Need to fill in some gaps in your research paper? Wondering if there are resources beyond Lexis and Westlaw? Want to see examples and understand the structure of published scholarly works? Need a little help devising a Bluebook strategy? Go to the library’s “Filling in the Gaps in AWR Research” workshop on Wednesday, March 20th from noon-1:00pm in room 1337.

Having trouble staying focused during the research process?  Get lost in the piles of information?  Join us for a workshop on how to clear your mind when researching! “Clear Your Mind for Effective Research” is being offered by the library on Thursday, March 21st from noon-1:00pm in room 1337.

Can't make it this week? The Law Library will be offering workshops on many different topics throughout the semester. Take a look at our library workshops page to view a list of workshop descriptions and a link to the workshop calendar.

Don’t forget the Library now offers legal research instruction tailored for your study group! Any group of 5 or more can order a custom session.  To request a session, complete this form.

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 Researching  a topic and want to know what congress has had to say about it? One of the best resources for congressional research is ProQuest Congressional .  Why would you use ProQuest Congressional instead of Westlaw and Lexis? Here are some examples.

Let’s say you are writing your paper on the Indian Court of Offenses and want to cite to the 1926 primary source hearings on that subject…it’s on ProQuest Congressional but not on WL or Lexis.  In fact, ProQuest Congressional has documents that go back to 1789! Maybe you are researching the recent Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 but want some historical perspective on the topic. ProQuest Congressional has hearings and congressional reports that pre-date the passage of the original Violence Against Women Act of 1990.  ProQuest also includes document types not found on WL or Lexis, like maps!  

ProQuest Congressional can be found in the drop-down menu on the Library’s website under Library Databases. 

It’s easy to see what you are searching when you go to the Advanced Search screen:

Questions? Ask a Librarian!

It is times like this that a magical crystal ball would come in handy to take the mystery out of writing a paper that under the Academic Rules “must include significant legal research, original thinking and analysis, and result in a final paper of a kind and quality similar to that found suitable for publication in law review.”

And last but definitely not least, “[t]he final paper should be at least twenty pages of text, excluding footnotes.”

Sadly, there is not an AWR paper app; however, there are examples of published student articles:

From Bereavement to Banishment: The Deportation of Surviving Alien Spouses under the Widow  Penalty, 77 Geo. Wash. L. Rev. 172 (2008).

Smith And The Religious Freedom Restoration Act: An Iconoclastic Assessment, 78 Va. L. Rev. 1407 (1992). 

Every genre has its own flavor and style, so review a published student article or two.  And, for more of the nuts and bolts of writing a paper of publishable quality consult  Writing A Student Article.  Prof. Volokh provides a mini how to manual on writing a scholarly paper.  

As always, your individual Professor is the best source for how your AWR should look.  For more keys to crafting a first-class AWR attend the Filling in the Gaps in AWR Research Workshop on Wednesday, March 20 at noon in Room 1337.

Sources:

Eugene Volokh, Writing A Student Article, 48 J. Legal Educ. 247, 249 (1998)

2.3.3 Advanced Writing Requirement (AWR). (Phoenix School of Law Student Handbook)

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It's your lucky day! March is here and so are the NEW ARRIVALS!

Check out all the new items that were added to the library's collection in March.  We've purchased new books, ebooks, and DVDs for your reading and viewing pleasure!

Look for the symbol next to ebook titles in our catalog

Have you used the online study aids on Westlaw, provided by your Law Library? From the comfort of your own laptop, access ALL of the study aids published by Thomson Reuters/West. Here's how:

1. Log-in at lawschool.westlaw.com
2. At the top of the screen, click on My e-Products.

   

3. Below the top menu bar, click on West Study Aids Subscription.

   

4. Search for a study aid using the search box provided, or browse by subject to see all study aids available within that subject area.

   

Some helpful tips:

• Feel free to highlight pages, as the highlights will remain after you log off.
• Copy and pasting is allowed, if you need stuff for your personal notes.
• There is a limit to printing the study aids. Only 150 pages per 30 days.
• Printing is only to your attached printer- it does not print to the Westlaw printers.

Any questions, don't hesitate to Ask a Librarian!

Best of luck on your midterms!!