Law Society of Ontario's Great Library Post About Finding US Textbooks

The Law Society of Ontario's Great Library has published a blog post about Treatise Finders (US Legal Research) with useful information on where to find the top US textbooks in different areas of law:

"For Canadian legal practitioners, the need to research American law arises for a variety of reasons: client problems may involve U.S. business or real estate transactions, cross-border litigation, enforcement of judgments, or child custody and access. Researchers may also be looking for persuasive precedents on legal issues which have not been litigated in Canadian courts (...)"

"A quick way to identify relevant American texts is to use a treatise finder. This handy tool, found on the websites of many large U.S. law school libraries, provides you with short lists of recommended texts in all the main areas of law."

Canadian Association of Law Libraries Webinar on Canadian Open Access Legal Citation Guide

The Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) is hosting a webinar on the new Canadian Open Access Legal Citation Guide on January 23, 2025 at  1:00-2:00 EST:

"Canada’s new – and free – legal citation guide, the Canadian Open Access Legal Citation Guide, was recently published in June 2024 and is available on CanLII at 2024 CanLIIDocs 830.  Hear from several of its creators and learn more about the COAL Guide, including why the guide was created, the benefits of the guide, the details of some of its citation rules, and the reasoning behind some of the many decisions that were made in the process of creating these rules."

The speakers are:

• James Bachmann, Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Open Access Legal Citation Guide and the Instruction Librarian at the University of British Columbia
• Ann Marie Melvie, Librarian at the Court of Appeal for Saskatchewan and Managing Editor of the Canadian Open Access Legal Citation Guide
• Michelle Terriss, also Managing Editor of the Guide and Law Librarian at Thompson Rivers University

The webinar is free to all attendees.

Canadian Association of Law Libraries Survey on Legal Research Competencies

A working group of members of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) is compiling a list of legal research competencies that will describe the skills, knowledge and competencies that are required to be excellent legal researchers. 

The idea is that the list will assist Canadian law librarians, legal researchers, legal research teachers, library schools and legal professionals.

The working group has put together a very short survey.

It will be available until Friday December 13, 2024. 

CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute, has just added a new book to its commentary collection, Decoding the court : legal data insights from the Supreme Court of Canada:

"This edited collection combines state-of-the-art legal data analytics with in-depth doctrinal analysis to study the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC), Canada’s top court. A data analytics perspective adds new dimensions to the study of courts and their case law. It renders legal analysis scalable, making it possible to investigate thousands of judicial decisions, adding new breadth and depth. It also enables researchers to combine doctrinal questions about how the law evolves with institutional questions about how courts operate, shedding new light on how law works in practice. By applying a range of methods to study the content of SCC decisions, this work bridges the gap between qualitative and quantitative research. Demonstrating how new analytical perspectives can generate new insights about the Supreme Court, an institution which is closely studied by scholars both within and outside Canada, the book will be essential reading for legal scholars and political scientists, particularly those working in public law and in empirical legal studies."

It is edited by 3 University of Ottawa legal scholars, Wolfgang Alschner, Vanessa MacDonnell and Carissima Mathen.

CanLII is a portal funded by Canada’s provincial and territorial law societies to make legal information content (court judgments, tribunal decisions, statutes and regulations, commentary) available to Canadians free of charge.

In recent years, it has been rapidly expanding its offerings of legal commentary, including law reviews, reports, newsletters, e-books and thousands of case commentaries.

posted by Michel-Adrien at 8:43 pm 0 comments

New Handbook for European Studies Librarians

 University of Minnesota Libraries has published a free Handbook for European Studies Librarians (in e-book or PDF formats).

It has many subsections devoted to specific areas (e.g. "Iberian Studies") and topics (e.g. "Russian Federation: LGBTQIA+ Studies Resources").

Chapter 26 is devoted to European Legal Research:

"Researching the law of any European jurisdiction is often a multi-step process; librarians must first look to the domestic law of the individual jurisdiction, then determine what-if any-impact supranational organizations will have on the analysis. This chapter introduces librarians to the basics of European Union (EU) legal research, and briefly considers the impact of Council of Europe treaties in domestic human rights research. The second half of the chapter provides general guidance on researching the domestic law of a common law or civil law jurisdiction, focusing on how and where to find the law (whether statutes or codes) and cases, generally within the context of the civil versus common law distinction."

Update to CanLII Ebook on Tort Law

CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute, has published an updated version of its free-book Tort Law: Cases and Commentaries.

