The Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act (UELMA) is a uniform law that addresses many of the concerns posed by the publication of state primary legal material online. UELMA provides a technology-neutral, outcomes-based approach to ensuring that online state legal material deemed official will be preserved and will be permanently available to the public in unaltered form. AALL members and chapters advocate for adoption of UELMA around the country.
This page provides background information about UELMA and advocacy materials for our advocates. For more information, including a Legislative Information Kit, visit the Uniform Law Commission’s UELMA page.
Background
- Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act (Final Text)
- UELMA FAQs (July 2018)
- UELMA Enactments (January 2019)
- Resolution on UELMA (endorsed by the AALL Executive Board, November 1, 2013)
- UELMA History
Advocacy Materials
- UELMA: Five Steps to Advocacy Success
- Advocating for UELMA in Your State – Tips for Getting Started
- Sample Advocacy One-Pager
- Sample Letter of Support to Committee (Chapter)
- Sample Letter of Support to Committee (Individual)
- UELMA: Implementation Resources (approved by the AALL Executive Board, April 10, 2015)
- California Case Study
- Colorado Case Study
Letters and Testimonies
- In support of SB 139. Testimony of Kenneth J. Hirsh, Director of the Law Library and Professor of Practice, University of Cincinnati College of Law, to the Ohio Senate Government Oversight & Reform Committee (September 5, 2017)
- In support of SB 5039. Testimony of Peggy Jarrett, on behalf of the Law Librarians of Puget Sound, to the Washington House Judiciary Committee (March 14, 2017)
- In support of SB 5039. Written testimony of AALL President Ronald E. Wheeler Jr. to the Washington House Judiciary Committee (March 14, 2017)
- In support of SB 5039. Testimony of Anna Endter, President, Law Librarians of Puget Sound, to the Washington Senate Law & Justice Committee (January 19, 2017)
- In support of SB 5039. Written testimony of AALL President Ronald E. Wheeler Jr. to the Washington Senate Law & Justice Committee (January 18, 2017)
- In support of UELMA. Letter from AALL President Keith Ann Stiverson to Richard T. Cassidy, President, Uniform Law Commission (March 31, 2016)
- In support of of SB1414. Testimony of Charlotte Graesser Henderson, Board Member, Secretary, Past-President, Arizona Association of Law Libraries (February 17, 2016)
- In support of S.B. 6361. Letter from the Law Librarians of Puget Sound (January 19, 2016)
- In support of the reintroduction of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Letter from the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) and Law Librarians’ Society of Washington, D.C. (LLSDC) to The Honorable Kenyan McDuffie (June 26, 2015)
- In support of SB 611, the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act, Testimonies of AALL and LLAM to the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee (March 5, 2015)
- In support of HOUSE BILL 162. Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act, Testimony of Joan Bellistri, Government and Vendor Relations Co-Chair of the Law Library Association of Maryland, to the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee (February 18, 2015)
- In support of HOUSE BILL 162. Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act, Testimony of Mary Jo Lazun, Government and Vendor Relations Co-Chair of the Law Library Association of Maryland, to the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee (February 18, 2015)
- In support of HB 162, the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act (UELMA). Testimony of Immediate Past President Steven P. Anderson on behalf of the American Association of Law Libraries to the Maryland House Health & Government Operations Committee (February 18, 2015).
- To respectfully ask that you sign SB 1941, the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act (UELMA). Letter from American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) and the Chicago Association of Law Libraries (CALL) to Illinois Governor Patrick J. Quinn (June 16, 2014)
- In support of SB 1941, the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Written testimony of Maribel Nash, President of the Chicago Association of Law Libraries, to Illinois State Legislature House Judiciary Committee (April 28, 2014)
- In support of HB 46, the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act (UELMA). Statement of Emily Feltren, Director of Government Relations, American Association of Law Libraries, before the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee (January 23, 2014)
- In support of HB 46, the Maryland Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act (UELMA). Statement of Tonya Baroudi, President, Law Library Association of Maryland, before the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee (January 23, 2014)
- In support of Bill 20-0221, the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act of 2013 (UELMA). Statement of Emily Feltren, Director of Government Relations, American Association of Law Libraries before the District of Columbia Council Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety (July 1, 2013)
- In support of Bill 20-0221, the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act of 2013 (UELMA). Statement of Melanie Knapp, Member of the Law Librarians Society of D.C., before the District of Columbia Council Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety (July 1, 2013)
- To urge the Committee on Judiciary to approve HB 2944. Letter from WestPac to Chair Barker, Vice-Chair Garrett, and Vice-Chair Krieger (March 6, 2013)
- In support of SB 1941. Oral testimony from Jean M. Wenger, President, American Association of Law Libraries before the Illinois Senate Judiciary Committee (March 12, 2013)
- In support of introduction of a bill to enact the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Letter from Western Pennsylvania Law Library Association (WPLLA) and Greater Philadelphia Law Library Association (GPLLA) to Pennsylvania State Senator Joseph B. Scarnati III (December 21, 2012)
- In support for introduction of a bill to enact the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Letter from Law Library Association of Greater New York (LLAGNY) to Richard Long, Uniform Law Commissioner (October 2, 2012)
- In support of SB 1075. Letter from the Council of California County Law Librarians (CCCLL), the Northern California Association of Law Libraries (NOCALL), the San Diego Area Law Libraries (SANDALL) and the Southern California Association of Law Libraries (SCALL) to Governor Jerry Brown (August 27, 2012)
- In support of SB 1075. Letter from CCCLL, NOCALL, SANDALL and SCALL to Assembly Rules Committee (June 28, 2012)
- In support of SB 1075. Letter from CCCLL, NOCALL, SANDALL and SCALL to Assembly Judiciary Committee (June 20, 2012)
