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lawlibrary Legal Technology

Free Federal Rules Ebooks by LII

The Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI)  and the Cornell Legal Information Institute (LII) have published three federal rules ebooks:  Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,  Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and  Federal Rules of Evidence.  The ebooks are compatible with many different devices  such as Kindles, Nooks, iPads or just your pc with the right app.

They are available for download at the CALI elangdell site and are based on the LII Federal Rules Collection.

LUNO Law Library Blog (Loyola New Orleans College of Law)  reported on and reviewed these  just released ebooks.  They compared the ebooks with the West Pamphlet editions of the federal rules and found that the CALI ebooks were seven months more current.

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lawlibrary Legal Technology

E-filing and the Self Represented Litigant

As the Maryland judiciary moves to institute e-filing, the question of how it might affect the self-represented litigant (SRL) is being considered.  The following references could help in that discussion:

Eight Rules of E-Filing: Rule #6 – E-Filing Must Support the Self Represented
http://courttechbulletin.blogspot.com/2011/09/eight-rules-of-e-filing-rule-6.htm

E-Filing Assistance for the Self-Represented: Seattle Law Library Shows the Way
Posted on July 21, 2011 by richardzorza
http://accesstojustice.net/2011/07/21/e-filing-assistance-for-the-self-represented-seattle-law-library-shows-the-way/

National Center for State Courts – Self Representation Resource Guide has a “Technology” section
http://www.ncsc.org/topics/access-and-fairness/self-representation/resource-guide.aspx

Older but could still provide appropriate analysis:

The Future of Self-Represented Litigation: Report From the March 2005 Summit (The Role of Technology in the Access Solution, p.81)
http://www.selfhelpsupport.org/search/download.68690

Self-Represented Litigants and Electronic Filing by Ronald W. Staudt (from the 2003 CTC conference)
http://www.ncsconline.org/d_tech/ctc/showarticle.asp?id=68

Washington State Access to Justice Technology Principles
http://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/?fa=court_rules.display&group=am&set=ATJ&ruleid=amatj02principles

Categories
lawlibrary Maryland Law

July 2011 Rules Update – Update for Rule 4-281

Maryland Rule 4-281 in the June 2011 Supplement to the Lexis Maryland Rules of Procedure has been updated incorrectly.  The text includes a section (c) that was proposed but not adopted.   Section (c) should be crossed out in the supplement per the Rules Committee.

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lawlibrary

Maryland Rules effective July 1, 2011 now on Lexis

I just heard from the Maryland State Law Library this morning that the rules changes that went into effect on July 1, 2011  are now available on Lexis.  The rules available for free at http://www.michie.com should be updated soon.

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lawlibrary

Maryland Rules Changes July 2011

The July 1, 2011 issue of the Maryland Register, 38:14  Md. R. 784-786,  contains a notice that proposed amendments to the rules and proposed new rules published in the April 8, 2011, 38:8 Md. R. 475-503, issue of the Maryland Register have been adopted.

The following rules in the 168th Report of the Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure were effective July 1, 2011:

new Rules 4-281, 4-332, 9-205.2, 12-701, 12-702, 12-703, 12-704 and proposed amendments to Rules 1-202, 1-311, 1-326, 1-351, 2-131, 2-221,
2-311, 2-331, 2-332, 3-131, 3-221, 3-331, 3-332, 4-247, 4-248, 4-251, 4-263, 4-314, 4-327, 4-403, 4-705, 4-706, 5-605, 6-208, 6-411, 6-416, 9-107, 9-202, 10-710, 13-201, 14-210, 15-306, 15-309, 15-901, 15-1103, 16-110, 16-204, 16-401, 16-808, 16-813, 16-815, 17-101, 17-105, and Rules 8.2 and 8.4 of the Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct.

The amendment to Rule 4-312 JURY SELECTION in the 168th Report “shall take effect and apply to all actions commenced on or after September 1, 2011 and, insofar as practicable, to all actions then pending.”

