Volume 1, Issue 3                                                                                                                                                                Summer 2003

       Congratulations on being accepted to Loyola University New Orleans Law School and I hope you are looking forward to a challenging yet very rewarding year.  The Law Library houses a rapidly growing collection of hard copy, microform, and electronic resources to meet the curricular and research needs of students and faculty.  The Law Library, however, is more than a mere repository of primary and secondary legal resources.  The Law Library staff, both professional and para-professional, are eager to help you make the most of the resources available.
        You will probably have the most direct contact with the personnel at the Circulation/Reserve Desk and at the Reference Desk.  The para-professionals and student assistants of the Circulation/Reserve staff can help you with assigned readings for your classes and with a variety of secondary study aids that are on reserve.  For help with identifying and effectively using Law Library resources, get to know the reference librarians who staff the Reference Desk on the second floor of the Library.  They will be able to help you not only with hard copy resources but will also assist you to make the best use of electronic resources.
        For more information on the Law Library, the Law Library staff, and access to the online catalog and other electronic resources, consult www.law.loyno.edu/library.
 

A Suggested Summer Reading List

These books are all available through the major online booksellers:

Fischl, Richard Michael and Jeremy Paul
Getting to Maybe: How to Excel on Law School Exams Carolina Academic Press, 1999 ISBN 0890897603 $22.00

 While most books on exam taking are simply a catalog of questionable tips and techniques, this book is different.  Written by two law professors who have taught all the basic law school courses, this guide examines the process of legal analysis, breaking down concepts into discrete, patterned components.  It explores how and why law professors construct exam questions as they do and what they hope to see in an answer.  This book will not only help you excel on exams but will also give you valuable advice on how to prepare for class and what you should be learning from class discussions.  Read this book during the summer and then again mid first semester.  By far the best book of its kind.
 

Harr, Jonathan
A Civil Action      Vintage Books, 1996 ISBN 0679772677 $14.95

 This is a fascinating account of a toxic tort case.  It explores a lawsuit brought by leukemia victims and their families against two major corporations who have allegedly been releasing carcinogens into the environment.  A good read that will give you a head start on both torts and civil procedure.
 

Kennedy, Randall
Race, Crime, and the Law Vintage Books, 1998    ISBN 0375701842   $16.00

Kennedy, a critical legal studies advocate, explores the relationship between the criminal justice system and race.  While he espouses definite opinions -- some at odds with politically correct interpretations, the author takes care to buttress his arguments with clearly delineated facts.

Levi, Edward H.
An Introduction to Legal Reasoning.       Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1948.   ISBN 0226474089 $9.00

 Levi’s book is a seminal work on the nature of legal reasoning.  It emphasizes that law is a process of decision-making in which social theories play a significant role. While short, its style is somewhat abstruse and it should not be the first book you read on this list.

Lewis, Anthony.
Gideon’s Trumpet. New York: Vintage Books, 1964.   ISBN 0679723129     $12.00
 This is a history of Gideon v. Wainwright, the Supreme Court case giving indigents the right to free legal counsel.  In writing about the case, however, Lewis explains in a very accessible style the whole nature of constitutional law and the role of the Supreme Court.  An excellent book.

Turow, Scott.
One L.  New York: Penguin, 1977.   ISBN 0446673781    $13.95

 Turow’s book chronicles the life of a first-year law student at Harvard.  It is an exciting account of intellectual development that also tells of the many ups and downs of the law student.  Turow is particularly good at occasionally stepping back from the scene and delving into the weaknesses and sometimes dehumanizing aspects of the law school educational experience.  A must read.

A Law Library is Unique

Most folks can guess that there are major differences between the National Air and Space Museum and the Dr Pepper Museum. However, they may not realize that an academic law library is different from a university library.

A law library’s collection is primarily composed of serials, not monographs. A serial is a work that is meant to continue on indefinitely, even if it does not. For example, the Congressional Record and Martha Stewart Living are serials. A monograph is a complete work, even if it is more than one volume. The Federalist Papers (one volume) and The Lord of the Rings (three volumes) are both monographs.

