While we are about to finish 2024, the Law Library of Congress is already planning for the future and is excited to offer more educational webinars in the new year. We hope you will join us in January for the next offerings of our Orientation to Legal Research webinar which will focus on U.S. federal statutes, A Lunch and Learn webinar which will focus on locating congressionally mandated reports, and an Orientation to Law Library Collections webinar which will feature the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library as part of our 50 State Law Libraries Outreach Project. The purpose of the 50 State Law Libraries Outreach Project is to strengthen the ties between the Law Library of Congress and state law libraries by sharing information about our collections, products, and services with one another and with the public. Presenting from the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library will be Jessica Lundgren, state law librarian; and Alex Burnett, deputy director. The Maine State Law Library presenters note that
The Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library strives to provide access to high quality legal and legislative information to Maine residents and their governmental entities. Established by law in 1971, the Law Library is charged with providing comprehensive reference services to all members of the Legislature and law library services for the use of all state government agencies, the judiciary, the bar, and the citizens of Maine. The Law Library is both a nonpartisan office of the Maine State Legislature and Maine’s official state law library. One of the Law Library’s most frequently requested and specialized services is conducting Maine legislative history research. Legislative patrons also rely on the Law Library for answering questions of institutional history, such as precedent for legislative procedures, practices, and events and service records of Maine legislators going back to 1820. The Law Library is also a full-fledged public law library that provides access to all sources of Maine and federal law. Its collection of secondary sources includes legal treatises, practice guides, legal encyclopedias, case digests, and books for nonlawyers. To provide as much access to legal information as possible to the citizens of our large state, the Law Library receives and replies to reference requests in person, over the phone, through email, and by post.
We hope you will join us by registering for these upcoming webinars in January!
An Orientation to Legal Research Webinar: U.S. Federal Statutes
Date: Thursday, January 16, 2025, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST
Content: This entry in the series provides an overview of U.S. statutory and legislative research, including information about how to find and use the U.S. Code, the U.S. Statutes at Large, and U.S. federal bills and resolutions.
Instructors: Barbara Bavis. Barbara is the bibliographic and research instruction librarian at the Law Library. She holds a B.A. in history from Duke University, a J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law, and a Master of Science in library and information science specializing in law librarianship from Catholic University.
Register here.
An Orientation to Law Library Collections Webinar Featuring the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library
Date: Thursday, January 23, 2025, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST
Content: This webinar is designed for patrons who are familiar with legal research, and would instead prefer an introduction to the collections and services specific to the Law Library of Congress. Some of the resources attendees will learn about include the Law Library’s research guides, digital collections, and the Guide to Law Online, among others.
Instructor: Anna Price. Anna is a legal reference librarian at the Law Library. Anna holds a B.S. in communications from Ithaca College, a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law, and an M.L.I.S. from the University of Washington iSchool.
Register here.
A Lunch and Learn Webinar: Locating Congressionally Mandated Reports
Date: Tuesday, January 28, 2025, 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. EST
Content: This webinar will provide an overview of congressionally mandated reports, including methods for locating these materials through archival, print, and online resources. Federal agencies are required by law to submit thousands of reports to the U.S. Congress and congressional committees each year, and historically these communications have been difficult to find. Participants in this webinar will learn how to use finding aids to track reports that were submitted to Congress and be provided with examples and demonstrations showing the steps for locating these reports.
Instructor: Anna Price. Anna is a legal reference librarian at the Law Library. Anna holds a B.S. in communications from Ithaca College, a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law, and an M.L.I.S. from the University of Washington iSchool.
Register here.
