HCLL Alert
September 2004

Free Westlaw Access Expanded To Brookdale and Ridgedale Libraries
Westlaw Logo.The free Westlaw access that has been available at the Southdale Library since July is now also available at the Brookdale and Ridgedale Libraries.  The databases available at the three public libraries are a sub-set of those at the Law Library. They include:
  • Minnesota Appellate Court Cases and Minnesota Statutes Annotated
  • U.S. District Court Cases for states in the 8th circuit, including U.S. District Court cases for Minnesota
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit cases
  • U.S. Supreme Court case and U.S. Code Annotated
  • U.S. Code Congressional & Administrative News
  • KeyCite for all jurisdictions

The hours of the Southdale, Brookdale and Ridgedale libraries are:

Monday-Thursday 10:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Friday-Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Sunday 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. (Sept. – May)

Library locations and telephone numbers are:

  • Southdale – 7100 York Ave. S., Edina (952-847-5669)
  • Brookdale – 6125 Shingle Creek Parkway, Brooklyn Center (952-847-5600)
  • Ridgedale - 12601 Ridgedale Drive, Minnetonka (952-847-8840)

A one-hour time limit is imposed if other people are waiting.

Westlaw access at the three public libraries is a collaborative project of the Hennepin County Law Library and Hennepin County Library, in an effort to make more legal resources available to suburban attorneys and residents.

Free Westlaw Training Continues
A picture of Stonehenge would have been funnier.The Hennepin County Law Library will continue to offer free WESTLAW training, but on a slightly revised schedule.  Training sessions will be held on the second Wednesday of each month from 4:00 to 5:00, but sessions for attorneys (earning one hour of CLE credit) and sessions for the public will alternate months.
  • October 13 (Attorneys only)
  • November 10 (Members of the public)
  • December 8 (Attorneys only)

The training sessions will be taught by a Thomson-West trainer and will be held in the Law Library's computer training room on the 24th Floor of the Courts Tower of the Hennepin County Government Center.  Please register ahead of time since the training room is small.  Register online or call the Law Library at 612-348-3024.

Focus on: Circulating Loose-leaf Services
It is common for law school libraries to shelve their loose-leaf services, all non-circulating and for use in the library only, in one location in the law library.  This is partly a result of their teaching mission and partly a convenience for their filing staff.  Here at Hennepin County Law Library our loose-leaf services are classified by subject and shelved with other treatises on that subject.  This shelving location reflects the arrangement of this library’s materials for the practicing attorney.  The attorney coming to the library to better understand the particular problem presented by a particular client wants to find all the print materials the library owns on that topic together in one place.  Unlike law school libraries, HCLL allows many of our loose-leaf services to circulate, again in order to make solving a particular problem more convenient for attorneys.

The biggest and perhaps one of the most popular categories of loose-leaf services to circulate is the individual state tax reporters published by Commerce Clearing House.  If your client presents a tax question for any state from Alabama to Wyoming, the law library owns the loose-leaf service with the relevant statutes, regulations, cases, explanation, and commentary.  Loose-leaf services’ circulation is limited to two days, so HCLL will have the right resource for you, and you will have the time to look it over in your office.  Other loose-leaf services which circulate include:  the Federal Tax Coordinator and the Employment Coordinator (both from RIA) and the Employment Safety and Health Guide, the Advertising Law Guide, and the Business Franchise Guide (all published by CCH).

In addition to all these loose-leaf services that circulate, the library owns and circulates many treatises which publishers issue in loose-leaf binders in order to update them easily and frequently.  Topics covered range from HIPAA and ERISA to insurance, discovery, immigration, residential mortgage lending, and civil rights.

HCLL staff have made loose-leaf services non-circulating only when their everyday use for reference questions or by practitioners coming to the library expecting a quick answer to a short question requires their constant presence in the library.  Among these reference loose-leaf services are the Standard Federal Tax Reporter (CCH), the Pension Plan Guide (CCH), the Labor Relations Reporter (BNA), the Employment Practices Guide (CCH), and the Federal Securities Law Reporter (CCH).

Free Westlaw Training Continues
Patriots vote.Election time is almost here.  Check the web for information about the upcoming state and federal elections.  For information about Minnesota elections, go to the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Elections and Voting Web page.  The Polling Place Finder lets you enter your zip code and home address to find your voting location.  The site identifies your Minnesota and U.S. District numbers and provides a list of the federal, state, and county candidates on the ballot in the next election.  You can also use the Find a Candidate Filing page to search statewide for listings of candidates in U.S. Representative, State Representative, County Commissioner, and Judicial races.

For information about Federal elections, try the League of Women Voters DemocracyNet Web site.  It includes information about U.S. Congressional races as well as information about Congressional races in all 50 state elections.  The site includes photographs and biographical information on all candidates.

New Arrivals
A pink stork with a bundle of joy.You can see HCLL's most recent acquisitions and other featured lists here.

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