Interview With Law Library of Congress Global Legal Research Intern Jessica Ho-Wo-Cheong

In Custodia Legis, the blog of the Law Library of Congress in Washington, has been running an interview series featuring members of the staff. The series started in late October 2010.

The most recent interview is with Montreal-born Jessica Ho-Wo-Cheong, Global Legal Research Intern:

"How would you describe your job to other people?
The Law Library of Congress provides legal research and reports to Congress pursuant to their requests, and it often entails some aspect of comparative law.  It also receives requests from other parts of the federal government, and from private patrons.  As an intern with the Global Legal Research Directorate, I conduct research and write reports in response to requests.  Under the supervision of Foreign Law Specialist Nicolas Boring, I cover not only Canadian law but also French civil law jurisdictions including countries such as Mali, Cameroon and Burundi.  Ultimately, I come into work every day ready to take on whatever task needs to be done!"

"Why did you want to work at the Law Library of Congress?
For any young lawyer, the opportunity to be surrounded by such an immense and vast collection is remarkable.  Not only is the collection impressive, but what is equally impressive is having the research information analysts, experts in their own field, able to help refine searches and find materials.  This collection, combined with the possibility of working with lawyers from across the globe, made me want to be a part of this remarkable team."

"I also appreciate the public service aspect of working for government and being able to provide reference answers to citizens.  The ‘Ask a Librarian’ service is open to anyone, anytime, anywhere.  The range of questions we receive is quite astounding.  It is exciting to face a new challenge every day and constantly learn about legal traditions across the globe."

The Law Library of Congress is the world’s largest law library, with a collection of over 2.65 million volumes from all ages of history and virtually every jurisdiction in the world.