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January 2009
 Welcome to a brand new year! This month’s e-newsletter contains news from AALL’s Government Relations Office; important deadlines for awards, grants, and writing competitions; and introduces our new marketing and communications manager, Hillary Baker! Also, look for an opportunity to travel to China for a conference on U.S.-China Legal Information and Law Libraries. Best wishes for a peaceful and fulfilling new year!
In This Issue
AALL Seeks Vendor Liaison
AALL seeks an individual to serve as its liaison for fostering knowledge and information sharing between the law library community and legal information vendors. This individual will also work to develop programs or initiatives for sharing expertise and creating a dialogue about library-vendor issues and to communicate about legal information policy issues from the law librarian perspective.
Learn more about the position and application process.
2008 Grants Awarded from Wolters Kluwer Law & Business Grant Program
The AALL Research and Publications Committee is pleased to announce that two grants have been funded in 2008 by the Wolters Kluwer Law & Business Grant Program:
- Scott Frey, reference librarian at Western State University College of Law Library, has been awarded $1,500 for his project, "A Search Engine for Law-Related Public Domain Electronic Books"
- John Doyle, associate law librarian at Washington and Lee University Law School Library, has been awarded $3,804 for his project, "Law Review Submissions"
The Wolters Kluwer Law & Business Grant Program was first established in 1996 with a generous contribution of $50,000. Wolters Kluwer Law & Business considers its contribution as an investment in research that provides a prospective look at the role of librarians, researchers, and legal information providers and yields results to which publishers can respond. The goal is to sponsor research that has a practical impact on the law library profession and inspires products and changes in the marketplace.
AALL Submits Statement to the Obama-Biden Transition Team on Public Policy Positions
In early December, to fulfill President-elect Barack Obama’s goal of greater public participation and transparency in government, his transition team extended an open invitation to organizations and individuals to meet with the team and submit formal comments. AALL submitted a Statement on our Public Policy Positions for the new administration and Congress on December 23.
The statement reflects AALL’s strong commitment, as articulated in our Government Relations Policy, to the importance of the public’s right to access government information as a basic tenet of our democracy; the need to preserve the historic balance in copyright law between rights of holders and users; and the protection of the privacy of library users and all Americans. Mary Alice Baish, director of AALL’s Government Relations Office, and our Government Relations Committee, Copyright Committee, and Electronic Legal Information Access and Citation Committee all contributed content to the report.
Change is in the air in Washington, and this is a very exciting time for AALL. I invite you to carefully read this important position paper. It will serve as the roadmap for the work of our Government Relations Office and policy committees during the next few years. Included among our specific policy goals are support for the following:
- Adequate annual funding to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts for no-fee public access to PACER
- A public domain citation system for legal information
- The enactment of "Orphan Works" legislation to allow libraries to digitize and make publicly available materials whose copyright owners cannot be found despite extensive and costly searches
- The repeal of the USA PATRIOT Acts Section 215 (the so-called "library" provision), which is due to sunset on December 31, 2009
Make Your Voice Heard: Attend AALL’s Day on the Hill
We really do need your help to make sure we get off to a strong start with the new Congress. Please join the AALL Advocacy Team by attending our Day on the Hill: Legislative Advocacy Leadership Training 2009. This special event will take place right before the AALL Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., on Friday, July 24, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and is offered to all AALL members at no cost. It’s the perfect opportunity for you to learn about AALL’s policy agenda and make your voice heard with members of your congressional delegation. What could be a better way to start off your Annual Meeting than a day on Capitol Hill?
AALL Co-Sponsors China Conference
The China-U.S. Conference on Legal Information and Law Libraries will be held in Beijing, May 27-30. Sponsored by China’s Ministry of Education, AALL, and the International Association of Law Libraries, the conference presents an unprecedented opportunity for American and Chinese law librarians and legal educators to meet together and exchange views and experiences. The conference aims to deepen participants’ knowledge of each country’s legal information system and explore areas for cooperation. Group tours of China are offered post-conference. Find more information and registration details online or contact Dr. Robert Hu.
February Webinar—C-ing is Believing: Next Steps for Library Success
Communication plays an important role in our daily lives. It is key to our success with C-level management (CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, etc.). Log in to C-ing is Believing: Next Steps for Library Success on Tuesday, February 17, from 12-1 p.m. (EST), and learn how a librarian should interact with the C-people to earn their respect and provide a clear understanding of the value the law library brings to their organization. Register online by February 12.
Save the Date: 2009 AALL Leadership Academy October 16-17
 New law librarians in the early stages of their careers can take the lead in the profession by attending the 2009 AALL Leadership Academy, October 16-17. The academy program will teach participants to identify the source and foundations of their unique potential as leaders and prepare them to take on leadership roles in their institutions and in the profession. The program includes a year of mentoring from an AALL leader following the academy. Stay tuned for more details coming soon...