You can find the Maryland Register in the law library at aisle 3B.

The following is a link to the Maryland Register online. Links to the most recent issue can be found at the bottom of the page.

http://www.dsd.state.md.us/MDRegister/mdregister.aspx

The Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure posts Proposed Rules Changes and Recent Rules Orders at the following address:

http://www.courts.state.md.us/rules/ruleschanges.html

Please note that the rules online provided by LEXIS do not reflect these rules changes.

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lawlibrary

Librarians praised in new book: ‘This Book Is Overdue!’

A book review of “This Book is Overdue! How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All”  in LAW.COM’s Law Technology News,  June 17, 2011 issue made my day after a long week.  It was nice to read that there is a book in which “the praise for librarians is a little overdone at times.”

The description of the book found at the publisher’s website was a joy to read: “Johnson finds librarians more vital and necessary than ever, as they fuse the tools of the digital age with love for the written word and the enduring values of truth, service to all, and free speech” and “those who predicted the death of libraries forgot to consider that in the automated maze of contemporary life, none of us—neither the experts nor the hopelessly baffled—can get along without human help. And not just any help—we need librarians, who won’t charge us by the question or roll their eyes, no matter what we ask.”

How nice to have this book come from someone who is not a librarian.

Categories
lawlibrary Maryland Law

National Inventory of Primary Legal Materials

The American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) believes that the public should have “no-fee, permanent public access to authentic online legal information on government Web sites” as stated in the Government Relations Office Issue Brief, AALL Working Groups to Ensure Access to Electronic Legal Information.

The Government Relations Office of AALL has coordinated a major project, the National Inventory of Primary Legal Materials, to collect information on the availability of all primary legal materials in the United States at every level of government from the judicial, legislative and executive branches.  Once information from all fifty states, D.C. and the Federal Government is collected, it “will be analyzed and used by experts working with  LAW.gov, the Law Library of Congress and AALL public policy committees according to the Issue Brief.  The data will provide a picture as to the availability of primary legal material.  The inventory collects such information as the availability of online and print versions and whether the material is copyrighted.  Other information collected for the inventory for online materials include provisions for authentication, preservation and permanent public access.

Authentication ensures that online  information is, in fact, the law.  This is done through the use of certifying marks and the establishment of chain of custody of the electronic document.  A more detailed description of authentication can be found in the Executive Summary of the AALL State-by-State Report on Authentication of Online Legal Resources Full Report.

It is important that electronic online legal materials be preserved by an appropriate government entity.  Print resources are easily preserved by court libraries and archives by storing the books in a proper environment.  Digital information presents a problem.  The technology for methods and media for accessing electronic information can change quickly.  Preservation would involve making sure that the digital information migrates to new platforms as technology changes.  The preserved information should remain accessible to the public permanently. The above principles were outlined in  the AALL policy paper, Principles and Core Values Concerning Pubic Information of Government Websites.

Maryland law librarians formed a Working Group to address the issues of authentication, preservation and permanent public access.  The Working Group has contributed to the National Inventory of Primary Legal Materials by collecting the information for Maryland primary legal materials.  The project was completed as of June 1, 2011.  All of the information was entered into a Google spreadsheet for the sate, county and municipal levels all of the  branches of Maryland government.  The Maryland Inventory Spreadsheet will be added to the information collected by other state working groups to form the National Inventory of Primary Legal Materials.

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lawlibrary

2011 Maryland Access to Justice Commission Awards

The 2011 meeting of the Maryland Judicial Conference held on May 13 began with the awarding of the first Access to Justice Awards.    “The awards recognize individuals, programs and entities in the State that improve the ability of all Marylanders to access the courts or to get legal help in civil legal matters so they can benefit from the rights, protections, services and opportunities that the law provides.”

