Westlaw has issued new security requirements – effective this FALL – you will no longer be able to use your West issued password. When you log on using your West issued password, you will be prompted to create a new “ONEPASS” USERNAME and PASSWORD. Requirements for these can be found here.
If you have saved the West issued password on your computer and need assistance, please let us know.
(Steph)
The library will be open the following hours over the 4th of July holiday:
Friday, July 3 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
Saturday, July 4 CLOSED
Sunday, July 5 1:00 pm – 9:00 pm
(Post – KT)
I recommend this article ["Correcting Students' Usage Errors Without Making Errors of Our Own" - http://www.law.ucla.edu/volokh/errors.pdf], in which UCLA professor Eugene Volokh corrects (or debunks) a number of grammatical myths. (PRM)
The entire 2006 edition of the United States Code is now available on GPO Access. (http://www.gpoaccess.gov/uscode/index.html) The 2006 edition contains the laws enacted through the 109th Congress (ending January 3, 2007, the last law of which was signed January 15, 2007).
The United States Code is the codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States. It is divided by broad subjects into 50 titles and published by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the U.S. House of Representatives. Since 1926, the United States Code has been published every six years. In between editions, annual cumulative supplements are published in order to present the most current information.
GPO Access contains the 2006, 2000, and 1994 editions of the U.S. Code, plus annual supplements. Files are available in ASCII Text from the 1994 edition forward and Portable Document Format (PDF) from the 2006 edition forward.
(Post – David)
Keep current with new resources available from Thomas Cooper Library. Many resources that are available at Thomas Cooper are available also at the Law Library and via the proxy server. This means more information is available for research and recreational reading, and its available right at your finger tips. But how do you stay current? Easy add the RSS feed to your RSS reader and you will be in the know. Here is the link http://www.sc.edu/library/news/, it’s a great way to stay current with new collections and electronic resources that have been added. (post-ssr)
I use GPO Access a good bit for accessing federal regulations. In fact, I like various features within the resources provided for each of the three branches. However, because I find its search capabilities less than optimal, I’ve always used GPO Access mainly for browsing and retrieving documents. In January, I read about the plan to migrate all GPO Access databases over to the new Federal Digital System (FDsys). I’m ok with that. I just do not like the name FDsys or the url www.gpo.gov/fdsys/. I think the name GPO Access and its url (www.gpoaccess.gov) are much easier to relate to and remember, thus making it more accessible to the general public. I immediately e-mailed GPO about my concerns and received a prompt, courteous response that they would keep my comments in mind.
I just read an article in the February 2009 issue of Legal Information Alert entitled FDsys: The Future of Managing Government Information by Sonnet Erin Brown, Head of Federal Documents for the University of New Orleans. Ms. Brown, who was a beta tester for FDsys, reports that it is much easier to navigate and that its new search capabilities alone ( SuDoc Number, government branch, category, citation) make it a better site.
Ok, I’ll give it a try. They even have a FDSYS blog with search tips and announcements of databases added. I still do not like the name. (Post-TC)
If you are in need of articles from journals that are not included in familiar legal database services, consider these sources:
JSTOR is an archive of scholarly journal articles from numerous disciplines. It includes legal journals, but should be your first stop for articles beyond the legal profession – such as history, political science, philosophy, anthropology, chemistry, and much more. You can access JSTOR from the Law Library’s “Limited Access” page or from the “Electronic Indexes” link on the library’s homepage. Since one of JSTOR’s functions is to act as an archive, there may be a year or two of hang-time for some journals.
EBSCO is another great resource for non-legal journal articles – from nuclear energy to religion to biotechnology. Access it through the “Electronic Indexes” link on the library’s homepage, and choose “E,” then “EbscoHost Electronic Journals.”
Both these resources offer .pdf documents of original articles and both can be accessed remotely through the proxy server.
Stop by the reference desk if you need assistance with accessing or searching these databases.
(post – Rebekah)
The Infrastructure Investment & Policy Report has recently been added to our BNA subscription. This daily publication reports about federal spending on transportation and other infrastructure projects across the country including oversight and use of stimulus funds.
The Infrastructure Investment & Policy Report is available to all University of South Carolina Law Faculty, Staff & Students – both on and off campus.
Some recent articles include the following:
· Generating 20 Percent of U.S. Electricity With Wind by 2030 Is Possible
· OMB Issues New Reporting Guidelines For Recipients of Recovery Act Funding
· EPA Analysis of Energy, Climate Bill Finds Lower Cost Than Budget Office Study
· Senate Appropriations Panel Approves $800M for Southwest Border Infrastructure
· Senate Bill Would Help Auto Parts Makers, Other Companies in Clean Energy Retooling
USC Law Faculty, Staff & Students may sign-up to receive this daily newsletter here. (Post – Steph)
For those of you who are clerking this summer, a reminder why good law is important, from the Lexis “Introduction to Shepard’s” page.
Following the doctrine of stare decisis, legal researchers cite to cases in support of their arguments to convince the court that the issues or facts presented in their cases should be decided in the same way as earlier cases. Legal researchers also argue that the facts or issues presented in their cases are sufficiently different to warrant different treatment based on precedential facts. This reliance on precedent mandates you verify that the authority you cite in support of your arguments is still good law. In other words, you need to make sure that cases have not been reversed on appeal or overruled by more recent cases, and that statutes have not been repealed or found unconstitutional.
Shepard’s is available on Lexis and Keycite is the case-validating service available on Westlaw. (Post-prm)
If you are searching for a newspaper or information on people, issues and events in the local area or around the country, look at America’s News. It is a new database available to All USC Law School users. This database offers current and archived articles and video clips from news sources nationwide in a fully searchable online database. The database includes 26 South Carolina newspapers, including full-text access to The State newspaper back to December of 1987. It is available at Electronic Indexs on the library website or through Thomas Cooper’s website. The direct link is: http://www.sc.edu/library/er/er_alphabrowse.php?code=A
(Post-del)
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