Spring 2006 Volume 17 Issue 3

entire issue in Adobe Acrobat format 

FROM THE CHAIR

by Terry Psarras, Carlton Fields, Tampa, FL
 

FEATURES

INFORMATION MANAGEMENT CONSULTING , OR WHEN IT’S GOOD TO BE A FISH OUT OF WATER
by Joan L. Axelroth, Axelroth & Associates, Silver Spring, MD

WEB 2.0: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO THE PRIVATE LAW FIRM LIBRARY
 by Michelle Ayers, Cozen O’Connor, Philadelphia, PA

NOTES ON CATALOGING ELECTRONIC RESOURCES
by Lawrence Niculescu, Kay Scholer LLP, New York, NY

2006 ST. LOUIS CONFERENCE PREVIEW
by Donna Fisher, Senniger Powers, St. Louis, MO

RESOURCE REVIEW
by Andrea Hamilton, Faegre & Benson, Denver, CO
 

PLL NEWS

 

LEADERSHIP IN PRIVATE LAW LIBRARIES AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT

LEADERSHIP IN PRIVATE LAW LIBRARIES AWARD NOMINATION FORM
 

VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR ELECT CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

SECRETARY CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

BOARD MEMBER CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES
 

 

 

Terry Psarras, Carlton Fields, Tampa, FL

 

 

As 2006 rolls along, here are some items to note.

1. eVoting
2. PLL Grants
3. St .Louis Annual Meeting
4. PLL Leadership in Private Law Libraries Award
5. Are We Safer in the Dark? A Sunshine Week National Dialogue on Open Government and Secrecy
6. Zoomerang

1. eVoting

Thanks to the hard work of PLL officers such as Kaye Waelde and Johanna Bizub (and many others whom I am surely forgetting to thank), PLL will hold its first electronic elections in 2006.
Details are being worked out as we speak. As of now, expect voting to be held around May 1st-10th, with the results announced on May 12th. Candidate Bios appear in this issue of PLL Perspectives as well as on our website, http://www.aallnet.org/sis/pllsis/ Many thanks to Mary Jane McMahon and the rest of the Nominations Committee for their hard work.
Voting for the people who will shape PLL’s future is both an important benefit and a responsibility of being a PLL member. Despite the setback that a year under my leadership is causing our SIS, our future is bright and will be even brighter as you and you and you take a few minutes to review candidate bios and vote.

2. PLL Grants

For several years now, GSI has graciously underwritten travel grants for PLL members. This year is no exception as five members will have their airfare paid to attend the Centennial Meeting in St. Louis.
If you are already going, why not apply? The travel budget request looks a lot better a few hundred dollars smaller. If you were not planning to attend, why not? Especially if you can have your airfare paid for.
These grants, unfortunately, often go unused, and that is a shame. Having been a recipient myself, I can say from experience that the process has been a little less than user friendly. Thankfully this has changed.
The PLL Grants Committee http://www.aallnet.org/sis/pllsis/commgrp/grantscomm.asp , headed by Christine Scherzinger, has been working hard on redoing the form and entire application process. The new simplified process should make the experience a lot better. Completed applications must be received by the committee no later than April 15th. Go for it!

 

3. St. Louis Annual Meeting

99th AALL Annual Meeting. The theme for the 2006 Annual Meeting, to be held in St. Louis, Missouri, July 8-12 2006, is Pioneering Change.
Go to http://www.aallnet.org/events/index.asp for more information and to register. Remember, PLL Travel Grants are available.
Members who need to persuade their employers that attending the AALL Annual Meeting is beneficial should remember the article written by Lucy Curci Gonzalez and Christine Graesser entitled "Why I Need to Go to the AALL Annual Meeting This Year: It's That Time of Year Again -- Time to Write a Request To Attend the AALL Conference." This article appeared in the February, 2005 issue of Spectrum and can be found at www.aallnet.org/products/pub_sp0502.asp

4. PLL Leadership in Private Law Libraries Award

A new initiative for 2006, this award will go to a deserving member of our group, whose contributions to the profession are noteworthy and should be recognized. Board member Lynn Fogle has been working hard on creating guidelines and the related form.
Some details still need to be finalized, but here is what you can expect in the next few months. A nomination form and a write up on what is expected/required will be posted on our website, as well as distributed via the PLL-SIS listserv, probably near mid April. The deadline for nominations will be toward the end of May. Once nomination forms are received and results tabulated, an announcement will be made. Formal presentation of the award will be made at the PLL Luncheon in St. Louis.

5. Are We Safer in the Dark? A Sunshine Week National Dialogue on Open Government and Secrecy

In case you missed AALL’s Executive Director’s recent communication on this:
OpenTheGovernment.org the American Association of Law Libraries, the American Library Association, the American Society of Newspaper Editors/Sunshine Week, the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government, the League of Women Voters, the National Freedom of Information Coalition, the Special Libraries Association, and the Association of Research Libraries are collaborating on a national teleconference to be held on March 13, 2006 to celebrate Sunshine Week.
The first national "Sunshine Week: Your Right to Know" was launched in March 2005. Our goal in sponsoring this national dialogue is to raise awareness of the importance of open government to everyone in your community.
• When?
March 13, 2006, 1-2:30 pm EST. We encourage host sites to sponsor a local program following the national teleconference
• Why?
Hurricane Katrina made clear the important role of government in protecting the American public. Sadly, the federal government has expanded secrecy and limited the public's ability to know what government is doing. What about your community? Is the government at all levels telling the public enough to ensure the safety of our families and our communities?
• What?
A national panel of experts from around the country will discuss open government and secrecy -- the problems we are facing with it, how it impacts communities, and what the public can do about it. Locally sponsored programs in communities around the country could discuss how communities can keep all levels of government open. The event will consist of a panel discussion starting in Washington, DC, linked via satellite to locally hosted discussions in communities across the country.

• How Law Libraries Can Participate?
We invite law libraries to host the satellite feed, sponsor and market the event, and work with others in your community to organize the local program. You'll find preliminary information, including a program description. Please check that site regularly for updates.
 

The registration deadline is March 6th. We encourage you to join this important effort and help make it a huge success!
 

