SLA Roundtable on Reopening Concerns

The international information professional association Special Libraries Association (SLA) recently organized a virtual roundtable What Will Reopening Look Like? Planning, Procedures, and Solutions for Reopening Libraries.

Professionals from government, law, manufacturing, construction, academia, and a variety of other work environments took part.

There was also a chat discussion:

"Chat comments included the following:

• Library management has created shared documents for each of us to contribute our concerns we have about reopening—everything from hours of operation to what should we do if someone asks to borrow a pen.
• We’re discussing letting visitors handle materials but going to set those materials aside for 3 days, which means we’re going to need to limit how much we can pull off the shelves for them.
• Is anyone else considering moving to closed stacks? We are strongly leaning to doing that.
• We have a new cohort of researchers arriving in September, and I’m thinking of at least starting off with 'curbside' pickup and then slowly allowing browsing (by appointment?).
• I like the idea of delivery but may pose increased risk to exposure while delivering items to patrons in the building."

Draft Text of International Cataloguing Code of Ethics

The Cataloging Ethics Steering Committee, established by the cataloguing communities in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States, recently released a draft Cataloguing Code of Ethics for comment. The document is open for comments until August 1, 2020:

The draft code states:

"We recognize that metadata creation is not a neutral act, and endorse critical cataloguing as an approach to our shared work."

"We also accept that every workplace is different, and responses to ethical situations are necessarily framed by that context."

"The subsequent 10 principles are intended to inform our professional practice and provide ethical guidance when situations arise. The principles are based upon fundamental values in cataloguing work: preservation and access; recognizing our fallibility; acknowledging bias; accessibility, transparency, and responsibility; collaboration, education, training, and advocacy; user needs and inclusivity."

"We will keep the following principles in mind as a cataloguing community. In the process, we acknowledge systemic barriers to inclusiveness and recognize that while individual ethical practices are essential, they are not sufficient."

"Following the principles are case studies that illustrate how colleagues have negotiated ethical issues and demonstrate their potential application." 

University of Melbourne Global Bibliography of COVID-19 Legal Literature

The University of Melbourne Law School in Australia has created a regularly updated bibliography of COVID-19 legal literature from around the world.

"The literature in Part A primarily includes scholarship and professional literature and is divided into broad topics, beginning with general literature followed by specific topics. We have only included each article under one topic heading, even if it is appropriate to be listed in two or more topics. A note on the jurisdiction is included if this is not immediately obvious from the title. We have only included literature written in English."

"Part B lists selected organisations with dedicated COVID-19 legal publications pages."

"Part C lists blogs or other online fora (...)"

"This bibliography was compiled by the Melbourne Law School Academic Research Service, using the following journal article databases: Index to Legal Periodicals (EBSCO), AGIS (INFORMIT), Westlaw UK Journals, Westlaw Canada Journals, HEIN, SSRN and Google Scholar. Few scholarly journals have yet published COVID-19 articles - although many journals have ‘relaxed’ the usually stringent peer review process in order to get articles published quickly, the process is still quite lengthy, so most scholarship listed is in its pre-publication form on eg: SSRN. Many of the SSRN articles have been uploaded independently by SSRN scholars, rather than as part of, for example, a research paper series."

Five Questions with Alan Kilpatrick, Law Society of Saskatchewan

The Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) has been running a series of member profiles called Five Questions With...

The most recent interview is with Alan Kilpatrick, Reference Librarian, Law Society of Saskatchewan:

What are three skills/attributes you think legal information professionals need to have?

Act Boldly: Boldly market yourself and boldly reimagine what a library can be. 

Embrace Change: Embrace change in the legal information field.    

Learn Continuously:  Commit yourself to lifelong learning.  Integrate what you learn into your professional practice.  

REALM Project: COVID Virus Undetectable on Five Highly Circulated Library Materials After Three Days

Research conducted as part of the  REopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums (REALM) Project shows that the virus SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19 is not detectable on five common library materials after three days:

"Over the past few weeks, scientists at Battelle tested the virus on a variety of surfaces, in environments with standard temperature and relative humidity conditions typically found in air-conditioned office space. Materials tested in phase one included the cover of hardcover books (buckram cloth), the cover of softback books, plain paper pages inside a closed book, mylar protective book cover jackets, and plastic DVD cases. Battelle tests found the virus undetectable after one day on the covers of hardback and softback books as well as the DVD case. The virus was undetectable on the paper inside of a book and mylar book jackets after three days."

