The Law Student Guide to Free Legal Research of the Internet

Recently, Professor Sarah Glassmeyer of Valparaiso University School of Law created a guide "to help law students navigate the confusing world of Internet legal resources."

Glassmeyer's guide provides links to FREE and reliable legal resources that are meant to be used as alternatives to fee-based resources. The Law Student Guide to Free Legal Research of the Internet is sponsored by the Free Law Coalition, Justia and Cornell's Legal Information Institute; it is hosted by CALI.

Ten iPhone Apps for Lawyers

The bloggers at Business Insider have created a list of the Top Ten iPhone Apps for Lawyers. Law students may find the following apps particularly useful: Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Black's Law Dictionary, and the Dictation Device. Read the article to find out about the other apps that attorneys are using to make their day a little easier.

Study Room & Carrel Policies

Study Rooms

• A study group may reserve only one (1) study room per day.
• A study group's reservation CANNOT exceed 4 hours each day.
• Study room reservations can be made at http://nccu-law2007/MRM7 -- Please note that this website must be accessed while on campus and will be unavailable between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. each morning.
• Type in the username/password. Law students may obtain the username from the Facilities Dept. or the Law Library.
  
• Click the "Login" button.
• Find your preferred room and select the time and date you would like to reserve.
• List your study group name in the "Meeting Title" field.
• List your name in the "Host" field.
• List the number of people in your study group in the "# Attending" field.
• Review your reservation carefully and click on the "Save and Close" button.
• Once reservations have been made, they CANNOT be altered. Please contact NCCU School of Law Reservations at law.res@nccu.edu if you need to modify or cancel a reservation.

Carrels

• The Law Library's carrels are first-come, first-serve.
• Please do not “reserve” carrels by leaving personal belongings in them.
• Library books left unattended in carrels will be re-shelved nightly.

E-Study Aids and Text book Rentals through Westlaw

West now allows you to sign up for a study aids subscription. Here is a list of some of the study aids you will have access to.

Acing Series
Black Letter Outlines
Exam Pro Series
Gilbert Law Summaries
High Court Case Summaries
Legalines
Nutshell Series
Sum & Substance Quick Reviews
Turning Point Series

Your subscription will be available through your regular Westlaw account by clicking on the "student commons" tab.

Similarly, you can also rent West case books. Go to http://west.thomson.com/ and search for the book you need. Go to the book's product page, and if your book has the "Rent It" option, you can rent it, get immediate access to the e-book, and a text will be mailed to you. You can rent books for up to 8 months, after which, the book becomes yours. Payments are collected monthly.

For more information about both of these programs please go to the Legal Current website.

Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI)

What is CALI?

CALI provides interactive lessons and tutorials for law students from over 200 schools. As a student attending a member school, you have access to over 800 lessons to help you study 33 different legal subject areas. These lessons are available at www.cali.org or on DVD-Rom format.


Why use CALI?

1) To gain familiarity with a topic prior to class;

2) To review a topic after class; and

3) To review for exams at the end of the semester.

CALI allows law students to master basic legal concepts so that they have more time to focus on more complex topics. In addition, CALI gives students an opportunity to strengthen their test-taking skills and obtain feedback prior to final exams. The lessons vary in length, from 30 minutes to 2 hours; and can be completed in the comfort of your own home.

How to use CALI?

1) Create your CALI account at http://www.cali.org/user/register using NCCU Law’s authorization code (please ask for this code at the Reference Desk).

* After using the code once to create your account, you will be able to access CALI lessons from anywhere using your personal username and password. Please note that it is an Honor Code violation to give this information to anyone not affiliated with NCCU Law.

2) Stop by the Law Library Reference Desk to pick up your copy of the latest CALI DVD.

"Excuse me but what is outlining and why does everyone keep talking about it?" - Anonymous 1L

What?

Outlines are study-aids that provide concise rules of law and occasionally, short summaries of landmark cases discussing the rules of law.

Although many law students are tempted to purchase commercial outlines or rely on the outlines of students who did well in a class the year before, most law professors will urge you to make your own outlines.

Why?
Students who create their own outlines generally do better on exams because the process of outlining requires you to restate and organize the rules of law in a way the makes sense to YOU, not someone else.

Many 1Ls make the mistake of thinking that outlines are no longer necessary now that class notes are taken electronically. However, typing notes on a laptop involves dictation, not synthesis! Most students won’t remember much of what they typed during a week, let alone a semester.

Although outlining can be time-consuming, it’s an essential part of the 1L routine, just like case-briefing. Both outlining and case-briefing get you into the habit of thinking like a lawyer, which isn’t something that comes naturally. However, if you do decide to use an outline that isn’t your own, make sure that the rules of law are correct for the jurisdiction you’re being tested on and that the outline you borrow references the material covered in your class.

Suggested Reading for 1Ls: The Bramble Bush: The Classic Lectures on the Law and Law School

Today I was reading the Legal Geekery blog and stumbled upon their post about this book called The Bramble Bush: The Classic Lectures on the Law and Law School.

According to Louis Grube, The Bramble Bush gives a great explanation of what one can expect from law school other than studying and stress.

Law school is indeed different. For example, you may have skipped over footnotes in undergrad or graduate school, but they are important in reading the law.

For more suggested readings, please look in your orientation folders once you received them. You will also find information on other services in the library!