We are painting areas around the circulation desk and staff areas, so please excuse our mess.
Despite our limited access to this area, we remain open and fully able to assist you at the desk.
July 2009 Archives
From the Internet Scout:
Typography for Lawyers
http://www.typographyforlawyers.com/
This is an intriguing website that focuses on typography as a means to make legal documents look better aesthetically, and arguably, more professional and more persuasive. The founder of this website is a typographer-turned-lawyer, and he gives ample examples to back up his theory that presentation is tantamount. Visitors unfamiliar with typography can learn about it by clicking on the links "What is Typography?" and "Why is typography important?"
Once visitors have digested that, they can take actual lessons in typography, from basic to advanced. Some of the topics covered are "Straight Quotes and Curly Quotes", "How to Pick a Font", "Condensed vs.Squished Fonts". The website's author mentions in "How to Use This Website", that he does not include all the lessons that would usually be in a typography course or treatise, but rather he includes only those that would be useful to a lawyer. For the disbelieving lawyers out there who think the courts restrict what fonts can be used in their court system, go to the link "Appendix: Court Rules Regarding Fonts" to read official court rules regarding font, for the 50 states and the federal system.
Copyright Internet Scout, 1994-2009. Internet Scout
(http://scout.wisc.edu/), located in the Computer Sciences Department of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, provides information about the Internet to the U.S. research and education community under a grant from the National Science Foundation, number NCR-9712163. The Government has certain rights in this material. Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of the entire Scout Report provided this paragraph, including the copyright notice, are preserved on all copies.
Occasionally, we feature recently asked questions (RAQ) at the reference desk. Here is a recent fun one:
Q: Where did the phrase "The jury is still out" come from?
A: Taking a look at "The Phrase Finder," we find the meaning and origin of this phrase:
The jury is still out
Meaning:
Judgement has not yet been finalised on a particular subject; especially due to information being incomplete.
Origin:
'The Jury Is Still Out' has been a staple headline in US newspapers for at least 150 years. For example, this from The New York Daily-Times, May 1850:
"The [Gardiner Trial] Jury are still out, with no prospect of immediate agreement."
The phrase has continued to be used in this literal sense. The emergence of the figurative use of 'the jury is still out', i.e. as a reference to a non-legal decision where no actual jury is involved, began in the USA in the 1940s and has now become somewhat hackneyed. For example, the expression was used in a report of a baseball game, published in the Indiana newspaper The Terre Haute Star in July 1949:
The jury is still out on his [Orestes Minoso] batting ability.
There are a few examples of the phrase's use, mostly in a sporting context, throughout the 1940s and 50s, but it was a specific event that brought it fully into the language - the infamous Finch-Tregoff murder trials in 1959/61. Dr. Bernard Finch was a middle-aged Los Angeles surgeon and Carole Tregoff was described in newspapers at the time as 'his shapely young receptionist'. The murder of Finch's wife and the subsequent trials were a cause célèbre. At each of the the couple's three trials the jury took their time in coming to a judgement and hacks must have got tired of typing 'Jury Still Out' each day. This newspaper cutting was typical of the hundreds of stories that ran during 1959 to 1961:
At the third trial, during March and April 1961, the pair were finally convicted of murder.
Had Dr. Finch kept his mind on surgery, we would probably not now have the cliché 'the jury is still out' at our disposal. I'll leave it to you to decide whether that's to the good or not.
Feld, Barry C. Cases and materials on juvenile justice administration. 3rd ed.
St. Paul, Minn. : West, c2009. Call number: Rare Books (Faculty Collection) Feld
Publisher's description:
This casebook focuses on three themes: legal, administrative, and policy issues associated with regulating children rather than adults; procedural and substantive implications of a justice system that emphasizes treatment rather than punishment; and tensions between discretion and rules that occur when states treat children rather than punish adults. It incorporates empirical evaluations and developmental psychological research on adolescent competence and presents criminological studies of controversial issues such as gender and racial disparities in juvenile justice administration. It also examines pretrial detention and alternative sentencing options available to juvenile courts and discusses how and when states try youths in criminal court.
