About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline

LOG IN
LOG IN


13 Trends L. Libr. Mgmt. & Tech. 1 (2002)

handle is hein.journals/ttllmt13 and id is 1 raw text is: 2002 Vol. 13 No. 1 IN LAW LIBRARY MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY Edited by Philip C. Berwick + For academic, firm, corporate, and government law librarians Building a Law Library in the Technological Age By DAVID S. BYRNE, Piper Rudnick LLP Law Library, New York City & New Jersey new library is born! As the Head Librarian for a law firm with offices nationwide, I was given the opportunity to build a law library from scratch, due to the opening of new office in Edison, NewJersey. This challenging experience gave me the chance to create an information center to sup- port the attorneys practicing in that growing office. Acting as a satellite law library for the larger one located in New York City and nearby Philadelphia, this library was designed from the ground up, with a focus on technology. A special feature of our new location is its historical significance--the town of Edison is where Thomas Alva Edison had his lab and the place where he invent- ed the light bulb. Our windows overlook the Edison Tower and Museum, reminding us of a moment in time when a dramatic leap in technology eventually altered the everyday lives of millions of Americans. Today's equivalent technological leaps were, of course, com- puters and the Internet, without which our new library would be woefully inadequate. Although small in terms of square footage, the library offers a tremendous net- work of electronic resources, along with a solid collec- tion of print materials including case reporters, statutes, and treatises, and thus meet the needs of lawyers practicing in a variety of areas. Building a law library never is an easy task. There are so many details involved, such as in planning the physical layout, acquiring the collection, determining the needs and training of the users, keeping accurate records, and incorporating electronic resources such as online databases, spreadsheets, and e-mail into the strategy, that at times this undertaking seems almost overwhelming. Lucky for me, this satellite library proved to be less of a chore, because I had the support of management, had a great staff, and put the time in to develop a plan up front. By following these recom- mendations, you too can build a successful law library. Establishing the Plan Always make a plan. This, in essence, will act as a roadmap for getting the job done right and on budget. Expect to make some detours along the way and, most of all, be flexible and don't sweat every detail. I found that using a notebook with a checklist of things to do was the way to go, it kept everything in order and nothing was overlooked. Checking off completed items was extremely satisfying, especially towards the end of the project when I could see it all coming together. The first step was to determine the requirements of the physical collection, especially with regard to continued on page 2 2002 1