Thank you very much,
 

Timothy L. Coggins
Chair, AALL Government Relations Committee
 

Mary Alice Baish
AALL Washington Affairs Office

6. Zoomerang
Use of the survey tool Zoomerang is now available to PLL, thanks to our parent organization AALL. If you feel you may have a need to use it, please contact me to discuss possibilities and other specifics.
 

 

 

 

INFORMATION MANAGEMENT CONSULTING, or WHEN IT’S GOOD TO BE A FISH OUT OF WATER

by Joan L. Axelroth, Axelroth & Associates, Silver Spring, MD


“What else can you do with a library degree” is a common theme in the library literature (throwing this precise phrase into a popular search engine yields 295 hits; other searches yield more) and one worth revisiting from time to time. As librarianship changes, so do the opportunities open to members of the profession. And readers’ interest in a subject such as this one tend to change over time, depending on where they are in their personal lives and career.

 
I’ve been using my library degree to provide information management consulting services since 1987. I love what I do, and I love talking about it; so I didn’t hesitate when asked to contribute to PLL Perspective’s continuing series of articles on this theme. Not until later did I focus on the fact that I had already recorded my thoughts on the subject on two different occasions for Law Library Lights. (Lights is the newsletter of The Law Librarians’ Society of Washington, D.C.) So, not wanting to simply recycle old material, I dug up my copies of those articles and sat down to read.


“Law Office Consulting” [31 Law Library Lights 3 (November/December 1987)] was written shortly after I left my last in-house job as a practicing librarian. Five fugitives from law firms started Law Office Consulting Group (LOCG), a business providing a full range of management consulting services. With less than six months of consulting experience, I wrote about the decision to change environments (greater opportunity to put my management ideas into practice, more control over my day to day activities, improved financial prospects) and what I had experienced thus far (lots of butterflies mixed with occasions to learn and grow).


After working together for five years, the members of LOCG went their separate ways; and I struck out on my own. The second Lights article, “Law Office Consulting Revisited” [37 Law Library Lights 10 (November/December 1993)] was written less than a year after Axelroth & Associates opened its doors and six years after I had made the move from law firm librarianship to information management consulting. That article contained a “compilation of observations about the work-a-day life of the consultant/business owner” geared to helping those considering a move answer the question: “Is this any way to earn a living?” It contains a discussion of some of the characteristics that help ensure success, including the ability to stay motivated in an unstructured environment, to set your own priorities and deadlines, to be flexible, and to operate with limited feedback. Good organization and time management skills and a thick skin are also required. The article also includes some advice for getting started, including developing a network (potential clients, colleagues, vendors in related fields), analyzing your own interests and limitations (the need for regular hours, an aversion to travel), and defining your markets (product, client and geographic). In spite of the passage of time, the points made in this article remain valid today.


Now, thanks to PLL Perspectives, eighteen years after the first article and thirteen after the second, I have an opportunity to contribute another two cents to the discussion. The remainder of this article describes some of the ways in which the information consulting business has continued to evolve over time, including one of the most exciting changes: the growing partnership between law firm librarians and the consultants who serve them. It ends with a tale of fish out of water (courtesy of Marshall McLuhan) and why that’s not a bad thing for us all to be.

Change, Change, Change

There have been some significant changes to the library consulting business over the years. The most important change for me has been the addition of Mary Talley as an Axelroth & Associates’ consultant. Mary worked as a practicing librarian for a number of years before establishing a very successful consulting business based in Los Angeles. When she moved east, we both realized we could compete or we could combine our knowledge and skills to provide a broader range of services to a wider clientele. Mary’s title is Project Director, but she is so much more: I finally have the professional colleague that I missed so much not being in a larger organization. Whether working on the same project or on our own, we are constantly comparing notes and providing each other with ideas and suggestions. Everyone benefits, including especially our clients.


For us, as for everyone else, the technology we use to provide our products and services has changed. When I started consulting in 1987, the company leased its fax machine (a horrid piece of equipment that used continuous roll paper) because we could not afford to buy it outright. Today, e-mail and scanners have pretty much supplanted the office fax which can be paid for with pocket change. Axelroth & Associates is a virtual operation; my home base is in Maryland; Mary is located in D.C. and office and technical support are supplied from West Virginia.


Technology has changed more than the way we conduct business; it has also affected the content of the advice we are called on to provide. Not surprisingly, many of our current engagements concentrate on the use of technology to deliver products and services. Intranets and knowledge management have joined library application software and collection balancing as popular topics of discussion. As the physical space has morphed from the show places of old to the work places of today, businesses are less likely to solicit advice on space planning and design. (That’s unfortunate; careful design is even more important when space is at a premium.)


Not everything can be laid at the feet of technology. We have also adjusted our services in response to two trends affecting the business of law. The first is the tendency of firms to merge and then merge again. Large firms have always swallowed up small ones; but for the last several years we have seen numerous mergers of equals, each with its own long history and well established administrative structure. The merged organization is faced with the challenge of joining these structures into one efficient system. The second is a shift from management based on geography (i.e., office location) to management based on practice groups. As a result of both situations, librarians are rethinking how they operate so that they can continue to provide the highest level of support in these new environments.

Partnering for Change

Consultants are hired for a variety of reasons: to be sure things are working well, to assist with a particular problem or issue, to help with planning for the future. Traditionally, calls have come from lawyers and law firm administrators. These groups have long felt comfortable bringing in outside experts to work with them in a variety of areas from technology to human resources to financial management. As a group, librarians feel free to consult with each other; but we are sometimes reluctant to seek assistance on a more formal basis. This is changing, and today the person who initiates our consulting engagements is as likely to be the library director as the library partner.


Some library directors hire consultants to augment their skills or expertise in areas such as strategic planning, library application software or information center design. Or they may decide that they will get more objective data faster if they hire someone else to conduct a benchmarking survey or to lead focus groups. Sometimes, a library director simply wants to work with someone who knows what others are doing and who can apply that knowledge to their particular situation. For better or worse, companies care what the Joneses are up to and more than one firm librarian has garnered support for her plan by noting that others are doing the same thing.