REALM is a collaboration between OCLC, an international library services cooperative, the US government agency Institute of Museum and Library Services, and Battelle, an R&D organization.

Statistics Canada Report on Trafficking in Persons

Statistics Canada has published a article on Trafficking in persons in Canada, 2018.

Human trafficking involves recruiting, transporting, transferring, holding, concealing, or exercising control over a person, for the purposes of exploitation. It is done without the consent of the individuals, and often involves forced labour or sexual exploitation. Human trafficking is different from human smuggling, which involves the illegal migration of individuals, for profit and with the individuals' consent, across international borders.

Both the Criminal Code and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act have specific sections which address human trafficking.

Among the highlights of the article:

• Police services in Canada have reported 1,708 incidents of human trafficking since 2009.
• The vast majority of victims of police-reported human trafficking were women and girls (97%).
• About half (45%) of all victims of police-reported human trafficking were between the ages of 18 and 24. Nearly three in ten victims (28%) were under the age of 18, and the remainder (26%) were 25 years of age or older.
• In about half (47%) of incidents, an accused person was not identified in connection with the incident.
• Four in five (81%) persons accused of human trafficking since 2009 have been men.
• Just over half (51%) of all accused persons were 25 years of age or older, and a further 43% were between the ages of 18 and 24. The remainder (6%) were youth, between the ages of 12 and 17.
• Just over four in ten (44%) incidents of human trafficking involved other offences, most commonly related to sexual services, physical assault, or sexual assault or other sexual offences.
• Between 2008/2009 and 2017/2018, there were 582 completed cases in adult criminal courts that involved at least one charge of human trafficking.

Webinar Tomorrow About Digital Lending in Canada During COVID-19

The Canadian Association of Research Libraries, the Council of Atlantic University Libraries and the Canadian Federation of Library Associations are presenting a panel discussion on Zoom tomorrow on Emergency Access and the Prospect of Controlled Digital Lending in Canada:

"[the webinar] will explore the concept of controlled digital lending (CDL) as well as the current context of providing limited access to digitized print collections during the COVID-19 pandemic."

The speakers are:

• Chris Freeland, Director of Open Libraries, Internet Archive 
• Amanda Wakaruk, Copyright Librarian, University of Alberta 
• Christina de Castell, Chief Librarian, Vancouver Public Library

US Police Reform Bill Tracking Database

The American National Conference of State Legislatures has launched a Legislative Responses for Policing-State Bill Tracking Database to help people follow the dozens of bills or executive orders addressing law enforcement issues in various US states:

"The National Conference of State Legislatures provides you with up-to-date, real-time information on law enforcement legislation that has been introduced in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The database contains policing bills and executive orders introduced as of May 25, 2020, that are in response to recent events."

"You can search legislation for by state, topic, keyword, year, status or primary sponsor. Policing topics include oversight and data, training, standards and certification, use of force, technology, policing alternatives and collaboration, executive orders and other timely issues."

Statistics Canada Civil Court Survey 2018/2019

Statistics Canada recently published a Civil Court Survey, 2018/2019 that looks at non-criminal disputes in Canadian courts:

"The total number of cases handled by the civil courts in Canada rose 1.1% in 2018/2019—from 914,194 cases to 924,316 cases—mainly because of heavier caseloads in Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut."

"... Distinct from criminal cases, civil cases are typically private disputes between people or organizations."

"The civil court caseload is divided into two categories: family cases—which generally deal with divorce and separation, parenting arrangements, support, child protection and various other non-criminal family matters—and non-family cases, such as contract disputes, lawsuits for damages, employment actions, probate proceedings and other claims involving money."

Upcoming Theme Issue of Voices - On Hold: LIS People and Places During a Pandemic

The website Librarianship.ca invites articles for an upcoming theme issue of the journal Voices to be titled On Hold: LIS People and Places During a Pandemic:

"COVID-19 has changed the way we live, work and enjoy our time; for some it has even changed the way we think of the world. The pandemic has pulled us apart and brought us together in ways we couldn’t have predicted. As we navigate the 'new normal' and the 'next normal' of living and working through a pandemic, stories of inspiration, sorrow, perseverance, and togetherness are being found, created, and shared."