Hellman, Arthur D., Lauren K Robel and David R. Stras. Federal courts : cases and materials on judicial federalism and the lawyering process.
Newark, NJ : LexisNexis Matthew Bender, 2009. Call number: Rare Books (Faculty Collection) Stras
Publisher's description:
Federal Courts: Cases and Materials on Judicial Federalism and the Lawyering Process is the product of the authors' rethinking of what a "Federal Courts" course can be. Although fully attentive to the deeper issues of federalism and separation of powers raised by the cases, its primary focus is on giving students the grounding they will need to be effective lawyer-litigators.
Lawyers are goal-oriented. From their perspective, the American system of judicial federalism is important because it sets up four possible goals: getting into federal court; staying out of federal court; gaining the benefit of federal law; or avoiding the detriment of federal law. This book concentrates on providing the doctrinal and practical education that will enable lawyers to identify and pursue these goals effectively in the service of their clients. Two major themes distinguish this book:
- First, the book gives sustained and systematic attention to the role of state courts as a forum for litigation of federal issues.
- Second, the book is grounded in the realities of litigation today - in particular, the strong tendency of defendants in civil litigation to prefer federal court over state court. The statutory device of removal, and other issues that dominate contemporary litigation, are addressed throughout this new book.
Federal Courts provides thorough coverage of the public law issues that dominate scholarly writings on federal courts, but it is also uniquely geared to preparing students to serve their clients effectively in the workaday world of private litigation.
If you listen to the radio or watch TV you have probably seen some ads about the government's "Cash for Clunkers" plan. If you are considering trading in your older car for a new one you might be interested in learning a bit more about the program before you go to the the car dealership.
The law.
Now the source from the US Congress for legislative actions is a database called Thomas. There is just one problem, if you search the database for "cash for clunkers" you will get a bill (H.R. 2640), but if you look at the last major action you will see the bill was sent to committee, but it has not been passed. Now we know this bill has been passed, so where is it? Well, it turns out that this bill was not passed on its own, instead it was made part of an omnibus bill, H.R. 2346 Making supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes. The section we are interested in is Title 13 the "Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program," it is 10 paragraphs long and basically lays out how much people can get and a few basic requirements. It is still a bit vague, but does have one interesting requirement "Directs the Secretary to make Program information available on an Internet website and through other means."
The web site.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has created a web site on this program at the easy to remember location of cars.gov. Here we get yet another version of the name "Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS)," but this site has a lot of good basic information. You can find information on the roll out (or when exactly you can get the rebate), how it will work, and other FAQs.
Finding a fuel efficient car.
If you want to do a little prep work check out the web site, fueleconomy.gov. Not only will you find the fuel efficiency of your new car, but you will also get to check out what the EPA fuel efficiency is on your current car.
For even more info about consumer laws, check out our consumer law research links on the Law Library's website.
Source: Gov Pubs Library-UC Boulder
To create more space in the Reserves Collection, periodicals have been transferred to the Periodicals collection on the Plaza level (1st floor).
If you cannot locate an item, please ask for assistance at the Circulation Desk.
STAFF AT U LIBRARIES HAVE CREATED AN INTERACTIVE DIGITAL ARCHIVE: "MEMORIAL STADIUM 1924-1992."
In less than two months, the sights and sounds of on-campus football will return to the University of Minnesota with the opening of TCF Bank Stadium. While a stadium in the heart of campus will be a new experience for some fans, many others recall the rich history of Memorial Stadium, the home of Golden Gopher football for 57 years. Gopher fans can now relive many of these memories through an interactive digital archive "Memorial Stadium 1924-1992." It can be viewed by going to http://brickhouse.lib.umn.edu.
To watch a video highlighting the exhibit go to http://www1.umn.edu/urelate/newsservice/Multimedia_Videos/memorial_stadium.htm The "Brickhouse," as fans affectionately called it, was built in 1924 and stood for nearly seven decades until its demolition. For more information, read "Brickhouse redux"
Developed by the University Libraries, "Memorial Stadium 1924-1992 " features historical photos, game footage, programs, correspondence, reports and blueprints from the University Archives. The collections were scanned by the Libraries' Digital Library Development Lab and uploaded into Omeka, a free, open source, interactive Web-based publishing platform that allows visitors to the site to share their own recollections of Memorial Stadium.