From time to time, we are hired to serve as adjunct staff. Law firm librarians have been extending their work force for years by contracting out tasks such as loose-leaf filing and cataloging. On the reference side, using outsiders to handle document delivery and even selected types of research is common. Mary and I help our clients extend their management capabilities. In this capacity, we are asked to do a little bit of everything, including drafting memoranda to management, conducting telephone screens of potential new hires, locating a filing company in a city where the firm is opening a new office and conducting research on a variety of topics.


We also serve as colleagues for librarians who do not have peers within the firm or who want to talk over a sensitive situation (how best to present a recommendation to management, options for handling a personnel situation). Assignments may take less than an hour or weeks to complete. A client may use our services constantly during one period of time and then drop out of sight for months. In almost every instance, the existing staff would be capable of handling these tasks if only they had the time to do so.

Fish Out of Water

Finally, there are times when it’s advantageous to hire someone who can’t be accused of having a vested interest in the outcome of the project. (In fact, the librarian and the consultant do share an important interest: working together to find workable solutions.) In addition to objectivity, outsiders often bring an ability to see things about our own environments that we may have missed.


That statement may sound counter-intuitive; after all, what allows someone who doesn’t even work at your company to notice things that the inhabitants do not? An explanation for this phenomenon comes from Mark Federman in a speech delivered at the Information Highways Conference in 2003.1 According to Federman, “it seems that despite creating systems, complex organizations and support infrastructure to acquire and manage knowledge, we often miss something.” This leads him to suggest that, instead of trying to collect all possible information, we should ask ourselves this question: “what haven’t you noticed lately?” (page 3). He then adds,

Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to achieve the requisite awareness of what we haven’t noticed while we are immersed in a comfortable, or at least accustomed, environment. . . McLuhan observed, ‘One thing about which fish know exactly nothing is water, since they have no anti-environment which would enable them to perceive the element they live in.’ It is only when it is pulled from the water that the fish becomes acutely aware of its former environment. The challenge in achieving the awareness to notice the formerly unnoticed – what we call “integral awareness” of our total business environment – is to create an appropriate “anti-environment”

Librarians can and should learn to create an appropriate anti-environment so that we can assess our own operations. One way is to hire a consultant, the fish out of water, to help. This advice applies to everyone and explains why consultants are as likely as anyone else to solicit outside assistance.   

 

It is now almost nineteen years since I chose a less traditional way in which to pursue my profession. Running a business and providing information management consulting services continues to entice me with new challenges and opportunities to learn. Interested? Give me a call

 1   “Enterprise Awareness - McLuhan Thinking,” Opening Keynote Speech, Information Highways Conference, Toronto, Ontario, March 25, 2003. (http://www.mcluhan.utoronto.ca/EnterpriseAwarenessMcLuhanThinking.pdf)

 

WEB 2.0: WHAT DOES IS MEAN TO THE PRIVATE LAW FIRM LIBRARY

by Michelle Ayers, Cozen O’Connor, Philadelphia, PA

 

The dotcom crash in 2001 ushered in the second generation Web according to the coiners of the phrase “Web 2.0”. Tim O'Reilly, the founder and CEO of O'Reilly Media, Inc., together with MediaLive International coined the term and this year hosted the second annual sold-out Web 2.0 Conference that took place October 5-7, 2005. Naysayers1 claim perhaps rightly that “Web 2.0” is just a marketing term used to promote conference attendance. Others2 say Web 2.0 is a way to capture the notion that the Web has matured into being THE platform for just about everything we can do not only in business but also in libraries.

What does Web 2.0 mean to Law Librarians? Nothing more than the maturing of the Web into a platform for just about everything we do. As Legal Information Professionals in for-profit businesses, it is our professional responsibility always to check the horizon for technology that will advance our law firms’ profitability and success rate during legal proceedings. Understanding and applying the concept of Web 2.0 to our core competencies will only promote this mission. Clearly, the Web continues to further solidify its influence as the ‘go to’ platform to bring Library Services and other information to our attorneys.

To help you visualize the concept of Web 2.0, consider this chart provided by O’Reilly3: 

Web 1.0

 

Web 2.0

DoubleClick

-->

Google AdSense

Ofoto

-->

Flickr

Akamai

-->

BitTorrent

mp3.com

-->

Napster

Britannica Online

-->

Wikipedia

personal websites

-->

blogging

evite

-->

upcoming.org and EVDB

domain name speculation

-->

search engine optimization

page views

-->

cost per click

screen scraping

-->

web services

publishing

-->

participation

content management systems

-->

wikis

directories (taxonomy)

-->

tagging ("folksonomy")

stickiness

-->

syndication

 

The core principle of each of these elements is “web as platform.”4 You can easily identify the concepts relevant to the law library world. Where we once used content management systems (e.g., catalogs, intranets) we can now create wikis; where we once created taxonomy we now tag; where we once subscribed to an online encyclopedia we now use wikipedia or create our own wiki and so on.
Well, maybe not. Certainly, most of us are still operating in a Web 1.0 world; and some of us are still delivering library services in pre-Web fashion (e.g., an online catalog not accessible via the firm’s intranet).


One big advantage to adapting Web 2.0 to the private law library is to free ourselves from dependency on the IT department. Much of Web 2.0 is organized around ‘social software’5 that is freely available on the Web.


“Social software” is an umbrella term that applies to any tool that allows two or more persons to collaborate while each person is in a different location. The collaboration may occur in real time (called synchronous collaboration) or at different times (called asynchronous collaboration), while the locations may span continents or simply an office building6.


Law Librarians can use social software to build communities of practice. Social software is usually free or inexpensive. It is fairly intuitive to use. Best of all, “[w]hen used creatively by a librarian who is skilled in both information science and technology, social software tools allow librarians to reclaim areas of influence and expertise in the organization that have been ceded to the IT department. It is imperative that librarians succeed in the reclamation project if we are to avoid becoming museum artifacts.”7
Stephen Abram, in his recent column in SLA’s Information Outlook8 takes Web 2.0 and applies it to libraries and the librarian (i.e., Library 2.0 and Librarian 2.0) to get us thinking about how to use the Web 2.0 opportunities in the library environment.