According to a post on the CanLII blog:

"Originally published on CanLII in September 2021, Tort Law: Cases and Commentaries is an open access casebook designed for use in Canadian common law torts courses."

 "A summary of the changes to this latest version of the casebook are as follows:

• Major content restructure and addition of over 1,000 reflection questions on the readings;
• New chapter on the various torts related to dishonesty and abuse of position;
• Addition of important recent case law from around the common law world, addressing:
• Intentional and dignitary torts (...)
• Negligence (...)
• Private and public nuisance (...)
• Business torts (...)
• Vicarious liability and strict liability (...)
• Defences of lawful authority and illegality (...)
• No-fault compensation systems (...)"

CanLII is a portal funded by Canada’s provincial and territorial law societies to make legal information content (court judgments, tribunal decisions, statutes and regulations, commentary) available to Canadians free of charge.

In recent years, it has been rapidly expanding its offerings of legal commentary, including law reviews, reports, newsletters and thousands of case commentaries.

Open Access Legal Citation Guide Published by CanLII

CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute, has published the free Canadian Open Access Legal Citation Guide:

"The COAL Citation Guide originated with two primary drivers: the belief that we could create a citation guide that will better meet the needs of Canadian legal writers and researchers and the goal of creating a citation guide that will be accessible to everyone, via an open access publishing model (...) "

"This guide will help academics, legal professionals, and others cite legal documents and other sources of information. Please refer to the general rules, information on footnotes and in-text references, and other sections or subsections of this guide, as relevant."

The guide is a collective effort involving many authors, including quite a few law librarians who are members of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries.

Legislative Assembly of Ontario Website Launches New Hansard Search

The Legislative Assembly of Ontario has updated its search tool for legislative debates ("Hansard").

The new search tool comes with a list of useful search tips.

Enhancements to the interface include:       

• a modern, accessible design that is user- and mobile-friendly;
• results appear on the same page as the tool (you no longer need to navigate back to edit search fields);
• a bilingual interface and search tips 

When viewing search results, you can now:

• choose how many results display on the page (20, 50, or 100);
• order search results by date, speaker, or topic;
• filter results by speaker, topic, type of business, and session;
• see an excerpt from Hansard where the search terms appear 

Legal Research Video Tutorials from York University

Osgoode Hall Law School at York University in Toronto has produced a series of video tutorials on how to perform various legal research tasks.

It is always fun to see what tools and methods other law libraries have developed for their library instruction activities.

There are video about finding secondary sources, legislation and case law research, and legal citation.

CanLII Expands AI Summarization Projects

CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute, has been offering case summaries generated through artificial intelligence for some time, starting with decisions from Saskatchewan. 

According to a recent blog post, CanLII will expand AI-created summaries to all Alberta, Manitoba, and Prince Edward Island: 

"In total, these projects will involve the summarization of 4,000 cases and 1,100 statutes and regulations from PEI, 28,000 cases and 3,000 statutes and regulations from Manitoba, and 120,000 cases and 3,000 statutes and regulations from Alberta. Furthermore, as part of a special project extension, the next three years’ worth of new Manitoba primary law documents will also be summarized."

CanLII is a portal funded by Canada’s provincial and territorial law societies to make legal information content (court judgments, tribunal decisions, statutes and regulations, and commentary) available to Canadians free of charge.

 

Citing Generative AI Sources

The January/February 2024 issue of AALL Spectrum, a publication of the American Association of Law Libraries, has published an article on legal citation of AI-generated content by Dominique Garingan, Sessional Instructor, University of Calgary Faculty of Law.

The article starts at p. 33.

It is part of a regular column swap between the publication and Slaw.ca, the online Canadian legal website.

University of Windsor Guide on Artificial Intelligence Regulation

Annette Demers, reference librarian in the law library at the University of Windsor, has created a new LibGuide on Artificial Intelligence Regulation.

It has sections for Canada, the US, Europe as well as a global resources section.

The Canadian section covers government policy statements and guidelines, court practice directions, legislation and bills.

The Global Resources section includes an OECD dashboard, describing itself as "a live repository of over 1000 AI policy initiatives from 69 countries, territories and the EU".

Law Society of Ontario Tip on Coming into Force of Federal Regulations

Know How, the blog of the Law Society of Ontario's Great Library, regularly posts very useful research tips.

