Ed Craig,
Reference Librarian
(elcraig@samford.edu)

Who may borrow through Beeson ILL?

 The Law Library will accept ILL requests from faculty and students if the materials are being used for Cumberland academic purposes only; other requests can be handled locally by the Birmingham Public Library interlibrary loan office (226-3730).  Why such a limitation?

The costs of interlibrary loan processing, in staff time and in direct monetary expenditures, can be quite high and are absorbed by the Law Library’s budget.  Depending upon the policies of the lending library, our library often pays $10-20 per book for the privilege of borrowing.  These charges reflect real costs on the part of the lending library for such things as  personnel time to fill the order, postage, and insurance.  Fortunately, we do have cooperative agreements with networks of selected libraries in the Southeast, which allow us to avoid these direct monetary charges if network members possess the materials; the agreements do not, however, mitigate the indirect costs of processing the loan for either the lending or the borrowing library.

What  information is needed to borrow?

When requesting a book through interlibrary loan, it is crucial that sufficient bibliographic information is provided to ensure that the material is properly identified and the ILL order shipped is accurate.  Incomplete information can often lead to unfilled orders or shipments of books that do not meet a researcher’s needs, thus wasting the time of the researcher, the lending library and the borrowing library. Normally, book orders requested should include the full title, the author(s), publisher, the edition, and date of publication.  Orders for periodical articles should contain periodical title, volume, issue, page(s), date, article title and article author.

How is a book or article ordered?

A librarian processes a request for interlibrary loan using a worldwide online database called OCLC.  This system  is used for cataloging of library books by most major U.S. libraries (public, private, governmental, corporate and university) when they are added to a library’s collection. When a book is cataloged  by any library to include in its collection, OCLC retains the information that the institution holds that particular book.¹  From this database, ILL librarians at these same institutions can determine which libraries have a book that they need to borrow.

The first task in using such a system for borrowing is to identify the book within the database; this is the reason that correct bibliographic information is so important–partial or inaccurate information can leave the ILL librarian empty-handed after doing an exhaustive search.   After identifying the needed resource, the librarian will determine which libraries hold the item; at Cumberland, the librarian will look at the applicable list and  formulate a “lender string” of five libraries listed as holding the item, normally giving preference to libraries which are part of our cooperative lending networks.

Understanding the mechanics of the “lender string” can help patrons understand the reason for the part of the ILL process which they know better as “waiting.”  When an ILL order is prepared online, the librarian sends the request via computer to up to five libraries, but not simultaneously.  The first address of the “string” will automatically receive the request.  The request will remain with them  4 days if they do not respond “yes” or “no” before that amount of time. After four days (or after a “no” response), it will go to the second address in the string, and so forth, until someone responds “yes” (or, alternatively, the request may go totally unanswered through the lender string of five libraries.)

After a lending library responds “yes” to a request, they must process the book on their end; they must check out the book in their own circulation system, update the OCLC online record, create their own ILL records, package and mail (or fax, if they are an Alabama academic library sending periodical articles).  Depending upon the backlog for that ILL department, this could take a day or a week. After the book is received by the borrowing library, the  ILL librarian must update the records on the OCLC system as well as internal ILL records and prepare an information “date due” jacket for the book.

As a result, the question of “how long it will take” to receive an ILL request  is a complex one with quite a few variables:

• Which lender in the string will say “yes” and how long will they wait to respond?
• Does the lender have a backlog in processing?
• What method of shipment will they use?

What you can do to make the process quicker?

As mentioned above, one of the ILL librarian’s biggest challenges in ordering materials is identifying the resource in the OCLC database.  Now, the Main Library website has an OCLC database available, Worldcat, which can be accessed at http://library.samford.edu/articlesalpha.html#s_z, that will allow the patron to search the OCLC database and select the exact materials needed.  Once you have found the items needed for your research, you may print off the bibliographic record to give to one of the Cumberland reference librarians for ordering.

Returning interlibrary loan books

When an ILL book is presented to the borrower, it will bear a white “date due” jacket; it is incumbent upon the borrower to return the book by this date.  If you should need a book longer than the due date, please inform one of the reference librarians so that a renewal can be attempted. A renewal cannot be guaranteed; each lending library has control of its own due dates and the ILL system has no influence over this discretion.  Indeed, it is important for our library to maintain good relationships with other lenders in order to continue borrowing books; our return of books to lenders in overdue status does not help these ties.