Clearly every one of the technologies listed in Web 2.0…-RSS, Wikis, blogging, personalization, podcasting, streaming media, ratings, alerts, folksonomies, tagging, social networking software and the rest – could be useful in an enterprise environment and could be driven or introduced by the library.9
Abrams argues that it is essential to start preparing to become Librarian 2.0 now. With Web 2.0 arguably laying the groundwork for fundamental changes in how our users can work, Librarian 2.0 is in position to lead the way.


The Wired CG blog takes the Web 2.0 concept one step further and offers a few thoughts about what it might mean to Wexis and their customers.10 He argues that once standards emerge for “how courts and agencies will preserve their work (html or pdf?), how they will announce it (RSS?), how they will categorize it (tags?), and how we will search it (guess who?)”11, Wexis’ power will be diminished. “West and Lexis/Nexis will have a place in Law 2.0, but likely a smaller one. Not as the gatekeeper to primary sources, but for true value-added content. Can you say disintermediation boys and girls?”

So, if you haven’t made your New Year’s resolutions yet, you might want to include learning all you can about the concept of Web 2.0. Its influence on our jobs, law firms and libraries will only continue to grow.

 

1 “Web 2.0? It doesn't exist” Posted by Russell Shaw, http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=805#comments (12/17/2005)

2 “Five Reasons Why Web 2.0 Matters.’ SAO Web Services Journal: http://webservices.sys-con.com/read/161874_p.htm

3 What Is Web 2.0: Design Patterns and Business Models for the Next Generation of Software? by Tim O'Reilly (09/30/2005). http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html

4 Ibid.

5 Social Software in the Library By K. Matthew Dames http://www.llrx.com/features/socialsoftware.htm , July 26, 2004.

6 Ibid.

7 Ibid

8“ Web 2.0 – Huh?! Library 2.0, Librarian 2.0”, Stephen Abram, Information outlook, v. 9, no. 12, p. 44 (Dec. 2005)

9 Ibid. p. 45.

10Web 2.0, Heading West to Law 2.0,  http://www.wiredgc.com/2005/12/06/web-20-heading-west-to-law-20/ posted Dec. 6, 2005.

11 Ibid

 

Any views or opinions presented in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the firm of Cozen O'Connor.

 

 

NOTES ON CATALOGING ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

by Lawrence Niculescu,  Kaye Scholer LLP, New York, NY

 

What am I cataloging? OR Where is the title? OR, even better, how deep is it practical or sometimes possible to link? One of the most challenging cataloging decisions is a basic one: establishing the title. No, I am not thinking about title changes and continuations or title variations - we have fields in the MARC record that can take care of these. The question is more general: What is the discrete entity that we have to separate out of the continuum that makes a database? We can think of several answers to this question. One would be to catalog entities that contrast in subject analysis, issuing body (or author) and classification.


HeinOnline fits this pattern of traditional cataloging very well as it continues a “library metaphor” everyone can think of. It is easy to represent, say, Hofstra Law Review as a set of bound volumes arranged by year, with a few issues (the current ones) still unbound at the end of the shelf. This set has an issuing body different from others, with a unique subject analysis (albeit diluted by the fact that it is a law review), and a unique call number. There is only one link to it, so there is no problem there. The only problem is title changes. Do we make one record for each title, or do we make one record for all entities that have been published by the issuing body as successors of one ancestor? If we go by the book, we would have to make one entry for each; but my users would probably be uncomfortable with two or more records popping up as a result of a good search. So, I will make one record and make notes on the title succession, thus reducing the recall and the time of the user who wants a simple answer to a simple question.


Other database vendors, such as LexisNexis Matthew Bender, RIA and BNA pose no problem in isolating electronic entities to match what once was, and in some cases still is, the electronic counterpart of a loose-leaf set. One minor exception is the double link provided sometimes by Matthew Bender - one to the index and one to the set proper, but this is easy to solve. We can make two links for each title - one that goes to the index and one that accesses the contents. A note makes it explicit where the link leads (“Go to [title]” vs. “Go to [index]”). Thus, a user who has an exact citation can click on one link, and one who does not know exactly what to look for can go to the index first.


When inspecting the entities we catalog, we can see how vendors take more and more advantage of http linking. Probably the first step in this direction is instantiated by BNA’s Tax Management Portfolios; their internal and external linking is so rich that the user rarely exits from the same entity than he used as a point of entry (one can enter through the title of a portfolio and exit from another portfolio). This richness does not affect cataloging as such. When we look at some CCH products though, things change; and the question “What am I cataloging?” becomes more dramatic. First, CCH follows the unique pattern of organization that was its trademark in print. Most entities are organized in the trio New Developments (Current Matters)/Recent Cases (active loose-leaf)/Old Cases (transfer binders), so the metaphor of soft binders vs. hard binders (or bound volumes) is kept in the electronic version.


We can easily attach a link to the title, say, Federal Securities Law Reports and let the user go online to search the electronic version. The complication arises when the publisher provides a unique ID to the user so each individual can organize a private space in the vendor’s database. The catalog counts as one individual user. Anyone who enters the database through the catalog counts as the same entity. The mere cataloging of these resources deprives the user of some features that are part of the service. Then why not just make a record for each library as an entity, listing each title in the record either as an analytical entry and/or in the table of contents and let the user explore the database of interest and thus become acquainted with its unique features. Well, when the link from the catalog establishes the connection, a second link cannot be activated. It would look like the same user is trying to login again.


A workaround would be to build a pop-up window for the connection, so the user’s browser takes over the communication process and allows the workstation to pass the data directly to the outside portal, to receive cookies and thus to separate the identity of the researcher from the identity of the catalog. This ad hoc solution raises more problems than it solves, but at least it captures some features that otherwise would be left out.