"Watching enthusiasm grow as TCF Bank Stadium came to life these past three years inspired University Libraries staff to explore how the rich archival resources and the digital technology expertise of the Libraries could be channeled to capture, share and honor the history of Memorial Stadium from an institutional perspective," said university archivist Beth Kaplan. "From the start we knew we wanted to capture personal perspectives as well. It's our hope that visitors to the site will be inspired to share their own stories, photos, even audio or video clips to transform this into a dynamic and living archive."
Built in 1924 to pay tribute to the men and women of Minnesota lost in World War I, Memorial Stadium stood for nearly 70 years, hosting not only Gopher football but also track and field, the marching band, cheerleaders, commencement, research experiments and even a production of the opera "Aida." The Golden Gophers had a stellar record in Memorial Stadium, including six national championships and 12 unbeaten seasons at home.
Among the many features of the exhibit include live game footage of 28 Golden Gopher football games -- highlighted by a 1953 "Game of the Week" television broadcast in which All-American Paul Giel leads the Gophers over Michigan and sets a Big Ten record by handling the ball 53 times on offense. It also includes full-length programs from numerous Gopher football games and letters from community and university leaders debating a move to the newly built Metrodome.
In conjunction with the online exhibit, selected materials will be installed and available for viewing from July 20 through September 26 in the Andersen Atrium Gallery of the U's Elmer L. Andersen Library, 222 21st Ave. S., Minneapolis. For directions and exhibit hours go to http://special.lib.umn.edu/hoursdir.phtml
Cotter, Anne-Marie Mooney. Heaven forbid : an international legal analysis of religious discrimination.
Farnham, England ; Burlington, VT : Ashgate Pub. Ltd., c2009. Call number: K3280 .C68 2009
Publisher's description:
As the population becomes more diverse internationally, Religious Discrimination has become increasingly important as an area of law around the world. Heaven Forbid allows readers a better understanding of the issue of religion and inequality and aims to increase the likelihood of achieving equality at both national and international levels for those suffering religious discrimination. Discussing the two most important trade agreements of our day - namely the North American Free Trade Agreement and the European Union Treaty - in a historical and compelling analysis of discrimination, Heaven Forbid provides a detailed examination of the relationship between religious issues and the law, and will be an important read for all those concerned with equality.
Miller, Mark C., The view of the courts from the Hill : interactions between Congress and the federal judiciary.
Charlottesville : University of Virginia Press, 2009. Call number: KF5130 .M55 2009
Publisher's description:
The View of the Courts from the Hill explores the current interactions and relationship between the U.S. Congress and federal courts using a "governance as dialogue" approach, which argues that constitutional interpretation in the United States is a continuous and complex conversation among all the institutions of government. Expanding on his previous work on this important theme, Mark C. Miller has interviewed numerous key players specifically for this book. His subjects include members of Congress, federal judges, congressional staff, employees of the judicial branch, lobbyists, and others with an interest in the courts. Their candid and thorough comments provide an invaluable resource for students and scholars eager to explore the dynamics between congressional and judicial forces as they have evolved over the past two decades.
The book examines customary interactions between Congress and the federal courts--especially the U.S. Supreme Court--as well as extraordinary conflicts between the two branches of government both today and throughout American history. Miller gives special attention to recent attempts by social conservatives in Congress to silence the voice of the courts in the inter-institutional dialogue through the use of court-stripping measures, threats of impeachment of federal judges, and a proposal for an inspector general for the courts. Particular focus is placed on the interactions between the courts and the House Judiciary Committee under Republican control, as well as the approach taken by the Religious Right toward federal judges and the federal courts in general. The book concludes with a call for the protection of judicial independence in order to preserve the voice of the federal courts in the constitutional interpretation dialogue.