If you have questions about the interlibrary loan process or would like to request an interlibrary loan please see Ed Craig or Brenda Jones.

¹  Because books normally appear only when cataloged in the system, a book's failure to appear in OCLC is not necessarily an indication that it does not exist;  it may just be on its way out the publisher's door at the time of searching.  Its failure to be listed in the system is a strong indication that the book is not widely available through libraries at that time, however

AT FREEDOM'S DOOR: AFRICAN AMERICAN FOUNDING FATHERS AND LAWYERS IN RECONSTRUCTION SOUTH CAROLINA.
E/185.93/.S7/A8/2000.

MISSISSIPPI MODEL JURY INSTRUCTIONS, CIVIL.
KFM1742/.A65/M57/2000.

MISSISSIPPI MODEL JURY INSTRUCTIONS, CRIMINAL.
KFM7183/.A65/M57/2000.
 

Cumberland Law Library is pleased to offer a new database of retrospective legal periodicals. Described as “the modern link to legal history,” Hein-On-Line provides full-text access to pre-1980 journals, a segment typically omitted on Lexis or Westlaw.  With coverage starting in the mid-1800's, Hein opens some of the best legal research of the past.

Hein-On-Line displays exact page images complete with illustrations. For instance, find a fascinating account of Cumberland Law School in The Green Bag at volume two, page 63.  Written in 1890 by Chancellor Green, the article includes photographs of the Lebanon, Tennessee campus along with portraits of Cumberland’s first faculty members.  Present Cumberland students may be surprised to learn that their predecessors had no final exams!

Hein’s user-friendly product offers multiple ways to access information.  Browse the collection alphabetically by journal, author, or title.  Conduct keyword searches limited to the author or title fields.  Alternatively, broaden retrieval with a full text search of every word in the database.  Other handy features allow users to limit a search to a particular journal, pull up an article by its citation, or view a table of contents for each volume.  For guidance, follow the link for “Using Hein-On-Line.”

In the Law Library, access Hein-On-Line from any public catalog station by using the pull-down menu at the top of the Web-based screen.  In Law Library labs, go to the library’s home page http://lawlib.samford.edu and follow the link for  “Research Aids.”

http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/internet/02/15/internet.access.reut/index.html

Becky Hutto is serving on the Southeastern Association of Law Libraries (SEAALL) 2001-2003 Membership Committee, as the representative for the State of Alabama.  Ed Craig is serving on the SEAALL 2001-2003 Government Relations Committee, as the representative for the State of Alabama.

Congressional safety officials predict the Library of Congress will not be able to fix all fire safety violations that threaten some of the nation's priceless historical treasures for another two years, despite new citations ordering the problems corrected and the building brought up to modern standards.

Congress' health and safety agency, the Office of Compliance, issued seven citations, pointing to "an undue danger to the lives and safety of occupants" of the three Library buildings, especially the domed, 103-year-old Jefferson Building.

Ken Lauziere, the congressional fire marshal, said the citations are "based on relatively new and in some cases brand new applications of fire codes -- as recently as 1997." He said the buildings were constructed with the fire protection measures of their time, and it will "take some major effort" to apply "contemporary solutions to our historic problems."

Lauziere, who works for the Architect of the Capitol, said his office would seek design funds from Congress in fiscal 2003 and construction money in fiscal 2005. He said only minor fixes can be made right away, including making sure that fire doors close properly and filling up construction openings that could allow smoke and fumes to spread.

"The Library is strongly committed to correcting all these deficiencies and already corrected 76 percent of those that are the Library's responsibility," said spokeswoman Jill Brett, who said the Architect is responsible for most fire safety measures. "We'll proceed to correcting the remaining 24 percent as quick as possible."

http://cnn.com/2001/US/03/06/library.firesafety.ap/index.html

How many states allow lotteries?  Which states impose capital punishment?  What laws protect consumers across the United States?  From law students writing papers to lawyers wrestling with multistate issues, legal researchers often need state-by-state comparisons of law.  Cumberland’s Law Library offers many tools for compiling such information.  For instance, the library collects codes from all U.S. states along with comprehensive case reporters.  Compiling the information directly may be necessary though time-consuming.  Where possible, perhaps the best method is to find an existing comparison and build on the groundwork laid by others.  Typically, state-by-state surveys are overviews rather than in-depth studies of the law.  Be sure to tailor further analysis to your specific situation and update for changes in the law.  Be aware that in some areas, federal law may preempt the state.  For efficient research, look in the reference section for these good starting points:

In this bibliography, Cheryl Nyberg identifies books, articles, court opinions, government documents, looseleaf services, and Web sites that survey state laws on scores of subjects.  Presently, the series covers nearly twelve thousand citations in fourteen volumes.  Remember that the set is not cumulative.  Search each volume in turn.