- In support of HB 1209, the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Letter from Susan Nevelow Mart, Associate Professor and Director of the Law Library, University of Colorado Law School (March 28, 2012)
- In support of Raised Bill No. 418, An Act Adopting the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act and the Uniform Certificate of Title for Vessels Act. Letter from AALL President Darcy Kirk to the Chairs and Ranking Members of the Connecticut Judiciary Committee (March 19, 2012)
- In support of SB 1075. Letter from CCCLL, NOCALL, SANDALL and SCALL to Senate Rules Committee (March 19, 2012)
- In support of approval of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act at the ABA’s Midyear Meeting. Letter from AALL President Darcy Kirk to Wm. Robinson III, President, American Bar Association (January 31, 2012)
- In support of approval of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act at the ABA’s Midyear Meeting. Letter from AALL President Darcy Kirk to Linda A. Klein, Chair, ABA House of Delegates (January 31, 2012)
- In support of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act. Letter from AALL President Darcy Kirk to John Sebert, Executive Director, Uniform Law Commission (November 30, 2011)
Chapter Resolutions
- Law Librarians Association of Wisconsin, Resolution Endorsing the Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of Wisconsin (May 3, 2017)
- Michigan Association of Law Libraries, Resolution to Support Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of Michigan (May 25, 2016)
- Law Librarians of Puget Sound, A Resolution to Support Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of Washington (January 19, 2016)
- Mid-America Association of Law Libraries, Resolution to Support the Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act in the States of Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota (June 8, 2015)
- Law Library Association of Maryland, A Resolution to Support the Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of Maryland (October 28, 2014)
- Association of Law Libraries of Upstate New York, A Resolution to Support Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of New York (October 19, 2014)
- Ohio Regional Association of Law Libraries, A Resolution to Support Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the States of Ohio and Indiana and the Commonwealth of Kentucky (October 17, 2014)
- Southwestern Association of Law Libraries, A Resolution in Support of Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act in the States of Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas (September 2, 2014)
- Dallas Association of Law Librarians, Resolution to Support Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of Texas (April 17, 2014)
- Southeastern Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries, RESOLVED, that the Southeastern Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries, a chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries, supports enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in every state and the District of Columbia (April 5, 2014)
- Western Pacific Chapter, Support for AALL Resolution on the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act (March 28, 2014)
- Houston Area Law Librarians, Resolution to Support Enactment of the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in the State of Texas (March 25, 2014)
Articles and Blog Posts
- Utah Bar Journal – Utah Legislature Enacts UELMA (November/December 2018, page 26)
- InsideTrack, Bi-Weekly Newsletter of the State Bar of Wisconsin – Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act- Ensuring Trusted Access to Primary Law (November 2, 2016)
- NALIT Newsletter, National Association of Legislative Information Technology – A System for UELMA Preservation and Security (Summer 2016)
- New York State Bar Association Journal – Legal Research – The Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act in New York (January 2015). Reprinted with permission from: New York State Bar Association Journal, January 2015, Vol. 87, No. 1, published by the New York State Bar Association, One Elk Street, Albany, NY 12207.
- Florida Bar Journal – The E-FAC: One Year Later (January 2015)
- Blog – Revisor Michele Timmons and the Minnesota In-house UELMA Authentication System (March 6, 2014)
- Georgia Library Quarterly – Permanent Access to Georgia’s Authentic Legal Documents (Winter 2014)
- Fairly Used Blog, Stanford University – Notes from an Accidental Advocate for the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act (UELMA) (October 27, 2013)
- Spectrum – Local Advocacy Networks: Adopting UELMA in your state and how you can help (June 2013)
- Spectrum – Authenticating the John Hancock of Online Primary Legal Materials (June 2013)
- ABA Journal – “Are digitization and budget cuts compromising history?” (May 1, 2013)
- The Signal, Library of Congress – “Official, Authenticated, Preserved, and Accessible: The Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act” (April 19, 2013)
- UGA Law Library Blog – “Uniform Electronic Legal Materials Act” (May 11, 2012)
- Spectrum Online – “Why States Should Adopt UELMA” (March 23, 2012)
- Gov Docs Guy – “How Do You Solve a Problem with UELMA?” (December 22, 2011)
- VOXPOPULII – “The Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act is Ready for Legislative Action” (October 15, 2011)
- 3 Geeks and a Law Blog – “ULC Passes Act to Promote Authentication, Preservation and Access to State Laws and Rules” (July 31, 2011)
- The Signal – “Meet My Trustworthy Friend UELMA” (July 28, 2011)
Reports and Papers
- UELMA Preservation Group – “Preservation of Electronic Legal Materials” (April 2018)
- Open Law Library – “A Digital Publication and Archival Platform for Legal Documents” (March 2018)
- Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes – “Prototype for Authentication of Official Electronic Record and Pricing” (August 2012)
- “Authentication of Online State Primary Legal Resources as a Social Justice Issue: The Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act and How it Can Benefit Pro Se Litigants.” Draft paper by Anna L. Endter, University of Washington Information School (May 29, 2012). Accepted for publication in Legal Reference Services Quarterly.
- Center for Technology in Government – “Opening Government’s Official Legal Materials: Authenticity and Integrity in the Digital World” (February 2012)
- Minnesota Historical Society – “Preserving State Government Digital Information” (February 2012)
- California Office of Legislative Counsel – “Authentication of Primary Legal Materials and Pricing Options” (December 2011)
- Council of State Governments – “Public Access to Official State Statutory Material Online” (September 2011)
- ARJD Statement of Principles: “Official” On-line Documents (Revised: May 2008)