A law journal is a serial published by students, containing scholarly articles written by law professors, judges, and others which is published in regular installments, much like any other journal. For example, the Harvard Law Review can publish eight items during the year. The subscribing library will collect and then bind all eight publications together into a single volume for that academic year. Most law schools produce at least one journal.

A reporter is a serial published by a private company which contains appellate opinions. It may be found in many forms. A reporter may be topical (Copyright Law Reporter), regional (Northeastern Reporter) or state (Georgia Reports). A reporter may be updated with nine or ten bound volumes a year (Federal Reporter, Third series) or with weekly loose-leaf updates placed into binders (Labor relations reporter).

At the Circulation Desk, students may check out most monographs, but not serials. There students can also request Reserve materials, which may be borrowed for a short period of time. Please remember that most items in a law library do not circulate.

The Catalog: Gateway to the Collection

The Law Library uses software from Innovative Interfaces for its online catalog, which may be searched at http://lawcat.loyno.edu/search

Students will often use the “keyword”  screen to search for information. However, the “subject heading” screen may actually yield results closer to those the student actually wants, since words in the title may not be descriptive of the contents. Also, subject searching allows one to “drill down” into the catalog. For example, a subject search for the word “torts” shows 638 entries divided into 90 sub-categories and 45 related subjects. A keyword search for “torts” shows 333 entries, which are all listed alphabetically by title. Clearly, subject searching produces more hits in a format that is easier to search.

Not all materials on one topic will be physically grouped together. They could be in the stacks, or on Reserve, or at Reference. Also, since many areas of law overlap, it is possible that a book could fit into many possible subject headings. In order to find what you need, be sure to start any search with the online catalog.

Food and Drink Policy

Please help us by complying with the Law Library food and drink policy.  You may drink beverages from spill-proof containers anywhere in the Law Library.  Covered containers such as those from Starbucks do not qualify.  We will be giving a spill-proof mug to all first-year students.  Ask about your mug at the Circulation and Reserve Desk.

There should be no food on the second or third floors of the Law Library.  In the first floor reading room, you may consume non-microwavable vending machine snacks such as potato chips, corn chips, and candy.  Please dispose of wrappers appropriately.

Please cooperate with this food and drink policy.  It is designed to protect the Law Library from an invasion of little creatures that not only feed on any leftovers but on paper, bindings, and glue in books.  It will also serve to protect the new furniture from any inadvertent spills.

Technology at Loyola                             BH

There are two computer labs in the law library. On the first floor is our primary lab, with forty-six PC (Windows) computers and one Apple computer. We have both Microsoft Office and  Corel Wordperfect Office Suite on all the Windows PCs for word processing.  You can also access e-mail and the World Wide Web on any of these computers.

On the second floor  is the thirteen-PC Computer Instructional Lab. This lab is used for computer-based electronic research training and has a large combination display/touch screen at the lectern. When no class is in session, this lab is open for general computer use. The PCs in this lab have the same software configuration as the ones in the first floor lab. Both labs have several high-speed, networked laser printers available for printing.

Throughout the library there are thirty-five access points where you can connect laptop computers to our local network. If you own a laptop with a network card (this is different from a telephone modem), you can plug it into the network and access e-mail and the web from any of these locations. Maps showing you where these network access point are located are available at the law library circulation desk and will be distributed at orientation.
Law students will be provided with a Loyola e-mail account. Many faculty use e-mail to communicate with their students outside of class and e-mail is one way that the law school distributes important information to students. You can either use your Loyola e-mail account or an existing e-mail account as your “default.”

 The University also provides dial-up internet access for students. You can configure your home computer to dial up to the campus internet servers and access e-mail and the web from home without having to pay a monthly fee.

Library Hours

Please call the Circulation Department at 861-5545 if you have any questions regarding the hours of operation.

Regular Library Hours:

Sunday: 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Monday - Thursday: 7:30 a.m. - 12:00 midnight
Friday: 7:30 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Saturday: 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
 

Reference Desk:

Monday - Thursday: 9:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Friday: 9:00 a.m.  - 4:30 p.m.

Sunday: 2:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.