So, we can have one or two points of access to each title: one from the library that contains the title and one from each individual title if it can be linked separately. Both solutions would help access the resources following a search, a “bottom-to-top” procedure that involves the search engine. The third millennium user of a catalog would probably expect to be able to drill down into a library “top-to-bottom,” a style made popular by search engine portals. This type of access is also good if one wants to become familiar with the structure of an electronic library. Given a system that can execute canned searches, each record has to be able to be recalled by one search per library. The most obvious solution is to assign a unique series to each set we want to group together, such as “Matthew Bender electronic library.” Then, we can build sub-series allowing to drill down into the federal, New York or IP libraries. This raises an interesting question: Does each significant step down onto the path make a library a series? After speaking with one of the publishers, I learned that the structure of a certain portal will be revamped shortly and the whole structure will probably be reorganized. Series and their parts are authority driven, and this is a big advantage for the cataloger. If the structure of the site were to change, a few corresponding changes in the authority records would describe the new organization of the portal whenever it occurs. The problem is that a significant stop in the path of an http address does not represent a series by AACR2r by any stretch of imagination.


A better alternative in gathering all records in a library seems to be a search by general keywords that identifies a unique path. For example, given http://[(publisher]/[server].com/[subscription]/[library1]/[title1], the top string ([publisher] libraries) can search for the shortest significant path, (http://[(publisher]/[server].com/[subscription]), and sub-searches can drill down into libraries following each respective path. The problem is that, as mentioned before, not all publishers/vendors allow for a complete search from the client side all the way to the document, so the path will have to be kept short. I guess the trouble started long ago when we allowed the MARC record to cover both intellectual content and its physical manifestation. Indeed, the path to an electronic record is almost entirely arbitrary and has very little to do with the intellectual content of the piece to be cataloged. It may change entirely without affecting the intellectual content in any way. Same argument goes for the format. It is true, FRD is trying to correct that; but until we have a new complete standard in place, we have to give our users access to databases.


The discussion above suggests a third approach, which seems the most elegant and convenient.


After all, where an electronic document is situated is a matter of location and sub-location, not a matter of content or format. This extends the catalog’s metaphor of “library” into the virtual space, in consonance with the concept of virtual library. On the other hand, the traditional fields in the item record, such as location, collection (sub-location, or whatever the ILS calls this entity), barcode, item notes, even circulation notes cannot be used in the traditional sense any longer and each leaves an empty space, apt to identify the electronic individuality of the document such as the “main” library, the “sub-library” and perhaps the type of access. The user would have no problem adapting to this situation; after all, the physical library may still contain the set on paper, perhaps with an on-line archive, perhaps with a CD-ROM mounted locally. To this we can easily add an access to virtual “volumes” accessible from an external server, owned by the publisher (or a third party), which can be retrieved over the internet using a password or the IP address. Intuitively, two sets would be available: one on paper (or mixed media) and another one remotely, in electronic format. Thus, retrieving a group of titles into one library is as easy as selecting everything from a location. For example, a location can be “Web” or even “WebUnrestricted” to indicate the fact that the link goes unrestricted (by a password) right where it is supposed to go. Drilling down into a given library is selecting every item with a given sub-location (some systems call it “collection”). A sub-location (or collection) would be like “MBIPLibrary” (short for Matthew Bender Intellectual Property Library, which follows the virtual library metaphor). Building a top-to-bottom branching structure (Yahoo! or AltaVista style) becomes as easy as gathering all “items” in one search and then building sub-searches that are more and more focused. One can easily drill down along this structure going from all items in the Matthew Bender library to only those that are in a certain collection. Moreover, one can build ad hoc libraries (say, by putting together all IP virtual libraries that are available in a subscription). This way, an exclusively electronic library becomes easy to build, even in a multi-library (physical) environment (and most law firm libraries are such entities) in a way analogous to the way our physical libraries are built. The obvious advantage is that updating becomes much easier should the structure of the library change on the vendor’s side since most library systems can update items globally.


By looking at some of the difficulties in cataloging electronic publications, one can easily see an interesting pattern emerging from the vendors’ behavior. In the past, the vendor (or publisher) used to send updates to each individual library, leaving us the job of updating, binding, and organizing the information in a way that the librarians would deem appropriate for their users. Now, most of these processes have moved to the publisher’s site, and they perform them the way they consider suitable for users of any library. The main problem is that not all users have the expectations a publisher seems to anticipate. Besides, each vendor has a unique way of organizing its content and librarians are more and more challenged to find new solutions that would give a uniform look and feel to the records, and at the same time remain friendly to the community they serve.
 

 

2006 ST. LOUIS CONFERENCE PREVIEW

by Donna M. Fisher, Senniger Powers. St. Louis, MO

 

These are exciting times for AALL members as we prepare to mark the centennial anniversary of our organization. Law libraries have changed drastically in the last century; changes and advances in technology, communications, and research methods have altered the face of librarianship forever. Our capabilities and possibilities probably now extend far beyond what our predecessors ever imagined was possible for their profession. So it’s fitting that AALL commemorate the pioneering, changing, and challenging world of law librarianship by holding the association’s 99th annual meeting and conference in the historic city of St. Louis, Missouri. St. Louis was at the heart of our country’s expansion into uncharted territory and played a major role in the fearless exploration of its widening boundaries. As you visit St. Louis in July 2006, you'll find the city's 200 year heritage celebrated by the city's museums and attractions; but you'll also find contemporary entertainment, modern art and architecture, and exciting new restaurants that will appeal to any taste. I guarantee you won't be disappointed.


The rich history of St. Louis began in 1764. It was founded by French fur traders from New Orleans who named the city after King Louis IX. France acquired much of the West, but in 1803 President Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon; and the size of the United States instantly doubled. The next year, Jefferson sent the explorers Lewis and Clark to chart the new territory. They returned triumphantly in 1806, and St. Louis became a booming city, the “Gateway to the West” that was the last stop for those headed to the new Western frontier. This era of westward expansion is honored by the Gateway Arch and the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial. At 630 feet, the Arch is the tallest man-made monument in the United States and one of the most recognized attractions in the world. Brave visitors can take a tram ride to the top of the Arch for a truly spectacular view of the Mississippi River, Downtown St. Louis, and the surrounding areas. The close confines of the tram ride are not, however, for the faint of heart; so if you prefer to explore the way Lewis and Clark did, in wider open spaces, take a sightseeing or dinner cruise along the Mississippi, the river that inspired the works of Missouri's favorite literary son, Mark Twain.


