Annotated Codes are your friends

If you have a project involving a statute, remember annotated codes (e.g. McKinneys, USCA, USCS, codes from other states) can be incredible research tools and time savers. If you know your statute citation, go to the annotated code - in print or on Lexis or Westlaw - and look for the Notes of Decisions or Case Notes section right after the statutory text. These sections will tell you what cases have interpreted your statute, saving you loads of time looking for cases.

If you need a refresher, watch for announcements next week for March research workshops. If you cannot wait, of course, do not hesitate to ask your friendly Reference Librarians.


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Forms.gov

Need a federal form of some kind for personal or business reasons? More federal forms than you thought could possibly exist are available online at Forms.gov. Over 5,400 business and citizen forms appear on this Web site. Forms data are continually added and updated by agency partners.



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Professor Explains the Law of Anna Nicole's Saga

There is a lot of serious law for a student to ponder in the sensational--but complex--legal saga of celebrity Anna Nicole Smith. Last week Hofstra Law Professor Joanna L. Grossman, a regular columnist for Findlaw in the areas of family law and trusts and estates, published "The Litigation Filled Life of Anna Nicole Smith, and the Legal Aftermath of Her Demise" on the legal information web site. Not only does Professor Grossman's column clearly set out the legal issues involved and the possible outcomes, but it also provides helpful links to her previous columns discussing Anna Nicole's claim against her late husband's estate, the impact of her U.S. Supreme Court win relating to that claim, and California's complicated parentage law now in play in the custody battle over her daughter. Take a look at Professor Grossman's discussion of the law behind the headlines.



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Presidents Day: what is it all about?

OK, Presidents Day was Monday, but it will come around again next year. Presidents Day was originally an observance of President G. Washington's birthday and it was not until the late 1980's that the theme was expanded to include another President born in February, Abraham Lincoln.

Since 1862, there has been a tradition in the United States Senate that George Washington's Farewell Address be read on his birthday. His Farewell Address is worth reading and can be found here. Take a moment to observe the legacy of our first President.



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Presidents' Day

You may be off from classes on Monday, February 19th, to honor Presidents' day, but I will be hard at work. The Library is open from 10am - 6pm on Monday and a Reference Librarian will be available to answer your questions.




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Ice

I don't know which I dislike more water as a liquid or solid.

Anyway, due to the combination of both outside, I am finding a nice warm place to stay dry, the Reference desk will close at 2pm when the University closes and the Library will close to everyone at 5pm.

Get home safely - and stay warm and dry!!!



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InSITE provided by Cornell Law Library

So many websites, so little time and can I trust it? Cornell Law Library arrives with assistance.

InSITE, a current awareness service of Cornell Law Library. InSITE highlights selected law-related Web sites in two ways: as an annotated publication issued electronically and in print; and as a keyword-searchable database. The law librarians at Cornell evaluate potentially useful Web sites, select the most valuable ones, and provide commentary and subject access to them.

Why is this important? Because an institution like Cornell has vetted and evaluated the sites. Google does not aid you with evaluating the reliability of a site. This is not a one stop place for information, but it is a good place to start.



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Lincoln's words

Being of a musical bent, I cannot think of a better way to honor Lincoln's words than to listen to Aaron Copland's Lincoln Portrait. Written in 1942, Aaron Copland set Lincoln's words to music. You can read the text and link to an interview with the composer and a performance of the Lincoln Portrait at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4165357



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Lincoln Logs of Wisdom

As Lincoln's birthday approaches, enjoy this recent article from the Pennsylvania Law Weekly. It provides a great review of timeless advice from one of our greatest lawyer-presidents. I certainly can not think of many other figures whose words can stand the test of time like President Lincoln.


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Briefs assignments

For those of you working on Appellate Advocacy briefs, remember some of the advanced search techniques on Lexis and Westlaw. For example, you can really focus your case research on Lexis with the core-terms segment and on Westlaw with the sy,di fields.

And if your problem involves a statute, the case annotations in an annotated code - either online or in print - practically does the research for you!!!

Don't know what these are or how to use them? Ask your favorite reference librarian.



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