Hello and welcome to the first issue of the Legal Division Docket for 2013.  I am excited about this year and this issue, particularly because of all the upcoming conference information that is included!  If you haven’t already made plans and registered, do so now!

We begin this issue with a few words from our Chair, Tricia Thomas, in the From the Boardroom article where she discusses the conference as well as our plans to celebrate the Division’s 20^th Anniversary while in San Diego.  Speaking of parties, the following article from Past Chair, Tracy Maleeff, is a summary of her experience at the SLA New York holiday party and speaks to the importance of going outside of her local chapter to network.  After reading about expanding our professional network, we have a great article about expanding your role from Lynn Oser.

The next couple of articles provide a preview of the The Canadian Association of Law Libraries / Association Canadienne des Bibilothèques de Droit (CALL/ACBD) conference in Montreal this May and the British & Irish Association of Law Librarians this June in Glasgow.  Our international conference preview wraps up with this issue’s Letter from Australia which gives us some background on the Janders Dean Legal Knowledge Management & Innovation Conference and a sneak peak at what is to come this September in Sydney.

In this issue’s Full Disclosure article we learn more about Martha Foote, a Legal Division Past Chair.  This is followed by an interview of our most recent Past Chair, Tracy Maleeff by SLA Europe.  Following our interviews we get a chance to learn a little bit about this year’s Travel Grant Award Winners.  Say congratulations when you see them in San Diego!

We wrap up this issue with some great tips from Bobbi Weaver, representing the San Diego Chapter, and a nice tip about internet access from the SLA Leadership list-serv.  Our final article is from Legal Division Chair-Elect, Caroline Jones, and provides a great preview of what is to come in San Diego!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this issue.  I welcome any and all ideas for contribution to the newsletter and just as a heads up I will be sending out my call for volunteers to cover conference sessions soon so if you are interested send me an email at jlking40356@gmail.com.

Thanks for reading and see you in San Diego!

 Jessica King, Legal Division Docket Editor

SLA’s Legal Division will begin giving three new awards this year.

Nominations will be accepted until April 1, 2012.  Self nomination is acceptable and encouraged.  Please find descriptions below.

Thomson Reuters Westlaw Award for Career Achievement

The Thomson Reuters Westlaw Award for Career Achievement is designed to recognize a member who has provided significant service to the SLA Legal Division. The award includes an engraved keepsake and small monetary award, generously provided by Thomson Reuters Westlaw. Download the award description and nomination form (printable PDF, MS Word form).

Selection Criteria

• The nominee must be a member in good standing of the SLA Legal Division
• The nominee must have been a member of the SLA Legal Division for at least five years
• The nominee must not have previously received the Thomson Reuters Westlaw Award for Career Achievement
• The nominee must have provided special service to the SLA Legal Division or have a record of sustained service
• The nominee must not be a current or immediate past officer of the SLA Legal Division

Wolters Kluwer Law & Business Innovations in Law Librarianship Award

The Innovations in Law Librarianship award is designed to recognize a member of the SLA Legal Division who demonstrates innovation and creativity in solving problems or improving resources, programs, services, or operations for law library professionals and the clients they serve.  The award includes an appropriate engraved keepsake and is generously supported by Wolters Kluwer Law & Business. Download the award description and nomination form (printable PDF, MS Word form).

Selection Criteria

• The nominee must be a member in good standing of the SLA Legal Division
• The nominee must not have previously received the Innovations in Law Librarianship  Award
• The nominee must have demonstrated innovation and creativity in solving problems or improved resources, programs, services, or operations for law library professionals and the clients they serve

Bloomberg Law/Bloomberg BNA Outstanding New Member Contribution Award

The Outstanding New Member Contribution award is designed to recognize a member in the early stages of his/her career who has already made significant contributions to the SLA Legal Division and shows outstanding potential for continued service and leadership within the Division and the profession.  The award includes an engraved keepsake and a small monetary award and is generously supported by Bloomberg Law/Bloomberg BNA. Download the award description and nomination form (printable PDF, MS Word form).