Also located downtown is an attraction that showcases St. Louis's role in United States legal and political history. The Old Courthouse was the site of the first Dred Scott trials, begun in 1846 when slaves Harriet and Dred Scott sued to obtain their freedom. This historic case was eventually decided by the United States Supreme Court. Today it’s difficult to understand how the highest court in the land denied freedom to the Scotts because as slaves they were not considered citizens and therefore did not have the legal right to sue. The Courthouse now houses permanent and traveling exhibits and hosts annual events like the beautiful Victorian Holidays decorations and Fourth of July celebrations. St. Louis’s contribution to the legal community continues to flourish through our two excellent law schools, St. Louis University and Washington University.


Are you a sports fan? St. Louis boasts three major league sports teams. The beloved St. Louis Cardinals have won nine World Series championships and regularly draw over 3 million fans annually. Beginning in 2006, they will play their home games at brand new Busch Stadium. Prefer football? The St. Louis Rams, winners of the 1999 Super Bowl, had a disappointing season in 2005 but hope for better results in 2006 with the addition of a new head coach. Hockey fans can root for the National Hockey League’s St. Louis Blues. College and minor league teams in various other sports offer inexpensive and family-friendly entertainment any time of year.


If you prefer performing arts, several venues can satisfy your entertainment appetite. The Fox Theatre, St. Louis Repertory Theatre, Stages St. Louis, and St. Louis Black Repertory Company showcase the best theatrical productions in drama, comedy, Broadway musicals, and cutting-edge plays. Listen to ragtime at the house where Scott Joplin composed many ragtime standards. For classical music lovers, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, led by music director David Robertson, is consistently ranked among the best in the country. Opera Theatre of St. Louis presents operas in English and is acclaimed for presenting some of the best new talent anywhere. Several other companies add to the city’s important theatrical and musical community.


No trip to St. Louis can be complete without a visit to Forest Park, the site of much of the 1904 World’s Fair. The park is 1,371 acres, about 500 acres larger than New York City’s Central Park. Forest Park is home to the world-renowned St. Louis Art Museum, the Missouri History Museum, St. Louis Zoo, Science Center, and Jewel Box greenhouse. Enjoy lunch at the Boathouse, and take a paddleboat ride. The Shakespeare Festival presents free outdoor performances in June. During the summer months, the Muny Opera, the largest outdoor theatre in America with over 12,000 seats, presents classic Broadway shows. During the winter, Steinberg Skating rink is the place to go for your outdoor exercise; and a sled ride down Art Hill is a rite of passage for many St. Louis children. Forest Park has 7.5-mile paths for walkers, runners, bikers and skaters, baseball fields, picnic areas, and tennis and golf facilities. The park is a must-see destination for all St. Louis visitors.


Not to be forgotten are the city’s treasured libraries, both old and new. The Central branch of the St. Louis Public Library was completed in 1912, and its beautiful architecture is still so striking that the library was featured in the 2005 Renaissance Library calendar. Within view of the Central Library is the new Thomas F. Eagleton Courthouse, the largest single courthouse in the country and home of the 8th Circuit headquarters library.


St. Louis has some of the most delightfully diverse neighborhoods you'll find anywhere. Visit the Hill, where bakeries, small grocers, and restaurants abound with authentic Italian foods and where the statue of the Italian immigrants graces the front of St. Ambrose Church. You can have your fill of toasted ravioli, a deep fried or baked food that is virtually unknown in other parts of the country, but is standard fare in any self-respecting St. Louis restaurant. Soulard, just south of Downtown, has some of the best Cajun and blues music around. The area celebrates its French heritage with Bastille Day festivities and one of the largest Mardi Gras celebrations in the country. The Loop has restaurants, shopping, and entertainment galore and is home to the St. Louis Walk of Fame. Stop in at Blueberry Hill, one of the Loop’s signature music clubs. You just might see Chuck Berry, who still performs regularly in the club’s Duck Room. Laclede’s Landing is the center of Downtown’s nightlife with numerous restaurants and music clubs. Many other neighborhoods offer their own unique brand of history, restaurants, shopping, and entertainment. Whatever neighborhoods and restaurants you visit, leave time to enjoy a “concrete” at Ted Drewe’s frozen custard stand. This St. Louis landmark serves ice cream treats that are literally so thick they can be held upside down without falling out of the cup.


In the space of this short article, it’s impossible to describe all of St. Louis's wonderful attractions. St. Louisans are proud of our city's role in the development of the United States. We welcome visitors with open arms and are eager to show off the best that our city has to offer. In many ways, St. Louis is a city of contradictions. We're a mix of old and new. We’re big enough to boast major museums and world-renowned arts and entertainment, yet St. Louisans still somehow manage to have a sense of camaraderie and small town feel about ourselves. I can’t think of any place I’d rather live.


St. Louis was at the heart of our country’s expansion, and in July 2006 it will be at the heart of the law library world. Come and enjoy AALL's 100th anniversary in the Gateway to the West. Missouri is the “show me” state, and my fellow St. Louis law librarians and I would like nothing better than to have the chance to show you everything that makes St. Louis a destination you won't want to miss.

Selected Web Sites about St. Louis
 

Be a Tourist in Your Own Town

http://www.beatourist.com/

 

Explore St. Louis

http://www.explorestlouis.com/grouptours/index.asp

 

Forest Park

http://stlouis.missouri.org/citygov/parks/forestpark/

 

Jefferson National Expansion Memorial

http://www.nps.gov/jeff/index.html

 

Sauce Magazine Restaurant Guide

http://www.saucecafe.com/restguide.php

 

 

RESOURCE REVIEW

by Andrea Hamilton, Faegre & Benson, Denver, CO

 

Need an introduction to the laws of another state or country? Looking for the Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters? Try the Martindale-Hubbell Law Digest volume published by LexisNexis. You’ll find digests of laws of each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands as well as laws of other countries. The indexing system is as consistent as possible, so you will find the same topics used throughout. Sections are updated annually. The volume also includes some International Conventions, Uniform and Model Acts and ABA codes. For the moment, though, you’ll have to rely on the print version because the digest volume is not available on the M-H website although it is available on LexisNexis.

