INFO - Seattle University Law Library Newsletter

Along with libraries nationwide, the law library celebrated National Library Week (April 15-21) to promote awareness of the contributions that libraries and library staff make to their communities. The law library celebration featured the third annual READ poster display spotlighting Associate Dean Annette Clark, Assistant Dean Carol Cochran, Clinic Director Paul Holland and Professor Rafael Pardo. Each subject posed with one of their favorite books and wrote about its special significance. Previous READ posters were also placed on display in the 4th floor exhibit area. For further information on the books selected by this year’s celebrities, click on this issue's New and Notable link on the left.

In addition to the READ posters, the new leisure reading collection made its debut during National Library Week festivities. This collection, permanently located under the stairs on the main floor of the library, includes a rotating selection of current fiction and a few nonfiction items as well. All books are available for check-out by students, staff or faculty.

For those willing to test their wits, the National Library Week Committee introduced “Librarian Sudoku.” The brainchild of Charity Braceros and Tina Ching, the game was structured using pictures of the librarians rather than numbers. The Committee also made sure that plenty of free candy was available along with bookmarks created just for National Library Week.

On March 27-28, Ann Fessenden, Vice-President/President-Elect of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), met with members of the Law Librarians of Puget Sound (LLOPS). Ms. Fessenden is the Circuit Librarian for the U.S. Courts, 8th Circuit in St. Louis, Missouri. As part of her visit, Ms. Fessenden toured the Seattle University Law Library, accompanied by LLOPS President Laurie Miller, Director of the Pierce County Law Library.

Embracing a holistic approach to justice, Seattle University’s 21st Century Lawyers organized a week of events dedicated to the promotion of the whole individual. This new law student group is part of a growing national and international movement to improve lawyers’ lives and the lives of those who come into contact with the legal system. The law library joined in the celebration by providing group study space for quiet reflection, meditation and other stress alleviating activities.

Librarian Kara Phillips is currently on sabbatical spring semester 2007. She is spending two months in Shanghai, China as a visiting scholar at Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Law. Shanghai Jiaotong University (SJTU) was founded in 1896 and is well known for its science, engineering and technology programs. The campus has a total of 38,000 full time students (almost half are Master's and Doctoral students). SJTU has six campuses on a total of 200 hectares. Ms. Phillips lives on the Xuhui campus near downtown Shanghai and commutes by bus to the law school on the Minhang campus, a district located about 45 minutes outside of Shanghai. The SJTU School of Law was established in 2002 and currently has 50 faculty and 800 law students. The program offers an undergraduate law degree (the main degree for licensed attorneys in China), two Masters degrees and a PhD. Ms. Phillips is assisting the Director of the Law Library, Professor Xu Xiaobing, with collections and resources. Thanks to the generosity of several legal publishers, Seattle University law faculty and the law library, Ms. Phillips collected over 300 English-language law books in support of the SJTU Law School's new Center on Chinese American Legal Studies. Ms. Phillips is enjoying life in Shanghai, especially the people, the food and the shopping!

Kelly Kunsch’s article on the trials of Leschi was published in the Fall/Winter 2006 issue of Seattle Journal for Social Justice. The Puget Sound Regional Archives has asked if they could incorporate the article into a “classroom based assessment curriculum package” project they are undertaking. The project focuses on encounters between Euro-American settlers and native people in the Puget Sound region. Kelly has also been communicating with Pulitzer Prize winning author, Richard Kluger. Kluger is researching a forthcoming book on Leschi and his exoneration by the “historical court.”

Promotion Congratulations

Congratulations to Kerry Fitz-Gerald, who was recently promoted in rank from Assistant Librarian to Associate Librarian at the Seattle University Law Library. Seattle University law librarians participate in the same promotion process as the Lemieux librarians. Candidates must substantiate in their promotion file that they have satisfied all university requirements for promotion in rank and solicit evaluative letters from Law School faculty. The request for promotion and the file are initially considered by the Committee on Librarian Evaluation and Promotion (CLEP), which is comprised of librarians from both libraries. The request is then evaluated by the Director of the Law Library, the Law School Dean, the Provost and the University President.

After almost seven years as the law library’s one and only administrative assistant, Jane Draney departed Seattle University to pursue her interest in museum-related activities and programs. With her top notch skills, plus a degree in Art History, Jane was a natural choice as the new Executive Assistant to the Director and Assistant Director of the Museum of History and Industry.

Bob Menanteaux attended the 101st American Society of International Law (ASIL) meeting in Washington, DC from March 28-31. The program featured presentations on a wide range of topics including the use of force, international environmental law, international legal theory, development, private international law and human rights. Along with the usual stellar list of scholars and practitioners in attendance, the conference was honored with the presence of several international judges. Among those attending were Judge Owada (International Court of Justice), Judge Medina (Inter-American Court of Human Rights), Judge Ouguergouz (African Court of Human and Peoples’ Rights), Judge Rozakis (European Court of Human Rights) and Judge Hikmet (International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda) who, incidentally, is the first woman judge in Jordan. The annual Grotius lecture was delivered by Nobel Prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz.

Stephanie Wilson presented "Research Using the Internet: Sources for Statistics, News, and Washington Legislative History" at the Washington State Office of Public Defense CLE for appellate attorneys. Her presentation included discussions of Google News, www.FedStats.gov, blogs and the Washington State Legislature Web site. She has been invited to repeat her presentation at a CLE for the Washington Appellate Lawyers Association in April.

Nancy Minton attended the Washington Library Association (WLA) 2007 conference in the Tri-cities April 18-20. Prior to the conference, she helped write the accepted conference program proposal, “Celebrating Buenos Tiempos/Good Times at Your Library,” for WLA’s Social Responsibility Roundtable. The program provided effective ways for libraries to celebrate Latino culture through cultural displays/events and outreach efforts.