"As the library and information world continues to shift and transform, we want to hear from you: how your work was impacted, your community and the community you serve affected, and what day to day life looks like for you with life on hold."

The submission deadline is August 4, 2020. Publication date is September 2020.

Upcoming Webinar on National Overlap Study on Government Publications

The Canadian Association of Research Libraries and Library and Archives Canada are hosting a webinar on June 25, 2020 on the National Overlap Study on Government Publications:

"The Canadian Collective Print Strategies Working Group (CCPSWG), co-chaired by the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL) and Library and Archives Canada (LAC), was created in 2018 in response to interest expressed during the November 2017 @Risk North open forum for national coordinated shared print collections. One of this working group’s primary activities has been to undertake, along with 26 participating libraries from across Canada, a National Overlap Study on Government Publications."

"This webinar will discuss the overlap study project and its outcomes, as well as findings and recommendations of the working group regarding future national shared print activities."

The organizers of the @Risk North forum published a summary report a little over 2 years ago:

"As libraries witness increasing demand for online resources and dwindling circulation of print holdings, while simultaneously confronting budget and space pressures, it can be challenging to remain committed to sustaining academic libraries’ print collections. Cooperative approaches to acquiring, storing, preserving, and managing the reduction of print collections are gaining traction, employing a variety of models that seek to distribute the expense and responsibility while creating value for all parties."

Privacy Issues to Consider as Workplaces Reopen

Justin Ling recently published an article in CBA National on Getting Back to Work: Sorting through the many privacy issues as businesses get their workplaces ready.

In it, Éloise Gratton, national co-leader on privacy and data protection at BLG, and David Fraser, partner at McInnes Cooper in Halifax, explain the minefield that employers will be facing as workplaces gradually reopen.  A minefield "where employment, labour, health, and privacy law all meet".

Some of the issues employers will be juggling:

• How much health-related information can employers ask from their staff?
• What kinds of technologies can they employ to keep people safe? Contact tracing keycards? Location tracking?
• Where does the data get kept? For how long? When does it get destroyed?
• Can much screening can employers impose or recommend? Body temperature checks? Swabs? Serological tests (i.e. blood work)?
• Can people be told to return to work? What if they are immuno-compromised?
• If an office does not reopen, does that change the conditions of employment under the employment contract?

The article concludes:

"Labour and privacy lawyers will no doubt have their hands full. Fortunately, Gratton notes, the federal Privacy Commissioner is offering consultations with lawyers and businesses who need guidance on this new normal."

Recordings from International Symposium on Reopening Of Research Libraries

Recordings from a recent international symposium on the reopening of research libraries are available. The event was organized by the International Alliance of Research Library Associations (IARLA) and took place last week:

"IARLA convened an international symposium on 3 June 2020, which explored the plans that research libraries are putting in place to reopen their physical library buildings and reinstate their onsite services in the post-, or continuing-, Covid-19 landscape. The symposium included presentations from speakers in the United States, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Australia, who shared the plans and preparations that they are putting in place for the reopening of their libraries, how these relate to their wider institutional context, and how they correspond with their national and regional experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic."

One of the speakers was Vivian Lewis, University Librarian, McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.

Library of Parliament Article on LGBTQ2* Refugees in Canada

HillNotes, a publication of the Library of Parliament in Ottawa, has published an article on LGBTQ2* Refugees in Canada:

"This publication summarizes human rights issues facing LGBTI people globally, and factors that lead these individuals to seek refugee protection in other countries. It discusses Canada’s role in welcoming LGBTQ2 refugees, including the federal government-supported Rainbow Refugee Assistance Partnership and the arrival of Chechen LGBTQ2 refugees in 2017. The note concludes by describing specific settlement services available to LGBTQ2 refugees in Canada."

2019 Washington and Lee University Law Journal Rankings

The Washington and Lee School of Law in Lexington, Virginia recently published its 2019 Law Journal Rankings:

"Released on June 1, 2020, the 2019 Rankings provide citation data and calculated ranks for the top 400 U.S.-published law journals and the top 100 law journals published outside the United States. Journals ranked below these thresholds display “NR” (Not Ranked) for each data category and are listed alphabetically. The survey span of the 2019 ranking is five years (2015-2019)."