AALL Awards Deadline Approaching: February 1
The AALL Awards Committee recognizes the accomplishments of AALL members and others who excel in assuring access to legal information. The committee will consider candidates for eight awards, including those listed below. Recipients will be recognized at the AALL Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. All nominations must be postmarked before February 1.
Send in a Proposal for a Continuing Education Grant
Do you have an idea for a continuing education program that would benefit fellow AALL members? AALL can help with funding. The third round of the AALL/BNA Continuing Education Grants Program is coming up. Watch for the following deadlines:
- February 21 – Proposals due to AALL Headquarters
- February 25-March 14 – Review of proposals
- March 20 – Announcement of funded grants
- December 28 – Deadline for expenditure of funds
A Day in the Life Photo Contest 2009 Starts February 1
Get ready for your close up. A Day in the Life of the Law Library Community Photo Contest starts on February 1 (less than three weeks away!).
 During the month of February, AALL members are invited to take a wide range of photographs of law librarians working, meeting, teaching, and doing all that law librarians do in a given day. Entries are due by the end of the month, and they will be judged online through membership voting in April. Winners will be recognized on AALLNET, in the July 2009 issue of AALL Spectrum, and during the AALL Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C.
Visit the Day in the Life site for complete contest rules, photography tips, and to view the winning photos from 2005, 2007, and 2008.
Calling All Papers
The AALL/LexisNexis Call for Papers Committee is soliciting articles in three categories for its annual competition:
- Open Division: for active and retired AALL members with five or more years of experience
- New Members Division: for recent graduates and AALL members who have been in the profession for less than five years
- Student Division: for students in library, information management, or law school; participants in this division need not be members of AALL
The winner in each division receives $750, generously donated by LexisNexis, plus the opportunity to present a description of his or her research and writing process at the 2009 AALL Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. Winning papers are also considered for publication in Law Library Journal.
Articles in the Open and New Members Division must be submitted by March 2. Articles in the Student Division must be submitted by April 15. Visit AALLNET for additional information and the application form.
New AALL Annual Meeting/Workshop Grant Category Created
 The AALL Grants Committee announces the creation of a new Annual Meeting/Workshop Grant category. Grants are now awarded in two categories:
- Experienced members (five or more years), who have a proven record of professional accomplishment and service to AALL
- Students/new members (less than five years of professional experience), who hold promise of future involvement in AALL and the law library profession
Previously, only newer members and students were encouraged to apply. The committee felt that many experienced members are also in need of assistance in order to attend AALL Annual Meetings or an extra workshop.
Annual Meeting and Workshop Grants are awarded to cover the Annual Meeting registration fee or the registration fees for workshops presented at the Annual Meeting. Vendors, AALL, and AALL individual members provide the funds for grants. The deadline to apply is April 1.
LHRB-SIS Announces the Morris L. Cohen Student Essay Competition
 The Legal History and Rare Books Special Interest Section, in cooperation with Gale Cengage Learning, announces the first annual Morris L. Cohen Student Essay Competition. Currently enrolled students attending accredited graduate programs in library science, law, history, or related subjects are eligible to enter the competition. Students may be enrolled either full or part time. The winner will receive $500 and up to $1,000 to fund a trip to the 2009 AALL Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. Papers must be submitted by April 15; the winner will be announced by May 15.
New Look for LLJ
 When you receive your copy of Law Library Journal vol. 101, no. 1, next month, you’ll notice that LLJ has a new design for the first time in nearly 20 years. The new look includes changes both inside and out, and the cover now lists feature articles found in the issue. We hope you enjoy LLJ’s new design.
RIPS Launches New Blog
The AALL
Research Instruction and Patron Services Special Interest Section recently launched a new blog, RIPS Law Librarian. Check it out to find recent postings on how hard economic times affect libraries, the top 100 education-related blogs, a new bibliography on legal writing, and more.
Welcome New Members
AALL welcomes the following new members who joined our ranks in the last month:
Judy Andresen
M. K. Balachandran, Amity University
Tracy Braun, University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science
Melia Cossette
Jan Grillet, Wilmerhale LLP
Mary E. Hudson, California State University-Fullerton
Jootaek Lee, University of Miami School of Law Library
Steve Mitchel, Howrey LLP
Joanne Perry
R. K. Sabharwal, Amity University
Mahesh Kumar Sharma, Amity University
Rajpal Sirohi, Amity University
Subscribe to AALL’s Job Hotline
If you’re looking for the next step in your law library career or looking for high-quality candidates to fill open positions in your law library, be sure to visit AALL’s Job Hotline. Online you can:
Welcome AALL’s New Marketing and Communications Manager
 I am pleased to announce that Hillary Baker has joined the AALL Headquarters staff in the new position of marketing and communications manager. Hillary started on January 5 and is already busy managing AALL’s publications, including AALL Spectrum and Law Library Journal, and assisting with the Association’s e-communications and marketing efforts. Hillary comes to AALL from Northeast Iowa Community College, where she served as associate director of marketing and most recently as a grant writer.
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