Inside this issue:
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Dear Colleagues, Interested in knowing how a fellow faculty member is using Bloomberg Law in his research? Have you found the latest content added to HeinOnline? These topics and more are covered here in the spring edition of the Law Library newsletter. We hope that you will find many useful resources and suggestions to apply in your teaching and research. We also hope that you can join us for the fourth annual Diversity Read on March 15 at noon. We will gather in the Law Library's conference room to share in a brown bag lunch and to discuss diversity issues in our BCLS community. This year, the law students chose the community read title for our diversity discussion by popular vote: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. Copies are available in print and on the Law Library's Kindles for you to check out. Remember that we always welcome your suggestions and comments. Peace,
Filippa Marullo Anzalone |
Professor and Associate Dean for Information and Technology
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Spotlight on Faculty Use of Library Resources: Brian Quinn and Bloomberg Law
Can you describe for me how you use Bloomberg Law Dockets? Quinn: I used Bloomberg Law Dockets just the other day for my mergers and acquisitions class. I pulled the judge's letter opinion in a consolidation case in Delaware's Court of Chancery and used the letter opinion and other documents in the case to demonstrate the process. Instead of just hearing a lecture, the students can see the documents that must be filed, the procedures that must be followed, and the elements that must be met before a consolidation is approved in court. Do you use Bloomberg Law Dockets for scholarly research as well as classroom teaching? Quinn: I used Bloomberg Law Dockets in my research for my recent article on shareholder litigation. I was able to access shareholder complaints, summary judgment materials, including briefs, affidavits and exhibits and, of course, the trial court opinions in shareholder lawsuits. I've also used Bloomberg's courier retrieval service five or six times to get copies of court pleadings and opinions which aren't available online. Could you describe that service? Quinn: As long as you know the name of a case, the court in which the case is filed and can reasonably identify the documents you need, the Law Library can order the documents from Bloomberg Law. Bloomberg Law sends someone to the court to get copies of the documents and emails scanned images within a day or two. I've used this service both through the Law Library and on my own to get copies of documents from state courts in California, Texas, New York and Delaware. Is there anything else that you particularly like about Bloomberg Law Dockets? Quinn: The Docket Alert feature is great. I use Bloomberg Docket Alerts to track business litigation in Delaware's Court of Chancery. Bloomberg emails me whenever something is filed in the matters I'm following. I'm able to access court pleadings and opinions in Delaware within an hour of filing. The interface has improved. Bloomberg used to have a DOS interface. The new HTML interface is much easier to use. Court dockets are starting to become available on other services like Westlaw and Lexis, but Bloomberg Law Dockets seem to be the most comprehensive, plus the documents on Bloomberg Law are scanned images of the actual documents filed in court. Any interested BC Law student or faculty member can obtain a Bloomberg Law password by contacting a reference librarian or emailing lawref@bc.edu. |
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The 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War has focused renewed attention on this important era of American history. On October 19, 2011, Legal Information Librarian Mark Sullivan presented a program to interested students and staff which examined the shift in focus of Civil War research from military strategy and the political ramifications of the war to more personal and civilian-oriented aspects. During the presentation, he reviewed some exciting new research databases which have developed thanks to the expansion of the internet. |
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This is the first in a series of articles focusing on a faculty member's creative and expert use of research resources. Professor Brian Quinn is a frequent and longtime user of Bloomberg Law Dockets. One of the librarians recently discussed with Professor Quinn the many ways in which he uses Bloomberg Law Dockets.
