Cleveland-Marshall College of Law

First Year Law Student's Guide to Law Library Essentials

The Cleveland-Marshall College of Law Library staff welcomes you to our facility. Please stop at the Information Services Desk and make the acquaintance of our Information Services Staff. Feel free to call ((216) 687-6877) or email your questions to access.services@law.csuohio.edu (circulation) or research.services@law.csuohio.edu (reference).   Take the time to read the following explanations of services that will help you use the library to your advantage:

Using the Cleveland Marshall College of Law Library

• Law Library Map
• Top Ten Things You Need To Know About the Law Library  -  our Law Library's most important amenities, procedures and policies
• Top Ten Technology - answers to your questions about technology resources and procedures at the College of Law Library
• PC Lab Orientation - a presentation summarizing the essentials of using the Law Library PC lab and your student lab and email accounts
• Patron Code of Conduct - rules to insure the best research and study environment possible for our students, faculty and staff

Electronic Resources & Passwords

• Law Student Usernames, Passwords, IDs and PINS - Explains the various usernames, passwords and PINS you will be issued as a Cleveland-Marshall College of Law Student, and what you can access with each username, passwords or PIN.
• Cleveland Marshall College of Law Electronic Resources page - List various electronic resources and whether you can access them in the law library only or remotely.
• LexisNexis and Westlaw Features Compared

BNA E-mail Current Awareness Services

• BNA provides e-mail current awareness services on many topics.

• Sign up for BNA Current Awareness Services

• One of the best known BNA current awareness services is: U.S. Law Week

This email service:

• Summarizes and analyzes selected new state and federal cases which establish new precedents, address new statutes, tackle current controversies, or further splits in the Circuits.
• Tracks every Supreme Court petition and case on the docket, from filing to final disposition. The service quickly provides the text of the decision, along with analysis.
• Provides articles on important legal developments.

 

• Other BNA current awareness services include:

ABA/BNA Lawyers' Manual on Professional Conduct: Current Reports and the following Current Reports, which will be available Sept. , 2007: Americans with Disability Act Manual, Antitrust and Trade Regulation Reporter, Banking Report, Bankruptcy Law Reporter, Collective Bargaining Negotiations and Contracts, Criminal Law Reporter, Electronic Commerce and Law Report, Employment Discrimination Report, Environment Reporter, Family Law Reporter, Health Law Reporter, International Trade Reporter, Labor Relations Reporter, Patent Trademark and Copyright Journal, Securities Regulation and Law Reporter, United States Patents Quarterly and Intellectual Property Library, White Collar Crime Report, World Securites Law Reporter.

Using Law Libraries in General

Law Library 101: Using Your Law Library to be a Successful Law Student  - a guide to terminology and resources unique to legal research and law libraries. Includes Reading Call Numbers, Deciphering Legal Citations, How to Find Cases and more.

Help with Research and Writing

How to Read a Legal Citation - the first step toward understanding legal literature

Finding Articles in Law Reviews, Journals and Other Legal Periodicals - an explanation of resources available to you for accessing periodical literature

Internet Legal Research - learn where to find authoritative, reliable and free resources on the web

Searching the WorldWide Web - convert from surfing to deep sea diving on the web once you master the skills of evaluating web sites and search engines

Efficient and Cost-Effective Legal Research – learn the tips that will make your employer appreciate your research skills

General Study and Course Preparation Help

How to Brief a Case: Cali Tutorial

Learning Legal Analysis - IRAC (Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion) - Cali Tutorial

LawSchool.Westlaw.com>Law School Life>Getting Ready: Includes Class Preparation and Briefing Cases

Succeeding in Law School: University of Akron School of Law. Citations to books containing information on preparing outlines for exams, briefing cases and more

The Law School Approach (or, "How to Live with and Learn to Love the Socratic Method") from the American University Washington College of Law.

Jurist: Life in Law School - Law student blogs and helpful articles on stress and other reflections.

Help with Legal Subject Courses

Tutorials and Instructional Research Guides - a guide to interactive tutorials on legal subjects and research guides on legal subjects. Includes numerous tutorials from the CALI Library of Lessons .

Course Resource Guides:

Our Reference Librarians prepare guides to the key resources available to Cleveland-Marshall students for several courses offered in the curriculum. Among those of interest in your first year will  be:

• Contracts Resource Guide
• Civil Procedure Resource Guide
• Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Resource Guide
• Torts and Personal Injury Resource Guide
• Property Law Resource Guide
• Civil Procedure Resource Guide

Online Legal Dictionaries, Citators, Etc.

Legal Reference Resources - links to online dictionaries, citators and other reference sources

Help with Exams

Exam Preparation Guide - study aids, sample exams and Law Library amenities during exam periods