To see how the rankings were established, the school has published its methodology.

Book on LGBTQ2+ Law Wins 2020 Hugh Lawford Award for Excellence in Legal Publishing

The Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) has announced that the book LGBTQ2+ Law: Practice Issues and Analysis from Emond Publishing has won the 2020 Hugh Lawford Award for Excellence in Legal Publishing.

The award is for a publisher that has demonstrated excellence by publishing a work, series, website or e-product that makes a significant contribution to legal research and scholarship.

In her comments published today on the Slaw.ca website, CALL President Shaunna Mireau writes:

"Members of the LGBTQ2+ community face unique hurdles, especially in areas of family, immigration, estates, and criminal law. LGBTQ2+ Law: Practice Issues and Analysis takes a practical approach to identifying and analyzing key LGBTQ2+ issues that arise in these various legal contexts. The first text of its kind, it draws on the expertise and experience of a diverse author team to provide practitioners with a deep understanding of how their clients’ identities affect their interactions with the Canadian legal landscape. The book also contains more than 20 personal stories describing the challenges faced and successes celebrated by the LGBTQ2+ community. It is available in print and electronic format."

The award honours the memory Hugh Lawford (1933-2009), Professor of Law at Queens’ University and the founder of Quicklaw.

Library of Parliament Article on COVID-19 and the Federal Correctional System

HillNotes, a publication of the Library of Parliament in Ottawa, has published an article on COVID-19 and the Federal Correctional System:

"Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal penitentiaries across the country have reported infections, with institutions experiencing outbreaks in Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia. Both federally sentenced persons and guards have been infected. Because correctional facilities and their populations are part of the larger community, a disease outbreak within penitentiaries is also a health risk to society."

"Approximately 14,000 federally sentenced persons are in federal correctional facilities. They generally live in close quarters, with little separation between cells. Practising physical distancing is either not feasible or could require imposing measures (e.g. prolonged solitary confinement and lockdowns) that have been shown to cause significant physiological and psychological harm."

"The federally sentenced population is particularly vulnerable due to aging and higher rates of chronic illness. Many federally sentenced persons have struggled with high-risk behaviours associated with chronic health conditions such as Hepatitis C Virus and Human Immunodeficiency Virus. In addition, Indigenous Peoples are overrepresented in federal corrections (30% of federally sentenced persons compared to 5% of Canada’s overall population), and have higher rates of infectious disease and chronic health issues."

The article looks at the obligations to provide health services in correctional institutions, reports by the federal prisons ombudsman, the debate over early release of inmates during the pandemic, and current court challenges against the Canadian government's handling of the situation

Statements from the Canadian Library World On Racism, Injustice, and Violence

The website Librarianship.ca has put together a list of statements made by the Canadian library, archives, and museum community on racism, injustice, and violence.

The statements and commitments come from local, regional and national groups.

There is also a list of statements from US and international library organizations.

Visible Minority Librarians of Canada Network Statement on Anti-Black Racism

In the wake of the recent murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers, the Visible Minority Librarians of Canada Network has published a Statement of Solidarity to condemn violence and racism against Black people and People of Colour:

"We call on library and information services leaders, staff, and advocates of all races and backgrounds to acknowledge what is happening in their societies, to have open dialogues with their staff and institutional leaders, and to design and implement policies on equity, diversity and inclusion. We call on everyone to fight hatred and racism against Black people, against Indigenous peoples, and against all People of Colour and to continue to enforce that racism has no place in our institutions, our policies, our practices, our physical or virtual spaces, or our behaviours."

Library of Parliament Article on Canadian and Global Military Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic

HillNotes, a publication of the Library of Parliament in Ottawa, has published an article on Canadian and Global Military Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic:

"Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments in Canada and other countries have mobilized and deployed their military to assist civilian authorities. Each country has used its military resources differently."

"To date, the military in Canada has responded to local requests for assistance in addressing the pandemic, such as supporting long-term care facilities, deploying the Canadian Rangers in Northern communities and providing logistics support. The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) stands ready to mobilize some 24,000 personnel – including reservists – under Operation LASER."