Were we smarter 100 years ago..? The 1909 Copyright Act Hearings
James Boyle has been rereading the legislative history of the 1909 Copyright Act. He has come to the conclusion that 100 years ago we were smarter about copyright, about disruptive technologies, about intellectual property, monopolies and network effects than we are today. At least, the legislative hearings were much smarter. The hearings he's looking at took place in 1906 -- thanks to the wonder of Google books you can read them yourself...
Source: LISNews
Copyfraud : Poisoning the Public Domain is an introduction to some of the ways that content providers (websites, publishers, etc.) abuse copyright protections when they use public domain materials. A couple of minor points, however:
*The act of assigning a copyright to something already in the public domain is the issue; taking a Project Gutenberg text, formatting it, and publishing it is of great benefit to people, as long as one doesn't claim protection that doesn't actually exist for the material.
*The Creative Commons Public Domain Tools is not a license, nor is it an attempt "to become the arbiter of public domain licensing", but a way to allow people to have an easy and effective way to display that a work belongs to the Public Domain.
Selected James J. Hill Digital Scans Now Available Online
Digital scans of 1,047 selected correspondence, clippings, and reports from the James J. Hill papers are now available on the web. These files, in pdf format, are accessible through an online inventory, which lists a description of each item and provides a link directly to each digital version.
The digitized material comes from the General Correspondence series and the Northern Pacific Reorganization materials within the James J. Hill papers, and cover topics including the attempted merger of the Great Northern and Northern Pacific railroads between 1893 and 1905 and the debate among Hill and other financiers over a potential loan to England and France during World War I.
These digital files came to the Minnesota Historical Society along with the Hill Family Collection, and we're pleased to make them available to users. The original documents can be found in the James J. Hill papers, an inventory of which is also available online.
Selected digital items from the James J. Hill papers
Full inventory of the James J. Hill papers
Source: MN Historical Society blog
On July 17, 2009, lawschool.westlaw.com and TWEN® will have a new look as part of the Thomson Reuters branding.
These changes are only cosmetic; there are no navigational changes to either lawschool.westlaw.com or TWEN. All links and page content still reside in the same places as before.
We did, however, take this opportunity to improve overall site performance of lawschool.westlaw.com by reducing the loading size of each page. Additionally, we increased the font size across lawschool.westlaw.com by almost twenty percent for easier reading.
Please take the opportunity to see the changes this Friday, July 17, 2009, by visiting lawschool.westlaw.com.
If you have specific questions regarding the new look of lawschool.westlaw.com, please contact your West Account Manager.
We appreciate your business and wish you a great 2009-2010 school year!
Sincerely,
West Academic Team
An occasional feature, "Law Library Staff Recommend..." highlights books that Law Library staff members have read for enjoyment and now recommend that others consider for inclusion on their own reading lists. If you have any comments or questions about any of the titles presented in this feature, feel free to email lawlib@umn.edu or stop by the library.
Today we highlight Dangerous Games: the uses and abuses of history by Margaret MacMillan (Modern Library, 2009). A 2008 edition is available at Wilson Library at Call Number D13 .M33 2008.
View a description of the book, an interview with the author and more at the Modern Library website.
This book "reveals how a deeper engagement with history in our private lives and, more important, in the sphere of public debate can guide us to a richer, more enlightened existence, as individuals and nations." Check it out!
Goodhart, Charles. A. E., The regulatory response to the financial crisis.
Cheltenham, UK ; Northampton, MA : Edward Elgar Pub, c2009. Call number: HB3722 .G66x 2009
Publisher's Description:
There are already many papers and books on the causes and course of the current financial crisis, but this is the first and, for the moment, only such book to focus on the regulatory response to it. There are two main attributes that a bank needs to remain in business during a period of turmoil, liquidity to enable it to pay its debts when due, and capital, to absorb losses. Both have been insufficient. Goodhart describes what went wrong and what needs to be done, alongside discussions of deposit insurance, credit rating agencies, prompt corrective action, etc.
Charles Goodhart is the senior British economist specializing in financial stability issues. As the turmoil began, continued and exploded into crisis, he has kept up a series of commentaries, all since September 2007. These have been brought together, plus some new and additional material, to provide the reader with an overview of what went wrong in the regulatory framework for the financial system, and what now needs to be done to put that right. This will be required reading for financial regulators, practitioners in banking and finance, academics and students of finance, and those just wanting to know what went wrong and what to do now.
