Whatever you’re doing this summer, you’ll likely need to perform some legal research, and the library has you covered.

Reference librarians will be available Monday-Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. by email, and we’ll do our best to respond promptly to emails sent outside those times. We can also schedule phone or Zoom calls for more extensive research questions.

The library held its annual summer research assistant training via Zoom on Thursday, June 8 at 6:00.

A recording of the training is available below.

The training covered how students can best use Pence and University library resources and how to access resources beyond our collections, including revised interlibrary loan procedures. We’ll also introduce them to specialized databases, non-legal research, and answer any specific research questions they have. We encourage all research assistants to attend.

The library will hold a second training later in the summer to provide a primer on foreign/international law research for those working with faculty planning foreign or international law research projects. That date has not yet been set; we’ll let you know once it is.

This is a great opportunity for students to meet many of the reference librarians and become more comfortable using the library for their research. 

We also have an extensive collection of research guides on a variety of subjects: https://wcl.american.libguides.com/. If you need a primer or refresher on a topic, our research guides are a great place to start.

• Summer course work
• Research assistant assignments
• Law review or journal research
• Moot court research
• Clinical work
• Externships

Students do not have to do anything to gain access to these tools over the summer.

Graduates: Students have access to Thomson Reuters products, including Westlaw Edge and Practical Law, for eighteen months after graduation. Your “Grad Elite” access gives you 60-hours of usage on these products per month to gain understanding and build confidence in your research skills. While you cannot use it in situations where you are billing a client, Thomson Reuters encourages you to use these tools to build your knowledge of the law and prepare for your bar exam. Extend access by logging into: http://www.lawschool.tr.com or clicking on this link: https://lawschool.westlaw.com/authentication/gradelite.

Bloomberg Law

Summer: Students may use Bloomberg Law in any capacity they choose during summer (academic, work, research).

Graduates: Spring graduates have access to Bloomberg Law for 6 months after graduation. There are no out of plan or search limitations.

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