It recently published one entitled Coming into force of Federal Regulations and Statutory Instruments:

"When conducting legislative research, many researchers will know that locating a piece of legislation is only half the battle. The next hurdle lies in decoding commencement information or coming into force date(s)."

"As outlined in previous posts, deciphering this information can be tricky and confusion often arises from the wording used. In this post we hope to shed light on three frequently used coming into force (CIF) phrases of Federal SORs and SIs."

"Three phrases (or terms) are often used in SOR/SI’s to describe coming into force date(s): when an Order is made, when an Order is registered and when an Order is published." 

"What is the difference and how do you determine which date is which?"

Great Library at the Law Society of Ontario Blog Post on Finding Orders in Council

Know How, the blog of the Great Library at the Law Society of Ontario, has a new post explaining the different ways of Finding Federal Orders in Council:

"Sourcing Orders in Council is rarely a straightforward task. Often researchers will experience frustrating hiccups in their search as they are faced with where to find unpublished Orders, as well as the inconsistent indexing standards of the past."

"This blog post will attempt to provide a checklist for where to look in the (sometimes) nebulous world of searching for Orders in Council."

"Generally, the Orders in Council1 that researchers encounter take the form of regulations which are systematically published in the Canada Gazette. However, Orders in Council address a wide range of administrative and legislative matters and are, for the most part, unpublished."

Take it from me: finding these documents is often hard work. The tips from the Great Library are very welcome. 

Update on Artificial Intelligence Applications in CanLII

In the most recent update about its activities and projects, CanLII summarizes some of its AI-related initiatives.

CanLII, the Canadian Legal Information Institute,  is a portal funded by Canada’s provincial and territorial law societies to make legal information content (court judgments, tribunal decisions, statutes and regulations, commentary) available to Canadians free of charge.

Among the new developments:

• AI-generated subject classification of decisions on CanLII has been expanded from Saskatchewan and Ontario to all Canadian jurisdictions, except for Quebec
• The CanLII Citation Network is a recently completed project utilizing artificial intelligence/machine learning and designed to refine  the search engine. CanLII explains that the algorithm is much better at returning highly authoritative documents for broad conceptual queries
• CatLII is an AI-based program designed to generate summaries for cases on CanLII

Law Librarian Opinions About Dealing With Generative AI in Legal Research & Writing Classes

Hannah Rosborough, Instruction & Scholarly Communications Librarian at the Sir James Dunn Law Library, Dalhousie University (Halifax), has written an article for Slaw.ca that looks at how the issues surrounding generative artificial intelligence are addressed in the law classroom:

"Many legal information professionals have valid concerns about how generative AI’s application in legal research may impact the integrity of the profession. Meanwhile, social media (e.g., LinkedIn and Twitter) is flooded with legal tech companies’ commentary on how it can be harnessed to streamline legal research, improving efficiency and productivity. I reached out to several colleagues to hear their thoughts and ideas on how to address this contentious topic in their legal research classrooms."

She has asked for opinions from:

• Annette Demers, Reference Librarian at the Paul Martin Law Library, Faculty of Law, University of Windsor
• Marcelo Rodriguez, Assistant Librarian & Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Librarian at the Daniel F. Cracchiolo Law Library, University of Arizona
• Dominique Garingan, Sessional Instructor, University of Calgary Faculty of Law
• Matthew Renaud, Law Librarian, E.K. Williams Law Library, Faculty of Law, University of Manitoba

Most Recent Issue of the Law Library Journal

The most recent issue of the Law Library Journal is available online. It is published by the American Association of Law Libraries.

Most Recent Issue of the Canadian Law Library Review

The most recent issue of the Canadian Law Library Review (CLLR) is available online.

The CLLR is the official journal of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL). It is an open access publication.

Check out the features articles:

• Legal Writing Tick List for Beginners and Upward by  C.J. Shaw (starts on p. 10): "A tick list is a type of checklist. My published legal writing aims to inspire others to create publishable legal writing. I want this piece to be a valued teaching and learning experience. It ends with a reflection activity for readers to assess this article. Doing a legal writing project is a worthwhile activity, and it is doable without taking oneself too seriously. This article is an example of informal legal writing when compared to formal legal writing (i.e., legal drafting of documents and legislation). It includes quirky (unexpected) literary content. Various entries contain a reminiscence by American author and sportswriter Roger Kahn, an excerpt from the script for the classic film The Thomas Crown Affair (1968), advice from a parent of A.A. Milne, and a bit of modern common sense about knowledge and ideas attributable to 17thcentury philosopher John Locke. I also give feedback on two general legal writing rules."
• Legal Writing and Communication: A Bibliography by Susan Barker (starts on p, 17): "The purpose of this bibliography is to provide a selective, annotated list of practical and theoretical resources on legal writing and other forms of legal communication. The bibliography includes resources on legal writing generally, as well as on specific subjects of interest: academic writing, advice for law students, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, factums and memoranda, inclusive language, judicial writing, plain language, style guides, visual legal communication, writing about Indigenous peoples, and social media. Most of the items listed are Canadian resources published since 2000, although non-Canadian materials in subject areas where there is little Canadian research have also been included."

