MALL Legal Research Institute 2005

Legal Research Institute
Tuesday evenings, March 22 - May 10, 2005
Hamline University School of Law

For More Information Contact:

Hope Porter 612.336.4666
Pat Dolan 651.698.4676

The Minnesota Association of Law Libraries is presenting an eight-part institute to provide continuing education in legal research methodology using both print and electronic formats. The eight sessions will cover a variety of topics and will include the full spectrum of primary and secondary legal resources. The Institute will provide an overview of efficient techniques for finding and effectively using legal resources.
Eight weekly sessions will be held on Tuesday evenings from 6:30 – 8:45 p.m. in Room 4, Hamline University School of Law, 1536 Hewitt Avenue, St. Paul. Parking is available on campus at no charge.
16 CLE credits have been approved for the full series. Each session is worth 2 credits, with session 1 carrying 1 standard credit and 1 ethics credit. Career Renewal CE credits are available upon request.

Schedule & Session Descriptions
Note: all sessions meet from 6:30 - 8:45 p.m. (includes a 15 minute break) in room 4.

Session One - March 22
The American Legal System
Mary Wells, M.L.S., Research Librarian, University of St. Thomas School of Law Library
This one hour presentation introduces concepts in the American legal system, including the structure of government, types of law emanating from the different branches of government, and the legal sources embodying this law.

Professional Ethics and Legal Research
Ed Edmonds, Director of the Law Library, University of St. Thomas School of Law
This one hour presentation focuses on the ethical rules of conduct affecting legal information professionals. Issues of unauthorized practice of law, confidentiality, privacy, and censorship are covered.

Session Two - March 29
Use of Secondary Materials
John Tessner, J.D., Head of Public Services, Hamline University School of Law Library
This two hour presentation covers sources that analyze and explain or aid in finding the law. It offers techniques for finding and using treatises, periodicals, looseleaf services, reference works, and practice materials.

Session Three - April 5
Researching Case Law
Susan Kiefer, J.D., Director of the Law Library, Hamline University School of Law
This two hour presentation describes the legal publications emanating from the American court system. Techniques for finding and using federal and state court decisions are covered.

Session Four - April 12
Researching Federal Statutory Law
Pat Dolan, J.D., Weekend Reference Librarian, Hamline University School of Law, and Librarian, Washington County Law Library
This one hour presentation describes the legal publications containing federal statutory law, including techniques for finding and using the federal constitution, public laws, and the U.S. Code.

Researching Federal Legislative History
Rick Goheen, Associate Director for Public Services, University of St. Thomas School of Law Library
This one hour presentation describes the legal publications containing the history of federal legislative. Techniques for finding and using federal legislative history resources and Congressional publications are discussed.

Session Five - April 19
Researching Federal Administrative Law
Jan Stone, Esq., Reference Librarian, Warren E. Burger Library, William Mitchell College of Law
This two hour presentation describes the legal publications emanating from federal administrative agencies. Techniques for finding and using federal regulations and administrative decisions are covered.

Session Six - April 26
Researching Minnesota Law
Barbara Golden, J.D., State Law Librarian, Minnesota State Law Library
This two hour presentation provides instruction on the tools and techniques used to find Minnesota legal information. Primary and secondary sources are covered.

Session Seven - May 3
Researching Intellectual Property for Litigation and Prosecution
Hope Porter, Head Law Librarian, Merchant & Gould PC, and Paul Lacy, J.D., IP Law Attorney, The Law Office of Paul E. Lacy.
The first part of this two-hour session will include an overview of the types of intellectual property protections: the definitions of "patent pending," trademark registration vs. common usage, and what exactly constitutes a copyright. The second part will cover the print and online resources the librarian uses to support attorneys in IP law.

Session Eight - May 10
Tips and Tricks for Finding Company Information on the Web
Shawn Swearingen, MLIS, Research Librarian, Faegre & Benson LLP.
Non-legal research is an important service that law librarians provide to their clientele, and much of this type of research involves finding information on organizations of all types. This one hour session will show reliable web sites and provide strategies for researching private, international, and nonprofit organizations.

Top Free Sites for Legal Research on the Internet
and How to Use Them
Vicente E. Garces, J.D., Reference & Collection Development Librarian, University of Minnesota Law School
In this one hour session some of the top free legal web sites will be reviewed. The session will cover both general legal research sites and resources for locating sites devoted to more narrow or specialized areas of law.

Tuition and Grant Information

Individual Sessions: $50 per session
*5 or More Sessions: $250
* Institutions, e.g. libraries that register for 5 or more sessions ($250) may share the registration with multiple staff members but only one staff member may attend a session per registration.

Grants are available for MALL members. See the Awards, Grants & Scholarships Committee web page for information and grant application form. This page is provided and maintained by the MALL Legal Research Institute Committee

Updated: 3/1/2005

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