Library Exam Hours

At the risk of using that four letter "e" word, to help you study for exams, the Library will extend our hours for the early birds and night owls.

As of Monday, December 4, the Library hours will be:
Monday - Friday 7am - 2am
Saturday & Sunday 10am- 2am

On Thursday, December 21, we will be open 7am - 10pm

Good luck.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

The Freedom of Information Act

For those who are curious about the process of unearthing declassified material and other federal government information, there is an excellent guide to the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA") available at The George Washington University's National Security Archive's Web page. The page contains the text of FOIA, several guides to aspects of FOIA, including an explanation of how FOIA requests work, and news pertaining to FOIA.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

National Academies Discovery Engine

The Discovery Engine, at the National Academies Press web site, is a real discovery for law students researching issues at the intersection of law and health, international policy, science or technology. By entering simple search terms in the Discovery Engine box on the site’s home page, users can immediately search more than 3,600 authoritative books and reports issued by the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, the National Research Council, and the National Academy of Engineering. Web site documents such as testimony and press releases from the National Academies are also searched. Powerful tools such as “Find more like this” and “one-click searches” on key terms derived from results save the searcher valuable time and effort. Best of all, most books and reports retrieved are freely available online for browsing, printing individual PDF pages, and searching within the document on key terms.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Directorate of Legal Research Reports

The mission of the Directorate of Legal Research is to provide high quality, timely, and innovative research, analysis, and reference services on issues of international, and foreign and comparative law to the United States Congress, as well as to the Supreme Court, other courts, executive agencies, the legal profession, academic community, and the general public, based on the strength of the world’s largest and most complete collection of international, foreign, and national legal resources.

Unfortunately not many are released to the public and the reports available are difficult to locate. However, a recent research guide gives a good analysis of the value of these reports and some tips on how they might be found. The Directorate of Legal Research at the Library of Congress: A Treasure Hidden under a Bushel Basket by Michael Ravnitzky.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

Summer Associates Survey 2006

The American Lawyer's Annual Summer Associate Survey is now online for 2006. You can read the article The Real World According to Summer Associates by Tamara Loomis at Law.com. To read the National Rankings and the Results by City you must sign up for a free subscription first.

Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat

The Forbes Fictional 15

For a gradual re-entry back to school after a long holiday weekend, check out The Forbes Fictional 15.

This list of fictional billionaires reveals the fortunes of popular
characters from the worlds of film, cartoons, and board games. Take a moment to ponder the net worth of Thurston Howell III (Gilligan's Island), Rich Uncle Pennybags (AKA the Monopoly Guy), Lara Croft etc.

THEN, swing by the library to book a study room for your group (remember, they fill up fast this time of year)


Ernster, the Virtual Library Cat