National Survey of State Laws edited by Richard A. Leiter, 3rd ed. (KF386/.N38/1999).

In chart format, this book compares U.S. state laws in eight categories: business and consumer, criminal, education, employment, family, general civil, real estate, and tax.  The editor selects areas of popular interest such as lemon laws, wills, abortion or gun control.  Charts contain references to state code sections.

Martindale-Hubbell Law Digest (KF190/.M32/2000).

This set summarizes selected laws of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The domestic compilation covers almost one hundred main subject categories with hundreds of subheadings.  Preeminent lawyers update the compendium annually. For instance, attorneys at Bradley, Arant, Rose & White prepare the Alabama section.  A companion International Law Digest covers more than seventy foreign countries.

The Law Library collects many books with subject-specific surveys like these representative samples:

Brownfields: A Comprehensive Guide to Redeveloping Contaminated Property edited by Todd S. Davis and Kevin D.Margolis, American Bar Association, 1997 (KF3946/.B768).

Constitutions of the United States, National and State, 2nd  ed., Oceana Publications (KF4530/.C6/1974).

Covenants Not to Compete: A State-by-State Survey edited by Brian M. Malsberger, Arnold H. Pedowitz, and Robert W. Sikkel, 2nd edition, Bureau of National Affairs (KF898/.C68/1996).

Digest of Commercial Laws of the World: State Variations of Commercial Law, Oceana Publications, 1966-(JX6271/.D5).

Franchising by Gladys Glickman, M. Bender, 1969- (KF2023/.A6/G5).

Judicial Disqualification: Recusal and Disqualification of Judges by Richard E. Flamm, Little Brown, 1996 (KF8861/.F62).

State Antitrust Practice and Statutes by Jeffrey L. Kessler, 2nd  ed., American Bar Association (KF1650/.S73/1999).

A State-by-State Guide to Construction & Design Law: Current Statutes and Practices edited by  Carl J. Circo and Christopher H. Little, American Bar Association, 1998 (KF902/.Z95/S715).

State Limited Liability: Company & Partnership Laws edited by Michael A. Bamberger and Arthur J. Jacobson, Aspen Law & Business, 1995 (KF1380/.Z95/S74).

Who Decides?: A State-by-State Review of Abortion and Reproductive Rights, 9th ed., NARAL  (KF3771/.Z95/S72/2000).

For an overview of state law comparisons found in looseleaf services, see the companion article in this issue by Serials Librarian Robin McLendon.

The need for state-by-state comparisons of law isn’t limited to information found in the reference and treatise sections of the library (see "State-by-State Comparisons of Law: Part I" by Reference Librarian Brenda Jones, elsewhere in this issue.) The serials section, found on the Lower Level, houses looseleaf services that can provide similar, regularly updated comparisons. For example, CCH (Commerce Clearing House, Inc.), publishes the following reporters:

(CCH) Blue Sky Law Reporter
This reporter has finding aids such as indexes and tabbed sections for each state. The set includes six volumes which are updated at least bimonthly. It contains a newsletter, new and amended laws and regulations, new and revised orders, policy statements, interpretive opinions, and cases. The set also contains a very important tool: a concise section called “How to Use the Reporter,” which can save you a great deal of time and energy.

(CCH) Consumer Credit Guide
Consumer Credit Guide is a series of five looseleaf volumes. It includes a bimonthly Guide Report describing new regulations, decisions, rulings, and interpretations as they relate to consumer credit contracts and enforcement. The set’s intent is to explain the current state and federal consumer credit rules and Uniform Consumer Credit Code. As with other CCH publications, Consumer Credit Guide contains a section on finding aids, and useful tabbed sections making state-by-state comparisons easier.