Gerangelos, Peter A.., The separation of powers and legislative interference in judicial process : constitutional principles and limitations.
Oxford ; Portland, Or. : Hart, 2009. Call number: K3367 .G47x 2009
Publisher's Description:
This book examines the constitutional principles governing the relationship between legislatures and courts at that critical crossroads of their power where legislatures may seek to intervene in the judicial process, or to interfere with judicial functions, to secure outcomes consistent with their policy objectives or interests. Cases of high political moment are usually involved, where the temptation, indeed political imperative, for legislatures to intervene can be overwhelming. Although the methods of intervention are various, ranging from the direct and egregious to the subtle and imperceptible, unbridled legislative power in this regard has been a continuing concern in all common law jurisdictions. Prominent examples include direct legislative interference in pending cases, usurpation of judicial powers by legislatures, limitations on the jurisdiction of courts, strategic amendments to law applicable to cases pending appeal, and attempts directly to overturn court decisions in particular cases.
Because the doctrine of the separation of powers, as entrenched constitutional rule, is a major source of principle, the book will examine in detail the jurisprudence of the United States and Australia in particular. These jurisdictions have identical constitutional provisions entrenching that doctrine as well as the most developed jurisprudence on this point. The legal position in the United Kingdom, which does not have an entrenched separation of powers doctrine, will be examined as a counterpoint. Other relevant jurisdictions (such as Canada, Ireland and India) are also examined in the context of particular principles, particularly when their respective jurisprudence is rather more developed on discrete points. The book will examine how the relevant constitutional principles strive to maintain the primacy of the law-making role of the legislature in a representative democracy and yet afford the decisional independence of the judiciary that degree of protection essential to protect it from the legislature's 'impetuous vortex', to borrow the words of Madison from the Federalist (No 48).
JISC Academic Database Assessment Tool
JISC Academic Database Assessment Tool (ADAT) allows you to compare bilbiographic and full text databases. There are four main functions on the site:
- Compare Journal Title Lists
- Compare key features of database platforms
- Compare e-Book platforms
- Compare charts and statistice (dashboards) of each database
So, for example, with respect to number 3, if you compare NetLibrary to ebrary, you will learn that ebrary lets you export citations to Endnote, while NetLibrary will not. However, ebrary allows you to search by LC Subject trees, while Netlibrary does not. There are more than 70 categories that they compare in the e-Book platform section. It is a great service when trying to compare usability of different platforms!
Similarly, their comparison of journal titles in databases quickly provide venn diagrams of overlaps in coverage. For example, of ABI/Informs 3,984 titles, 1,796 also appear in Business Source Premier (which has a total of 12,978) titles. If you are using an ERM, chances are that your ERM can do this for you as well. For those of you not using an ERM, this is an very handy collection development aid that mimics some pricey proprietary software.
The site also informs you when the title list for each database was last updated, and lets you set up alerts for when those updates take place. Contributers are a little sparse but the big names of Proquest and Thomson Reuters are both there, along with others. It would be nice to see this grow - wouldn't it be fun to compare Lexis to Westlaw?
Source: Law Librarian Blog
Current Legal Topics from the Law Library of Congress: Habeas Corpus Rights in Thirteen Countries
Under the concept of habeas corpus as developed in Anglo-American jurisprudence, persons who are deprived of their liberty have the right to challenge through judicial inquiry the legality of their arrest or detention.
The right to challenge one's arrest or detention is now incorporated in international human rights standards. This right may be exercised through the extraordinary process of habeas corpus in the countries which belong to the Common Law system, or through the normal procedural process, including appeals and motions for retrial in the civil law countries.
This report from the Law Library of Congress analyzes the right available to persons in Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Kingdom, and Yemen to challenge the legality of their arrest or detention.
Read the report at: http://www.loc.gov/law/help/habeas-corpus/index.php
In a program that U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder pegged as a potential model for the country, Pennsylvania has launched Get Help Now Pennsylvania, where consumers can take advantage of volunteer legal, financial, banking, and mortgage professionals at free "help desks."