I am honored to report that I was the recipient of one of those awards, the Judicial Branch Excellence Award.  It was exciting to be on the program with Governor Martin O’Malley who received the Executive Branch Award, Judge Ben Clyburn who received the Judge of the Year Award,  and Sen. Brian Frosh who with Del. Kathleen Dumais was a joint honoree for the Legislator of the Year Award and with Matt Hill of the Tenants in Foreclosure Project which received the Outstanding Program of the Year Award.

Governor O’Malley was recognized for his quick response to the mortgage foreclosure crisis with the creation of the Foreclosure Mediation Program in 2010.

Hon. Ben Clyburn is the Chief Judge of the Maryland District Court and the Vice-Chair of the Maryland Access to Justice Commission.  As a member of the commission, I have witnessed first hand his dedication to improving access to justice.  Whenever a problem for access to justice is identified he immediately addresses the issue.  He was cited for creating the  Glen Burnie District Court Self Help Center and how he has addressed the problems of debtors in District Court.  Judge Clyburn is even able to address access to justice concerns as he works to create the new statewide case management system.

The Public Justice Center received the Program of the Year Award for its Tenants in Foreclosure Project.  In addition to advocating for their clients, the Center was instrumental in the changes to Maryland law and rules that protect tenants in foreclosure.

The Legislator of the Year award went to Sen. Brian Frosh and Del. Kathleen Dumais for their work in the 2010 legislative session that lead to the passage of HB106/SB248.  This legislation increased surcharges on court filing fees for the funding of legal services in Maryland.

I received the Judicial Branch Excellence Award for the library’s self-help and training programs and for the use of Web 2.0 technologies in these efforts.  Having been nominated for the award by my colleagues in the law library and public library community means more to me than I can properly say.

In his brief remarks the Governor stated “that often the difference between justice and injustice is access.” I am pleased that the programs instituted here in the law library have been recognized as contributing to this access.

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lawlibrary

Family Self Help Center has moved to the Law Library

Today was the first day that the Family Law Self Help Center operated as part of the law library.  The actual move took place on Friday.  The Center assisted 32 people today with the majority arriving before noon.  This made for an interesting, no time to think about it,  adjustment.  We will be working out the logistics as time goes on.

The library and the center have always cross referred. It could be difficult for the clients who would have to trek back and forth between the second and third floors.  Now all of the self help resources are in one spot making it easier for the center and library to collaborate.

The hours of the Family Law Self Help Center will remain the same:

Monday 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Tuesday 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Wednesday 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Thursday 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Friday 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
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lawlibrary

Anne Arundel County Homeless Resource Day to Serve as Model for the State

The Anne Arundel County Homeless Resource Day Wrap-Up meeting was held on Friday, April 8.  Service provider coordinators were invited to review the successes of the day and to plan for next year by discussing challenges encountered on the day and the service provider feedback.

County Executive John Leopold welcomed all meeting attendees as they arrived and thanked them individually.  The County Executive spoke to the group and stated  that he believes that it is the responsibility of this mostly affluent county to  meet the needs of those in need.  Leopold sees Homeless Resource Day as a great example of  the collaboration of  many different entities resulting in the delivery of concrete services without cost to those in need.   It was the county Executive who was behind Anne Arundel County’s first Homeless Resource Day four years ago.  After seeing such a program offered in another state, Leopold approached the Department of Social Services and asked that they implement the program in Anne Arundel.  DSS has coordinated the program ever since.

Governor Martin O’Malley, after reading about this year’s Homeless Resource Day, would like to replicate the Anne Arundel County program across the state.  Marcia Kennai, Director of DSS, reported that Cecil, Carroll, Montgomery and Baltimore counties are already planning a Homeless Resource Days to take place by next October.

Final statistics for the day reported at the meeting were even higher than first estimated.  There were 674 individuals served including 230 men, 207 women and 237 children.  I was able to report that eight attorneys served 70 individuals by providing legal advice to  answer 94 questions.