Law Library of Congress Comparative Report on Restrictions on Land Ownership by Foreigners

The Law Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. recently published a report on Restrictions on Land Ownership by Foreigners in Selected Jurisdictions.

The report includes individual surveys of 39 jurisdictions. The level of restrictions varies among these jurisdictions. Many countries restrict foreign ownership of land for national security or other reasons:

"(...) some have restrictions that apply to different types of land, including agricultural,  residential, and commercial land. Other types of restriction are based on the location of the land, such as near the border or military establishments. Some jurisdictions restrict  particular categories of foreigners from land ownership. Some require special permission or approval for foreigners before they can acquire land."

 According to the document, 10 of the countries surveyed do not restrict land ownership by foreigners. 

Updated GlobaLex Research Guides

The GlobaLex collection at the New York University Law School has updated a number of its research guides on international and comparative law:

• Comparative Civil Procedure: Finding Primary and Secondary Sources: "The comparison of legal systems has for a long time been an essential branch of legal research and jurisprudence. It has become even more important and relevant in our era of globalization, an era in which there is no field of law that can base its knowledge exclusively on national ideas and rules of procedure. Peter Gottwald sees the comparison of legal systems leading 'not only to a better knowledge of foreign law but also corresponding to the internationalization of law and jurisprudence, and the globalization of politics, of trade, commerce and private lifestyle.' (...) The first part of this article lists: general works of comparative civil procedure; basic books about the civil and common-law systems; and encyclopedias and treatises covering several jurisdictions. The remainder of the article is arranged by country. Depending upon the country, the sources listed may be in English or in the vernacular (or both in some cases). Under 'Primary Sources' are listed codes of civil procedure and civil procedure statutes and, for civil law jurisdictions, basic treatises, and commentaries. Under 'Secondary Sources' are listed monographs, treatises, and commentaries (for common law jurisdictions), which may also contain the text of civil procedure code sections and statutes. The section on 'Secondary Sources' also contains collected jurisprudence, as well as a few journals."
• The Council of Europe: "The Council of Europe is the continent’s leading human rights organization. It brings together 46 European states, including all the members of the European Union, representing 700 million citizens. Its mission is to promote democracy and protect human rights and the rule of law in Europe."
• Researching Global Health Law: "This 2023 update will again include a wide array of resources, ranging from primary international law instruments to databases that contain domestic health-related legislation. Also included are suggestions for researching the relationships between global health law and international human rights, trade, and intellectual property. In terms of format, the guide emphasizes electronic sources, but some print monographs are also mentioned. All of the listed resources are available in English, although several are multilingual. The aggregate purpose of the guide is to provide a comprehensive roadmap for researching the highly complex and dynamic field of global health law, which now includes the COVID-19 pandemic within its topical scope."
• Researching Nanotechnology and Selected Legal and Regulatory Issues: "The word ‘nano’ is derived from the Greek word ‘nanos’, meaning ‘dwarf’ or ‘very small man’. In the study of nanoscience and technology, this word is used to indicate a scale of measurement. Nanotechnology, according to the European Commission, is a branch of science and engineering that is devoted to designing, producing, and using structures, devices, and systems by manipulating atoms and molecules at the nanoscale, i.e., having one or more dimensions of the order of 100 nanometres (100 millionths of a millimeter) or less. In layman’s term, it is the study of nanoscale chemicals (...) At the beginning of this century, most of the developed countries started initiatives to exploit nanotechnologies treating these as ‘the wave of the future’. The policymakers and stakeholders involved in dealing with nanoparticles and nanomaterials have frequently endorsed nanotechnologies as important catalysts that promise to play a crucial role in harnessing the potentials of the so-called fourth industrial revolution. The legal and regulatory discussion on nanotechnology mostly rotates around the study of chemical substances, the environment, occupational health and safety, product liability, and consumer protection etc."