Selection Criteria

• The nominee must be a member in good standing of the SLA Legal Division
• The nominee must be in the first 10 years of his/her law library career
• The nominee must not have previously received the Outstanding New Member  Contribution Award
• The nominee must have made significant contributions to the SLA Legal Division
• The nominee must show outstanding potential for continued service and leadership within the SLA Legal Division and the profession

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact Sarah Mauldin.

I am now accepting submissions for the Legal Division Docket (formerly the Legal Division Quarterly). The deadline is Monday, March 26. Please submit any articles via email attachment (preferably in Word, 12-point Times font).

Thanks in advance for your submissions.

Jessica King
SLA Legal Division, Legal Division Docket Editor

Wow! Four years passes fast when you are learning, planning programs, serving as the face of an SLA division and then acting as senior advisor.  Those four phases sum of the duties of the progression from Chair-Elect-Elect to Past-Chair of the SLA Legal Division.

It has been wonderful to work with the leaders and members of SLA Legal. The challenges we faced with the pressures of the economic crisis did not subdue the opportunities offered by the division. The work I have seen executed has been tremendous and our members are reaping the benefits. The work is always a one of progression. As Chair, I had specific goals, to improve communications through a new website, grow partnerships and offer education opportunities outside the annual conference. Before my tenure, Martha Foote, established the importance of “member-only” benefits such as the listserv. While the work for our individual goals may not be completed during our tenure, it is good to know that the work does progress with each successive leader.

The energy that our soon-to-be Past Chair, John DiGilio has put into the Legal Division is astounding.  Part of his work was to continue to solidify partner relations that began during my term. He also crossed the  finish line with the website redesign. He then continued on with his own goals. I am thankful for the collaboration that all of our board members participate in to continue to offer exceptional value to SLA Legal Division members.

The ideas that flow through all have one underlying theme: SERVE THE MEMBERS.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you during my terms. It is a commitment I was honored to make.

Constance Ard, December 14, 2011

Please welcome your 2012 SLA Legal Division Board Officers:

• Chair-Elect-Elect: Caroline A. Jones – Crowell & Moring, Washington DC
• Treasurer: Geri Heberlie – Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale P.C., St. Louis MO
• Director-At-Large: Dagfinn Senturia – Holland & Hart LLP, Denver CO

On January 1, the newly elected officers will be joined by Chair Tracy Maleef, Chair-Elect Tricia Thomas, Secretary Beth Maser, and Director Liz Polly as our 2012 Legal Division Board of Directors.

Special thanks to our Nominations Committee: Constance Ard (Co-Chair), Tricia Thomas (Co-Chair), Louis Abramovitz, Jamie Keller and Sara Montgomery.

From the Editor’s Notes:

In this issue (LDQ 2011: Volume 18, Number 4), Mary Talley discusses the virtual embedded information professional and the importance of relationships when forming that role in your organization. The author and owner of Talley Partners shows how to successfully build your virtual embedded presence. Also, it’s election time so be sure to read up on the slate of candidates for 2012 and vote!

This issue demonstrates how diverse and international the Legal Division is. Featured in this issue is the first installment of the “Canadian Corner” column. Kim Clarke, Director of the Bennett Jones Law Library in Calgary, Alberta, brings you information on the Calgary Statement on Free Access to Legal Information. The President of SLA Europe, Sara Batts, brings us news from the UK and EU as well as the regular installment of “Letter from Australia.”

This is my last issue as editor of the Legal Division Quarterly.  I am honored to have served the Legal Division in this capacity for the last four years, and I look forward to continuing my service to the division in other ways. I have enjoyed working with many talented division members during the course of my tenure as editor.

Special thanks go to former editor Barbara Silbersack, who has provided a wealth of sage advice over the years, and Constance Ard, who recruited me to the position. My thanks to everyone who has contributed articles, photos, ideas, and encouragement, particularly Tracy Maleeff, who has always been willing to supply articles when needed.

I am pleased to hand over the reins of the LDQ to newly appointed editor Jessica King. She will undoubtedly bring a fresh new perspective to the newsletter.

I have always appreciated the uniqueness of this publication as a forum for Legal Division members and other legal information professionals to discuss what is important to us.

Thank you for your support and dedication over these last few years.

