I applaud you for trying to be helpful and fulfill the City Attorney's
request but this is not a good idea for you (it's beyond your training and
knowledge) and it is not a good idea for the institution, i.e., the law library,
(much of the work will probably have to be redone, even with your best efforts
to do "right," because you don't understand a large body of library science
principles yet). An appropriate analogy would be a legal secretary drafting a
complaint. Should be simple since there are plenty of forms books out there,
right?!? Wrong!!!! It needs to be be done by a professional.
The *best* thing you can do, in my opinion, is for you to obtain a copy of
the AALL Resource Guide, "How to Hire a State, Court or County Law Librarian"
which is available from AALL for $10 (can call 312-939-4764 to order). This
guide will outline the tasks that a professional law librarian performs and why
it is beneficial for a governmental entity to make an investment in hiring a
professional law librarian. 1000 titles in a growing collection is not an
insignificant amount to organize from scratch! The guide will also open the
City Attorney's eyes to tasks that the law librarian can perform, e.g. organize
legal memoranda, training in online resources, etc., once the initial set-up
project is completed.
From your posting, you manifest some wonderful "librarian" qualities and I
hope you will consider getting the necessary courses and joining us!.
Long-distance library science classes are available.
Nanna Frye
Court of Appeal
San Diego, CA
____________________Reply Separator____________________
Subject: advice for a small law library
Author: Joy Murphy <joymurphy@sbcglobal.net>
Date: 4/24/03 2:12 PM
I am a Library Assistant trying to manage a small Law Library (about 1000 books)
for the City of Berkeley. Previously, I had only been updating the State and
Federal law books with monthly supplements and other updates and also updating
local and/or specialized law materials. This library is uncatalogued-it's my
own primitive system. Now, the City Attorney has asked that the books be
catalogued and the collection accessible from a computer (only for the purpose
of knowing what we have, the cost of each material and where everything is
located). I am desperate for any advice on how to go about pricing software for
this new system and other specifics I would need to know. Any advice would be
greatly appreciated.Thank youJoy Murphy
<DIV>I am a Library Assistant trying to manage a small Law Library (about 1000
books) for the City of Berkeley. Previously, I had only been updating the
State and Federal law books with monthly supplements and other updates and also
updating local and/or specialized law materials. This library is
uncatalogued-it's my own primitive system. Now, the City Attorney has
asked that the books be catalogued and the collection accessible from a computer
(only for the purpose of knowing what we have, the cost of each material and
where everything is located). I am desperate for any advice on how to go
about pricing software for this new system and other specifics I would
need to know. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.</DIV>
<DIV>Thank you</DIV>
<DIV>Joy Murphy</DIV>
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