm, explores the major areas of law librarianship. She covers vital topics such as the legal clientele, collection development, research tools, technical services, impact of technology, and management issues, and describes what makes law libraries different from other special libraries. She has written a clear, readable volume without excessive detail or the use of special terminology. The bibliography of law library literature and the index add enormously to the book’s value as a major reference.

Of key findings. Description of university, library, and staffing -- Cataloging productivity -- New technologies, enhancement of online catalogs -- Transition to metadata standards -- Cataloging of web sites and digital, special collections -- Library catalog/ metadata training and presentation -- Database maintenance, holdings, and physical processing -- Relationship with acquisitions departments -- Staff education -- Other issues facing library cataloging staff -- Curry College -- The University of North Dakota -- Haverford College -- University of Washington -- Yale University -- Brigham Young University -- Illinois State University -- Louisiana State University -- Pennsylvania State University.

This unique annotated bibliography is a complete, up-to-date guide to sources of information on library science, covering recent books, monographs, periodicals and websites, and selected works of historical importance.

The role of providing public access to the law is a critical one for librarians. It has been over ten years since the last law librarianship textbook was published. Since that time, much has changed in the profession, and with the emergence of new technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing, law librarians must master legal materials and a thorough understanding of the latest technologies in order to best serve the public. Law Librarianship in the 21st Century, a text for library and information science courses on law librarianship, introduces students to the rapidly evolving world of law librarianship. With no prior knowledge of the law required, students using this book will find practical answers to such questions as: What is law librarianship? How do you become a law librarian? How does law librarianship interrelate with the legal world? Individual chapters provide a concise treatment of such specialized topics as the history of law librarianship, international law, and government documents. Standard topics are dealt with as they apply to the law library, including collection development, public services, technical processing, administration, technology, and consortia. The textbook also includes an explanation of the common acronyms and special terminology needed to work in a law library.