"This HillNote outlines the basis for the Canadian military’s assistance to civilian authorities in emergency situations. It then provides an overview of ways in which Canada’s military, and those in allied and like-minded countries, are assisting those authorities in dealing with the pandemic."

How to Sanitize Collections in a Pandemic

The magazine American Libraries recently published an article on How to Sanitize Collections in a Pandemic:

Keeping libraries safe is important for both workers and guests. But during the current COVID-19 pandemic, questions about how to do that—particularly when it comes to materials and surfaces—have complicated answers (...)

"Fletcher Durant, director of conservation and preservation at the University of Florida’s George A. Smathers Libraries in Gainesville, suggests that all libraries follow the March 17 ALA [American Library Association] recommendation to close to the public. 'Isolation for a minimum of 24 hours, and preferably 14 days, is the best disinfectant,' he says. 'It is simply the best and safest thing that we as librarians can do at this time.' Durant says it’s about protecting libraries as well as the public. 'Libraries could provide a risk vector for the spread of the disease, which, beyond the direct health impacts, could reduce the public trust in libraries,' he says."

At my place of work, we quarantine any returned materials for 7 days.

Details for Registering for Supreme Court of Canada Zoom Hearings Next Week

The  Supreme Court of Canada has released details about the live videostreaming on Zoom of its hearings next week.

The hearings will be livestreamed on the Court website. However, a limited number of public observer spaces will be available on Zoom for which people will need to register:

"All registration requests must be received before 1PM (EDT) on Friday, June 5, 2020."

"Requests will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis based on availability. Successful registrants will receive a link to the proceedings on the day before the hearing is scheduled to proceed. Public observers will not be able to use the Zoom camera and microphone functions during the hearings."

Statements From Libraries and Library Organizations Re: Racism and Increased Violence

Gary Price who runs the infoDOCKET website is compiling a list of Statements From Libraries and Library Organizations Re: Racism and Increased Violence in the context of the ongoing protests against anti-Black racism and police brutality in the US and other countries.

The list will be updated.

One of the libraries included is the Toronto Public Library.

Its statement, which explains the institution's "Commitment to Ending Structural Racism and Building a More Equitable Society", includes a Black Lives Matter reading list that suggests many Canadian and international materials for people who want to understand more.

Law Library of Congress Report on Virtual Civil Trials

The Law Library of Congress in Washington recently published a comparative law report on Virtual Civil Trials:

"This report by the foreign law research staff of the Law Library of Congress surveys the law of 25 foreign jurisdictions on the availability and functioning of virtual civil hearings and/or trials, including the structure of civil court systems and arrangements made to ensure the continuation of hearings and proceedings during the COVID-19 pandemic."

Canada is one of the countries described.

The Law Library of Congress is the world’s largest law library, with a collection of over 2 and a half million volumes from all ages of history and virtually every jurisdiction in the world.

Over the years, it has published dozens of comparative law reports which are a treasure trove for legal research on a huge variety of issues.

Implementing the Marrakesh Treaty for Persons with Print Disabilities: A Guide for Canadian Librarians

The Canadian Federation of Library Associations (CFLA) has released a Canadian version of  Getting Started with the Marrakesh Treaty – a Guide for Librarians.

The original version was published in 2019 by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA).

From the forward by Canadian library director Victoria Owen:

"The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled presents an unprecedented opportunity for access to printed works for blind and other print-handicapped persons. Libraries play a key role in facilitating access, and this guide was conceived to enable staff in libraries of all types to take the final, practical steps to deliver materials into the hands of print-disabled readers."

"As the former director of library services at Canada’s CNIB Library for the Blind and past chair of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutes (IFLA)’s Copyright and other Legal Matters (CLM) Advisory Committee, I am especially pleased to see that the Marrakesh Treaty enables improved access to printed works and that the beneficiaries include blind and low-vision readers."

"The information in this guide is organized as an FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions), answering questions and providing links for further information. It is meant to be a starting point, a template, available for customization in each Marrakesh Treaty country. It is our hope that, once the guide is customized to each country’s law, it will be posted on the IFLA website."

June 2020 Issue of In Session - E-Newsletter of Canadian Association of Law Libraries

The May 2020 issue of In Session is available online.

It is the monthly e-newsletter of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) and contains news from CALL committees and special interest groups, member updates and events.