(Suggested by Jan Brown, Montgomery, McCracken, Walker & Rhoads, LLP, Philadelphia, PA)

Do you have a resource you’d like to feature in this column? Please send your submission (including the name of the resource, the publisher, and a brief description of the resource) to Andrea Hamilton at ahamilton@faegre.com. Please use Resource Review in the Subject field of your email.
 

 

 

LEADERSHIP IN PRIVATE LAW LIBRARIES AWARD

The PLL Board is delighted to announce the first Leadership in Private Law Libraries Award. The creation of such an award has been discussed for the past few years and was originally conceived by Past President Holly Riccio. The award was created to recognize PLL members who have made special and significant contributions to the advancement of law librarianship in the private arena. This idea evolved from the “promote the value of law librarians and librarianship” planning during 2002-2003. What better way to promote our profession than by honoring and celebrating our colleagues who are outstanding in the field.
We are asking our members for nominations for our first award which will be presented at our luncheon at AALL in St. Louis this summer. Suggested criteria and a nominations form are below.

Criteria
• The nominee must have been a member of PLL for at least the past two years.
• The nominee may have given special service to the SIS or private law librarianship.
• The nominee may have a sustained record of service to the SIS or private law librarianship.
• The nominee may have shown leadership in professional library groups.
• The nominee may have contributed to Private Law Librarianship with publications such as articles, books, book reviews, research materials, blogs, websites, etc.
• The nominee may have contributed to Private Law Librarianship with activities such as advocacy or educational services

Guidelines
• The award will be administered by the PLL Board.
• The nominations may be made by any member of PLL.
• This award may or may not be given every year.
• The award will be presented at the annual PLL luncheon.
 

 

LEADERSHIP IN PRIVATE LAW LIBRARIES AWARD
PRIVATE LAW LIBRARIES SPECIAL INTEREST SECTION

NOMINATION FORM



Nominee: _____________________________________________________________________

Nominee’s Address and Telephone: ________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

Please describe why the nominee deserves this award (attach additional sheets as necessary):

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Nominee’s Employer:____________________________________________________________

Nominee’s Position Title: ________________________________________________________

Nominated by: ________________________________________________________________


Additional information. The nominee/nominator may include any of the following:

Education information, Professional Experience, Professional Associations, Workshops/Seminars (conducted or participated in), Publications, Special Honors/Awards.

Please submit nominations by May 26, 2006 to

Lynn Fogle
Manager of Library Services
Greenebaum Doll & McDonald
300 W. Vine Street, Suite 1100
Lexington, KY 40507
dlf@gdm.com
 

 

PLL NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE 2005-2006

CANDIDATE BIOGRAPHIES

 

VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR ELECT

Name: Scott L. Fisher
Current Job Title and Firm/Corporation Name and Address:
2006 - present
Director of Library Services
McCarter & English
Four Gateway Center
100 Mulberry Street
Newark, NJ 07102
Former Positions:
1996 - 2006, Director of Library Services
Wilentz Goldman & Spitzer P.A., Woodbridge, NJ
1983 - 1996, Director of Library Services
Robinson St. John & Wayne, LLC, Newark, NJ
Activities:
Member, AALL Special Committee on Promoting Law Librarians to the Legal Community, 2005-2006
Chair, SR-SIS Standing Committee on Lesbian & Gay Issues, 2003-2004
Speaker, West Librarian MBA at AALL: Finance & Marketing, 2004
Editor, NJLLA In-Site, 2002-2004
Member, Council of Newsletter Editors, 2002-2004
Member, West Advisory Board, 2002-2004
Faculty Member, LexisNexis Teaching Research in Private Law Libraries, 2002
President, New Jersey Law Librarians Association, 1988-1989
Vice-President, New Jersey Law Librarians Association, 1987-1988
Publications:
Legal Research: Where Are We Headed?", 13 New Jersey Lawyer 964 (May 3, 2004)
LANs Enhance the Capabilities of Law Libraries,", 3 New Jersey Lawyer 1692 (August 29, 1994)
"Already Moving to the Next Generation: The Changing Role of the Law Librarian," (Co-Author), 2 New Jersey Lawyer 599 (April 19, 1993)
Statement:
The key to our success, as members of PLL, is communicating with each other and, being proactive and visible on the job. If elected, I would endeavor to continue the many successes that PLL has already achieved through the leadership of others but, I would also try to increase the image of the private law librarian profession and, the value we bring to our individual firms. I believe that to strengthen the visibility of our profession within the legal community we need to reach out and work more closely with other legal organizations and, to seek the support of our parent organization, other librarian organizations, and our vendors to help us to achieve this goal. I would hope that any contribution I might make as Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect would help my colleagues continue their individual growth but, also, increase our collective value as a profession.
 

Name: Riva Laughlin
Current Job Title and Firm/Corporation Name and Address:
1997 –
Librarian
Haynes and Boone, LLP
1221 McKinney, Suite 2100
Houston, TX 77010
Former Positions:
1988 – 1997
Librarian, Brown, Parker & Leahy (now Thompson & Knight, LLP), Houston, TX
1983 – 1988
Assistant Librarian, Baker and Botts, Houston, TX
Activities:
Memberships: AALL, SWALL, HALL
Leadership: HALL Board, 2001-2002,
President, HALL, 2000-2001,
Vice President/President HALL 1999-2000
Publications/speeches:
“Business Development Resources: The Haynes and Boone, LLP Experience.” 16 PLL Perspectives, 4 (Spring 2005), with David Bader, Jennifer Stephens, Stephanie Towery.
Regular columnist for The Cyberskeptic’s Guide to the Internet (Legal/Gov’t. SpecScan) – beginning in 2001
Instructor – Legal Resources on the Internet – HALL Half-day seminar, Oct. 2005
Instructor – Internet Strategies for the Paralegal in Texas (Institute of Paralegal Education) – 2003
Instructor – Computer Assisted Legal Research for Texas Paralegals (Institute of Paralegal Education – 2002
Statement:
The theme for AALL’s Centennial year is “Pioneering Change.” PLL and the law librarians who are members have frequently been on the cutting edge of that change and should strive to remain there. As we continue to deal with change in the format and content of our resources, we must also work to change our relationship with the other departments in our firms. No longer can we remain isolated behind the library doors; all departments must work together if we are going to provide the service our attorneys need. PLL has always encouraged this attitude and has made great in-roads because of our partnership with the Association of Legal Administrators. I’d like to see PLL continue this partnership and forge similar bonds with other legal associations.
 