Read the press release from the Pennsylvania Governor's Office.
Read a news article about the program.
Mark A. Pollack and Gregory C. Shaffer. When cooperation fails : the international law and politics of genetically modified foods.
Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2009. Call number: K3927 .P65 2009
Publisher's description:
The transatlantic dispute over genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has brought into conflict the United States and the European Union, two long-time allies and economically interdependent democracies with a long record of successful cooperation. Yet the dispute - pitting a largely acceptant US against an EU deeply suspicious of GMOs - has developed into one of the most bitter and intractable transatlantic and global conflicts, resisting efforts at negotiated resolution and resulting in a bitterly contested legal battle before the World Trade Organization.
Professors Pollack and Shaffer investigate the obstacles to reconciling regulatory differences among nations through international cooperation, through the lens of the GMO dispute. The book addresses the dynamic interactions of domestic law and politics, transnational networks, international regimes, and global markets, through a theoretically grounded and empirically comprehensive analysis of the governance of GM foods and crops. They demonstrate that the deeply politicized, entrenched and path-dependent nature of the regulation of GMOs in the US and the EU has fundamentally shaped negotiations and decision-making at the international level, limiting the prospects for deliberation and providing incentives for both sides to engage in hard bargaining and to "shop" for favorable international forums. They then assess the impacts, and the limits, of international pressures on domestic US and European law, politics and business practice, which have remained strikingly resistant to change.
International cooperation in areas like GMO regulation, the authors conclude, must overcome multiple obstacles, legal and political, domestic and international. Any effective response to this persistent dispute, they argue, must recognize both the obstacles to successful cooperation, and the options that remain for each side when cooperation fails.
Johnnisha Williams has been working in the Law Library and Law Clinics office since the middle of June. Here are her thoughts on her work:
LexLibris: You've been working at the law school for a few weeks now. How do you like the work? Is it what you expected?
Johnnisha Williams: The law school is everything I expected and more. I like working here. It's a very good place for me to learn and experience what I'll be doing if I choose law as a career, and/or where to go for the things I'll need in college.
LL: What kinds of duties do you perform in the law clinics? In the law library?
JW: In the law clinics, I've learned their filing system, copying, making hard copy files, helping with labeling and organizing, things an assistant would help with so there I am like everyone's helper, which is a great experience. In the library, I've learned to shelve and shelfread, file and clean books, which helps me better understand where things are and how the library is organized.
LL: What do you think you are learning about legal education or legal information/research?
JW: I've learned so far where everything is, and who to go to if I would ever need legal advice or things like that. In the clinics, I learned that if I really become a lawyer, it would be very hard work and a lot of reading so they're helping me get a better understanding of what I want to become for the rest of my life.
LL: What interests you about a legal career?
JW: Everything! I love to help people to fight for what they believe in. Also, I love just to help people in need. I see a lot of things happening to people and nobody can help or they don't know who to go to. I want to be that person who can help.
LL: Anything else you'd like to share at this point in your job? We'll check back in toward the end of the summer.
JW: This placement was everything I was hoping for. I love it here. It teaches me a lot and I would love to come back anytime.
Cherlin, Andrew J. The marriage-go-round : the state of marriage and the family in America today.
New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. Call number: HQ535 .C416 2009
Publisher's Description:
During Andrew J. Cherlin's three decades of study and analysis of family life, he came to see that marriage in the United States was different than in other Western countries--Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand--in a way that no one was writing about. He realized that marriage in America, unlike in other countries in the world, was seen as a cultural ideal, and the U.S. government was spending money to promote its continuation. The institution of marriage had become a social and political battlefield.
Cherlin writes that Americans marry more repeatedly and have more live-in partners; that marriage and remarriage, frequent divorce, and short-term cohabiting relationships have resulted in a core upheaval in American family life; and that American children have been left to cope with the frequent and disruptive comings and goings of parents.