Liz Polly, Editor

The Legal Division has been my SLA home base  longer than the Kentucky Chapter.  When I got my first job as a law librarian and joined SLA I joined the Legal Division and became an active member of the Cincinnati Chapter before coming home to Kentucky.

I have met and learned from many of the Division’s founding members: Barbara Silbersack and Anne Abate come to mind immediately.  These professionals and all the other professionals I have met during my tenure as an LD member are critical components of my success.

I learned from you, I received encouragement to present, and feedback that you found those presentations valuable.  Without this  network, without the community of knowledge that is freely shared, I have no doubt that I would have struggled.

Your support and encouragement during my career, my business launch and most recently my SLA Board candidacy is much appreciated.  Thank you to all the Legal Division members who have taught me and made me a better librarian throughout my career.

Constance Ard September 7, 2011

Note: A privilege of service to and access as a blogger for the Division allowed me the opportunity to publish this post.  Thank you!

We are excited to announce that our collaborative blog, On Firmer Ground(OFG) is truly becoming global. Adding our sixth participating association today, we now have the following of organizations who represent law firm librarians in Africa, North America, and Europe. It is an unprecedented foray into international collaboration in the private sector. We look forward to welcoming other library associations who represent law firm librarians into our professional family. Please help us share the news about On Firmer Ground. For those of you in academic, government, and corporate law libraries, know that we are on the lookout for similar opportunities within those communities too. We want to sing the virtues of all our members and all who make the legal information industry so awesome!

Subscribe today so that you can receive new posts when they are published. And remember to comment on what you read so that we can start an exchange of ideas to move law firm librarians forward. OFG is an ongoing discussion about the challenges law firm librarians face and strategies for surmounting them. We are not here to merely talk about the state of our industry. We are here to discuss proactive solutions and innovative ideas that will not only sustain this noble profession, but help it thrive in a changing world. We invite you into our discussion. Join your colleagues and other luminaries as we open our minds and share our opinions on the future of law firm libraries.

Participating Organizations:

• British & Irish Association of Law Librarians (BIALL)
• Canadian Association of Law Libraries/L’Association Canadienne des Bibliotheques de Droit (CALL/ACBD)
• Organisation of South African Law Libraries (OSALL)
• Private Law Librarians Special Interest Section (PLL-SIS of AALL)
• Scottish Law Librarians Group
• Special Libraries Association (SLA) Legal Division

On behalf of your Board, I wanted to share some important news. Due to unexpected circumstances, we were required to fill some empty seats on the Board. Our Governing Document mandated that these seats be appointed by the Board.

Please join us in welcoming and thanking two new members of the Legal Division Board:

• Tricia Thomas, Chair-Elect-Elect:  When this seat unexpectedly opened, Tricia was serving as one of our Directors. With her term about to expire, the Board turned to Tricia and her wonderful institutional knowledge to take the Chair-Elect-Elect position. She agreed to serve and the appointment was quickly and unanimously approved. Tricia will serve as Chair-Elect-Elect for the remainder of the 2011 term and will then move up to Chair-Elect in January 2012. She has worked in law firm libraries for nearly 20 years and serves as the Library Manager for Alston & Bird’s Atlanta office. Tricia holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Oglethorpe University and a Master of Library and Information Science degree from Valdosta State University.

• Dagfinn Senturia, Director: Dagfinn was playing an active role in the Legal Division’s Strategic Planning Committee when we found ourselves with the an opening for a Director to fill Tricia’s expiring term. The Chair turned to the Nominations Committee for a list of possible and capable candidates and his name was resoundingly put forth. Dagfinn’s appointment too was unanimously approved by our Board. He will sit as Director until the current term expires in December 2011. Dagfinn is currently a reference librarian at Holland & Hart and has been taking advantage of the scenic surroundings near Denver, Colorado. Prior to this position, he worked at Fried Frank in NYC for seven years. Dagfinn will continue his work with the Strategic Planning Committee for the Legal Division and looks forward to serving our Division with these new responsibilities.

We are excited to welcome Tricia and Dagfinn to their new roles and to our Board. We have every faith that both will serve our Division with distinction.

John J. DiGilio, MLIS, JD          Chair, Legal Division of SLA