SECRETARY

Name: Caren J. Biberman
Current Job Title and Firm Name & Address:
As of 1/17/06
Library Manager, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
666 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY
Former Positions:
Director of Library Services, McCarter & English, LLP
Newark, NJ
Administrative Law Librarian
AT&T, Basking Ridge, NJ
Activities:
Secretary of NJLLA 2003-2004
Chair, Membership Committee NJLLA 2004-2005
Member, Membership Committee NJLLA 2003-2005
Member, Grants & Awards Committee NJLLA 2003-2004
Publications:
Co-author of BNA Tax Management Portfolio (40-4th T.M., Dividends-Cash and Property)-published 1988
Statement:
Members of the PLL SIS constitute more than one-third the membership of AALL. Yet we have only one board member representing us on AALL's board. I think this under-representation is reflected in the programs presented at AALL, the issues AALL chooses to tackle, and the direction in which AALL is going I would like to help change this by working with our membership to take a more active role and help bring meaningful change to AALL. My experience in the law librarianship field has been in the private sector, first for 9 years as a corporate law librarian and then the last 3 1/2 years as a firm librarian. I have served both as secretary of NJLLA and on the membership committee of NJLLA and have performed the duties that would be required of me should you chose to elect me as your secretary. Thank you.
 

Name: Lynn Connor Merring
Current Job Title and Firm/Corporation Name and Address:
Librarian
Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth
660 Newport Center Drive, Suite 1600
Newport Beach CA 92660
Former Positions:
Librarian, Kelley Drye & Warren
Los Angeles, CA
Librarian, Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker
Costa Mesa, CA
Director of Library Service, Baker & Daniels
Indianapolis, IN
Manager, Information Resource Center, GTE North, Inc,
Westfield, IN
Library Director, Greenebaum Doll & McDonald
Louisville, KY
Librarian, Marion County Law Library
Indianapolis, IN
Activities:
Chair. Nominating Committee, SCALL, 2006
Local Arrangements, AALL Annual Meeting, Anaheim (Opening Reception Co-coordinator)
Local Arrangements, AALL Annual Meeting, Indianapolis (Opening Reception Co-coordinator).
AALL Mentor, as needed since the inception of the program
Publications:
Periodic Book Reviews for Legal Information Alert
“Twelve Services You Never Thought Of; Want an Answer? Ask a Librarian.” Legal Times, November 18, 1996, SPECIAL REPORT
“Automated litigation brief bank now possible, affordable.” The Indiana Lawyer, January 25, 1995: 12
Statement:
In 26 years as a law librarian I have worked in firm, corporate and public libraries, for large organizations and small, from a single person library to one with a large staff, from a single location to many. I have experienced the varied situations of our members and really understand their concerns.
PLL needs to support our members by being the public voice for our profession, by providing the education we need to stay ahead of our patrons needs, and by helping us all develop our business and leadership skills to improve our value to and position in our parent organizations. I want to help do that.
 

BOARD MEMBER

Name: Byron C. Hill
Current Job Title and Firm/Corporation Name and Address:
Librarian
Bowditch & Dewey, LLP
311 Main Street
Worcester, MA 01608
Former Positions:
Librarian
Boston College Law Library
885 Centre Street
Newton Centre, MA 02159
Activities:
AALL Placement Committee, 2004-2005
Law Librarians of New England – Developed and organized fall, 2004 conference
Central Massachusetts Regional Library System (a cooperative organization of over
250 multi-type libraries serving 71 communities in central Massachusetts) –
President of the Executive Board, 2000
Publications:
Editor, Bowditch & Dewey firm newsletter.
Statement:
Private law librarians find themselves coping simultaneously with shrinking resources and escalating expectations for information. In an increasingly fast-paced and electronic environment, I believe it is critical to develop and nurture cooperation not only among law libraries of all types – private, academic and government -- but also with those other specialized and public libraries which we as law librarians frequently need to call upon for help.
It is my vision for AALL to enhance the cooperation among the different types of libraries represented by our organization, and to reach out with more enthusiasm to other professional library organizations.

Name: Matthew Elisha
Current Job Title and Firm/Corporation Name and Address:
Reference Librarian
Holme Roberts & Owen LLP
1700 Lincoln St.
Denver, CO 80203
Former Positions:
Reference Librarian (2000 – 2001)
Library Assistant (1996-2000)
Stoel Rives LLP
Seattle, WA
Activities:
Member-at-Large, Colorado Association of Law Libraries (COALL), June 2003 – May 2004
Committee Member, COALL Bridge the Research & Analysis Gap (BRAG) program for summer clerks, 2003 – 2006. Topic presenter during 2003 & 2004 programs.
Member of AALL since 2000
Statement:
Having participated in my local Colorado chapter of AALL and attended several AALL Conferences, I have seen the benefits of belonging to the American Association of Law Libraries. I would like to be able to contribute my efforts to see that the Association, and the PLL section in particular, continue to be strong organizations providing valuable services to members.
The bylaws of the PLL-SIS, state that the primary objective of our section is to, “...improve the quality and service of private law libraries by emphasizing their goals, needs and special interests...” I want to help the PLL-SIS board meet that objective by finding out what our members’ current goals, need and specials interests are and helping members achieve them. I am particularly interested in how, in this era of downsized physical libraries, the PLL-SIS section can help to increase the value of librarians and researchers within private law libraries. In the past, a large physical library gave a visual sense of the importance of the library within an organization and that importance was carried on to the organization’s view of its librarians. With more libraries downsizing their physical space and conducting research and reference services in a virtual environment, that importance is less tangible. As a PLL-SIS Board Member, I would strive to help private law librarians gain the tools to create opportunities to prove the value of their libraries and their research and information services.
 

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