He writes that Americans have come to embrace two contradictory models of personal and family life: marriage, a formal commitment to share one's life with another; and individualism, which emphasizes personal growth and development. The former promotes a lasting relationship; the latter encourages one to move on. Each model is culturally reinforced by two basic, powerful institutions: religion and law.
Cherlin writes about the inconsistency of American religion and law with regard to family life. He argues that contemporary religion, although supportive of marriage, embraces the quest for self-development. And he makes clear that family law, which used to be centered on marriage, is today focused on the individual and his or her obligations to children.
He discusses the movement and civil struggle for same-sex marriage in America as opposed to in many European countries, where marriage is seen by gay couples as an oppressive heterosexual institution.
A fascinating book that illuminates the shifting nature of America's oldest and most cherished social institution, the subject of intense and ever-increasing national debate.
Shelley Day Sclater, et al., eds. Regulating autonomy : sex, reproduction and family.
London ; Portland, Or. : Hart, 2009. Call number: B808.67 .R44x 2009
Publisher's Description:
These essays explore the nature and limits of individual autonomy in law, policy and the work of regulatory agencies. Authors ask searching questions about the nature and scope of the regulation of 'private' lives, from intimacies, personal relationships and domestic lives to reproduction. They question the extent to which the law does, or should, protect individual autonomy. Recent rapid advances in the development of new technologies - particularly those concerned with human genetics and assisted reproduction - have generated new questions (practical, social, legal and ethical) about how far the state should intervene in individual decision making. Is there an inevitable tension between individual liberty and the common good? How might a workable balance between the public and the private be struck? How, indeed, should we think about 'autonomy'?
The essays explore the arguments used to create and maintain the boundaries of autonomy - for example, the protection of the vulnerable, public goods of various kinds, and the maintenance of tradition and respect for cultural practices. Contributors address how those boundaries should be drawn and interventions justified. How are contemporary ethical debates about autonomy constructed, and what principles do they embody? What happens when those principles become manifest in law?
Mayor Coleman appoints Kit Hadley as City's New Library Director
Hadley replaces Melanie Huggins at SPPL
SAINT PAUL - Mayor Chris Coleman named Katherine "Kit" Hadley as director of Saint Paul Public Library.
Hadley, who will be replacing Melanie Huggins, is the former director of the Minneapolis Public Library and most recently has been the executive director of Heading Home Minnesota, a statewide initiative to end homelessness and an umbrella organization for 12 state, regional, and county/city initiatives.
"Kit brings a wealth of experience in library management, capital fundraising, and community leadership to this important position," Mayor Coleman said. "As a Saint Paul resident, she understands the needs and vision for our families and communities and the significant roles our libraries play in the city - from education to workforce development. She is no stranger to the economic climate and state cuts that are challenging our libraries. Kit's talents and experience will help us overcome those challenges."
Hadley directed the Minneapolis Public Library from 2003 to 2007, taking over a system when the state enacted cuts to local government aid (LGA) that significantly impacted the library system. In response to the cuts, she worked with the Library Board to create a strategic plan to guide budget discussions, helped strengthen a capital campaign, and worked with a business advisory group to evaluate options for continued construction of the new Central Library.
"The Saint Paul Public Library is so fortunate to have Kit Hadley for its next leader," said Peter Pearson, president of the Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library. "As the director of the Minneapolis Public Library, Kit stepped into a very difficult fiscal situation. Not only did she craft a brilliant plan for the Minneapolis Public Library, but she had the universal respect of everyone with whom she worked in making some very painful decisions. Her fiscal skills, her interpersonal skills and her visionary leadership are exactly what the Saint Paul Public Library needs at this time. The Friends looks forward to developing a strong and effective partnership with Kit."
Before directing the Minneapolis Public Library, Hadley was commissioner of the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, a position to which she was appointed by two different governors. At MHFA, she also served as deputy commissioner and director of government affairs. She began her career as a staff attorney, first with Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services and then with the Legal Services Advocacy Project. She earned her law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School and has a bachelor of arts in urban studies from Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass.
"Kit will be a great asset for the library," said Councilmember Pat Harris, chair of the board of directors for the library agency. "She has the tools Saint Paul needs to provide a top quality library system for our community."