(CCH) Employment Practices Guide
Employment Practices Guide “reviews federal and state requirements prohibiting employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability and age.” It also covers the areas of family and medical leave and equal pay for equal work. The set includes four looseleaf volumes, which offer topically organized, full text reporting of statutes, regulations, executive orders, rules, and forms on both the federal and state level.

(CCH) Labor Law Reporter: State Law Decisions
This one-volume reporter contains full text reporting of new court decisions on labor law. Although it doesn’t have state-by-state tabbed sections as the above do, its Topical Index lists state names. More information on using this reporter can be found on the Court Decisions: State Laws tab of the volume.

(BNA) Environment Reporter: Decisions
This reporter is published by the Bureau of National Affairs (BNA). It provides full-text coverage of environmental law at both the federal and state level. Like CCH Labor Law Decisions, this reporter doesn’t have state-by-state tabbed sections, but states are listed alphabetically in the Topical Index. There is a “How to use” section, also.

(Matthew Bender) Oil and Gas Reporter
Matthew Bender & Co., Inc. (part of the Lexis Publishing family), issues this service for the Southwestern Legal Foundation. Updates are released monthly. The Reporter lists cases and rulings that relate to oil and gas law and taxation, with sections on substantive law cases, Natural Gas Act cases, environmental law cases, and administrative rulings. The the set includes an index volume called "Oil and Gas Reporter: Index-Tables," which contains a cumulative index in which the states are listed alphabetically.

Most looseleaf publications include finding aids--indexes, tables of cases, index digests.  To locate the looseleaf section on the shelves, go to the Lower Level of the library. If you are standing at the door to the west stair case, looking across the room at the elevator, the looseleafs will be on the shelves to your right. Walk toward the middle of the shelves: you will pass the tax materials, then the newsletters, which are kept in green binders. Next you will come to the looseleaf publications,  on ranges 048-054, which you will recognize by their pubishers' names: BNA, CCH, and so forth. And as always, if you need assistance with this type of material, ask a librarian.

This is a question that the reference librarian will never hear again.

Thomas M. West, Jr. (Cumberland Class of 1966) has donated a frame with Cordell Hull (Cumberland Class of 1890) memorabilia to the Law School.  The frame is on the wall under the clock on the west side of the First Floor Reading Room.  The frame contains a 1944 Life magazine and a signed 1936 letter from Cordell Hull on Department of State letterhead.

The cover photograph of Cordell Hull for the September 4, 1944 issue of Life was done by the internationally known photographer, Yousuf Karsh (born 1908).  See: Yousuf Karsh, Portraits of Greatness (1959) (TR680/.K3/1959/Main Library).

The letter, dated June 17, 1936, is a letter of introduction to American Diplomatic and Consular Officers on behalf of the wife and son of labor leader, John L. Lewis.  It is thought that possibly they were traveling abroad to attend the 1936 Olympics in Munich, Germany.

The Law Library has received the following books:

Legacy of Valor, written by Jed Babbin, Cumberland Class of 1973.  This novel describes what happens when an administration becomes more interested in budget cuts and social experimentation than in maintaining the preparedness of the armed forces.  His novel is a satire told from the perspective of a professional soldier. Babbin has served as Judge Advocate in the U.S. Air Force, as well as serving as Deputy Undersecretary of Defense in the George Bush administration.  The book was published by Pentland Press and is shelved with the treatises, Second Floor - PS3552/.A23/L35.

The People’s Lawyer: the Colorful Life and Times of Julian McPhillips, written by Birmingham author, Carroll Dale Short.  This biography follows McPhillips’s journey from his early childhood days in Cullman, Alabama, to his student days at Princeton and Columbia and throughout his time as an Alabama assistant attorney general and one of the South's prominent plaintiff's attorneys.  This book was published by NewSouth Books in Montgomery, Alabama and is shelved with the treatises, Second Floor - KF373/.M397/S55.  Sources: The Cumberland Lawyer, Winter 2001, at page 10; http://www.newsouthbooks.com/books/the_peoples_ lawyer. htm

1. You will need your checkout card to see any reserve folders (including old exams).
    
2. Food, tobacco and drinks are not allowed in the library at any time–even if you are taking an exam in a conference room.
    
3. Conference rooms are scheduled for exams during finals weeks; as a result, these rooms’ availability for studying will be severely limited.
    
4. During the exam period, the Law Library opens at 7:00 a.m. Monday through Friday.