About Us

Who We Are

Established in 1979, the Technical Services Special Interest Section (TS-SIS) has nearly 500 members from all types of libraries and includes all experience levels.

Mission

TS-SIS promotes the communication of ideas, interests, and research in all areas of law library technical services, including acquisitions, cataloging and classification, preservation, binding, serials control, and management.

To Join

The TS-SIS is a close-knit group of professionals who welcomes any AALL member to join and participate in activities and committees. Visit the “Join TS-SIS” section of AALLNET. Membership is $20 annually.

Meeting Information

The TS-SIS Business meeting convenes annually, generally around the time of the AALL Annual Meeting. Committees, roundtables, and discussion groups meet at this time as well. Meetings are open to all AALL Annual Meeting attendees.

Education Programs and Workshops

TS-SIS sponsors educational programs and events at the AALL Annual Meeting and throughout the year. Additional roundtables meet to discuss a variety of timely topics affecting our profession.

Standing Committees

Two standing committees are the heart of TS-SIS. Committee chairs conduct surveys, study challenges, and areas of concern—these committees plan educational activities on their constituents’ topics of interest. Committees often work together as issues overlap between them.

  • The Metadata Management Standing Committee addresses issues concerning descriptive and subject cataloging and the classification of legal materials in any format.
  • The Resource Management Standing Committee serves as the research and discussion group on areas of acquisitions, including collection development; acquisitions policies; encumbrance systems; accounting and record-keeping; internal acquisitions procedures; approval plans related to collection development and acquisitions policies; duplicate order control; and other topics within the scope of the preceding list. It provides a forum for addressing issues unique to serial publications, including, but not limited to, check-in systems, subscription agencies, binding, claiming, and record keeping. It focuses on measures to preserve legal information, in all formats, at risk due to deterioration, neglect, or disaster and addresses issues related to the preservation of and access to digital content.

Administrative Committees

  • The Awards Committee solicits, reviews, and selects TS-SIS award and grant recipients.
    • Renee D. Chapman Memorial Award for Outstanding Contributions in Technical Services Law Librarianship
    • Marla Schwartz Education Grant
    • New Member Grant
    • Experienced Member Grant
    • Active Member Grant
  • The Bylaws and Handbook Committee maintains the TS-SIS Bylaws and Handbook and ensures a website presence.
  • Funding Research Opportunities Grant Committee (FROG) provides funding for grants to law librarians to perform research that will enhance law librarianship. FROG is a co-operative endeavor with members from TS-SIS and Library Systems & Resource Discovery SIS (LSRD-SIS).
  • The Membership Committee facilitates member recruitment, retention, and involvement.
  • The Nominating Committee is responsible for preparing a slate of candidates for the TS-SIS elections.
  • The Professional Development Committee plans and implements continuing education activities that promote technical services-related professional development during and beyond the AALL annual meeting. The Committee is responsible for overseeing, coordinating, and maintaining several professional development working groups’ charges.

TS-SIS Online

The official online publication of the TS-SIS and LSRD-SIS is Technical Services Law Librarian (TSLL), published quarterly. TSLL has an editor, an associate editor, and an editorial board, jointly appointed by TS-SIS and LSRD-SIS. Columnists report on various topics of concern to both sections. TSLL is freely available on the web at https://www.aallnet.org/tssis/resources-publications/technical-services-law-librarian/.

TSLL also sponsors TechScans, a blog (www.tslltechscans.blogspot.com) that shares the latest trends and technology tools of interest to technical services librarians.

Upon joining, TS-SIS members automatically receive access to the applicable email discussion group. Here they can take advantage of members’ expertise by asking the group questions or browsing postings of interest. The TS-SIS website offers current and historical information about the section, contact information, news of upcoming events, the bylaws and section handbook, and lists additional available resources.