"The Saint Paul Public Library plays such a vital role in the lives of our children and families. I am excited to join the staff in the library and return to an institution whose mission and purpose I believe in so strongly," Hadley said. "Our libraries face significant challenges, but Mayor Coleman's strong commitment and vision for the Saint Paul Public Library will allow us to overcome those challenges and continue creating a strong system befitting of the most livable city in America."
Hadley will start her duties August 3.
Here is the list of new titles the Law Library acquired in June 2009. The list is on the Library's home page.
In addition, here are a couple highlighted titles of particular interest:
Documents of Native American political development : 1500s to 1933 / [edited by] David E. Wilkins.
Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2009. Call number: E98.T77 D63 2009
Publisher's Description:
The arrival of European and Euro-American colonizers in the Americas brought not only physical attacks against Native American tribes, but also further attacks against the sovereignty of these Indian nations. Though the violent tales of the Trail of Tears, Black Hawk's War, and the Battle of Little Big Horn are taught far and wide, the political structure and development of Native American tribes, and the effect of American domination on Native American sovereignty, have been greatly neglected.
This book contains a variety of primary source and other documents--traditional accounts, tribal constitutions, legal codes, business councils, rules and regulations, BIA agents reports, congressional discourse, intertribal compacts--written both by Natives from many different nations and some non-Natives, that reflect how indigenous peoples continued to exercise a significant measure of self-determination long after it was presumed to have been lost, surrendered, or vanquished. The documents are arranged chronologically, and Wilkins provides brief, introductory essays to each document, placing them within the proper context. Each introduction is followed by a brief list of suggestions for further reading.
Covering a fascinating and relatively unknown period in Native American history, from the earliest examples of indigenous political writings to the formal constitutions crafted just before the American intervention of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, this anthology will be an invaluable resource for scholars and students of the political development of indigenous peoples the world over.
Taussig, Anthony. Blackstone and his contemporaries.
Tex. : Jamail Center for Legal Research, University of Texas at Austin, 2009. Call number: KD621.B54 T39x 2009
Publisher's Description:
As part of its Legal History Series, the Tarlton Law Library at The University of Texas School of Law has recently published Blackstone and His Contemporaries. The publication is based on the fourth annual rare book lecture presented by Anthony Taussig in February 2008. Taussig, a London barrister, has collected an outstanding collection of manuscripts and early printed books on English law. In his lecture, Taussig questioned traditional views about Sir William Blackstone, the English law professor and jurist who is best known for his Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765-69). This historical and analytic treatise on the common law significantly influenced the development of the American legal system.
The lecture and the publication were based largely on manuscript materials recently made available, including letters by and about Blackstone in Taussig's own collection, and in the libraries of Lambeth Palace, London, and All Souls College, Oxford. A number of these manuscript resources are reproduced in facsimile or transcribed in the published volume. In the light of those materials, Taussig reviewed Blackstone's work as a barrister and his transition from legal practice in London to a professorship of law at Oxford and then back again to the London Bar. In particular, Taussig scrutinized Blackstone's handling of his most important case--the litigation over the preferential treatment granted to the kin of the Founder (Archbishop Chichele) at All Souls College, Oxford--to evaluate Blackstone's legal skills.
More info: http://www.utexas.edu/law/news/2009/052709_taussig.html
The Law Library is closed on Friday July 3.
Law students and others with after-hours UCard access will still be able to access the library and building.
Fast Facts: Fourth of July 2009
Facts and stats relating to the holiday.
Including:
+ 2.5 million
In July 1776, the estimated number of people living in the newly independent nation.
+ Please Pass the Potato Salad
Potato salad and potato chips are popular food items at Fourth of July barbecues. More than half (52 percent) of the nation's spuds were produced in Idaho or Washington state in 2007.
+ $17.3 million
The value of U.S. manufacturers' shipments of fireworks in 2002.
+ $4.7 million
In 2007, the dollar value of U.S. imports of American flags. The vast majority of this amount ($4.3 million) was for U.S. flags made in China.
...and many more
Source: U.S. Census via ResourceShelf
