George Washington returns overdue book 221 years late

The library at Mount Vernon, George Washington's estate in Virginia, replaced a copy of a book borrowed in October 5, 1789 by George Washington from the New York Library Society. The book in question was an influential book on international law, The Law of Nations by Emer de Vattel. Washington borrowed the book six months after being sworn in as the first President of the United States under the new Constitution.

FEMA's New Website for Smartphones

FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, has recently announced the launch of new website specially designed for smartphones, available at http://m.fema.gov/.

Smartphones are becoming more prevalent, affordable, reliable and more viable to locate and obtain information and assistance. This service will provide yet another avenue for the sharing of important information that is so critical to ensuring the public is prepared for emergencies. As we've seen in recent cases, often times after a disaster, mobile devices become a crucial lifeline to provide information to survivors. ~ FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate

Alexander Greenawalt On Radovan Karadzic

Alexander Greenawalt, Associate Professor of Law at Pace University School of Law, regularly contributes to the New York Times microblog: Latest on Radovan Kradzic. Check out the latest posts! View the microblog here or subscribe directly to updates via RSS feed.

Digital repository for Pace Law School law reviews

Pace Law Review, Pace Environmental Law Review and Pace International Law Review are now available via the Pace University digital repository hosted by Bepress. The full-text of all issues, beginning with volume 1, issue 1, is available as searchable PDF files.

The law reviews were formerly available in the series format in the Pace Digital Commons, but have been migrated to the more appropriate journal format. Each issue includes the editorial board. Currently there are 1,634 articles in 173 issues comprising 79 volumes.

This project was managed by Cynthia Pittson, Head of Reference Services at Pace Law Library and Adjunct Professor of Law.

Pace Law Review was established in 1980, and celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Over the years it has published transcripts of speeches and lectures by current and former Supreme Court Justices, including Warren E. Burger, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Harry A. Blackmun.

Pace Environmental Law Review was established in 1983. The most recent issue is devoted to the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference.

Pace International Law Review was established in 1989. It devoted an early issue to discussion of the establishment of an international criminal court, and publishes frequent articles on the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

Articles from all three law reviews were downloaded over 50,000 times between May 2009 and April 2010 in the old series format.

Your Cheat Sheet for Local Rule Motion Practice - Part One: Southern District of New York

New from LLRX, a guide to motion practice in the Southern District of New York.

You know the Federal Rules backwards and forwards, but its compliance with the local rules that really makes a civil litigator look like a pro to colleagues and clients, and leaves the opposition in the dust. In this ongoing LLRX series, the editorial team of SmartRules will give you the tools to navigate motion practice in these busy federal courts with ease and grace. We've outlined the key provisions and highlighted the pitfalls. Here's what you really need to know about motion practice in the Southern District of New York.

2009 Legislative Scorecards Available

The American Library Association (ALA) released the 2009 Legislative Scorecards.

The Legislative Scorecard outlines votes and support of legislation that is important to and has an impact on the library community. Use this scorecard as a tool to gauge your elected officials' support of library related legislation.

The House and Senate Legislative Scorecards are both available in PDF format.

Google Translate Adds 5 More Languages

I don't believe that one should rely one hundred percent on an automatic online translation software because it is incapable of translating a concept. However, such service can be very useful at times. Google Translate is an example of such service; it now offers translation from and to 57 languages, including the latest addition of Armenian, Azerbaijani, Basque, Georgian, and Urdu languages. And although I would not blindly rely on its translation of legal documents or any other important documents per se, it does help to get at least an idea about what a document, paragraph, or a website is about.

The U.S. Courts Website Redesigned

The United States Courts website is redesigned. Today's announcement introduces new enhancements and highlight the primary goal of the website.

The site has been redesigned to make it more attractive, accessible, and useful to its diverse audience of users. The improvements further the website's mission of increasing public interest, awareness, and understanding of the federal court system and its functions, and to serve as a source for disseminating Federal Judiciary information to the public.

The website is a primary source of information on the structure, function, and operations of the federal courts. It plays an important role in how the Judiciary communicates to the public, with useful and timely information for students, news media, attorneys, academics, government officials, associations, and others - both in the United States and worldwide.

Among the objectives of the redesign are a more dynamic website that can integrate emerging web technologies, such as RSS, podcasts, and multimedia.

The website features email delivery services, multimedia services including video, podcasts, photos, YouTube channel, widgets, and read-aloud services.

Happy Birthday YouTube

Today, YouTube celebrates its 5th birthday. To celebrate its birthday, YouTube launched a special channel filled with five year timeline videos. Happy birthday!

Pace Law Library's Summer Hours

Although it only is middle of May, the Spring semester is over and the library's summer hours are in effect. Between May 15 and August 19, the library is open as follows, except for scheduled closings:

Monday - Thursday: 9:00 AM - 10:30 PM

Friday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Saturday and Sunday: 11:00 Am - 7:00 PM

Be sure to check our website for any closings and/or feel free to call the library's circulation desk at 914-422-4272.

N.Y. State Senate Passes Bill on Workplace Bullying

From the Senate press release:

New York State Senator Thomas P. Morahan, Chairman of the Committee on Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities today secured Senate passage of his landmark legislation (S.1823-B) which establishes a civil cause of action for employees who are subjected to an abusive work environment.

Mistreatment of employees in the workplace is a serious issue, but too often, workers have no recourse when they are subject to an abusive work environment,” said Senate Republican Leader Dean G. Skelos. “Senator Morahan’s legislation will help employees who have been harmed, physically, mentally or financially, and will encourage employers to do more to prevent and respond to this problem.

The text of S.1823-B is available here.

Microsoft Office on the Web

Just in case last week's NY Times article Revamped Microsoft Office Will Be Free On the Web slipped by you. According to the article, the latest version, talked about for a really long time, will include the usual Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint, but this version will be available online for free allowing users to store documents on the Web. It is scheduled to be available in June of this year.

Users of the new version of Office will be able to share and work on the same documents and presentations over the Internet rather than e-mailing files back and forth to each other.

New Additions to LLRX.com

Among the most recent additions on LLRX.com, are the following research guides:

A Compilation of State Lawyer Licensing Databases

Compiled by Andrew Zimmerman and Trevor Rosen.

Although this guide focuses on websites that help you determine whether a lawyer is currently licensed to practice in a particular state, there are many other kinds of state-specific lawyer-related online databases -- lawyer finders, lawyer referral services, bar member directories, disciplinary rolls, etc. Many of these resources can be found by following the links posted at LegalDockets.com.

Forensic Evidence and the CSI Effect

Compiled by Ken Strutin.

This is a collection of select legal scholarship and media studies that illuminates the extent of the phenomenon and whether it needs to be addressed and how. It should be noted that there is a large body of news articles, short-term scholarship, books and other media concerning this topic that is not covered in this survey.

Recently Added Research Guides

Pace Law Library uses LibGuides to create its legal research guides. Check out the home page and browse among our 28 legal research guides.

The following are the most recent additions:

Prisoners' Rights Law Resources

Includes federal, state, and international primary and secondary sources, in print and online, with a a particular focus on special populations and topical issues.

Securities Law Research Guide

Guide to statutes, regulations, treatises, and other sources of securities law.

Supreme Court Nominations

Information and resources about the Supreme Court appointment process and specific information about the recent nominees.

Genocide Resources

Sources of law, commentaries, and other secondary sources on genocide.

New Addition to Skype

According to Telegraph.co.uk, Skype launches monthly subscription service.

In a move that escalates its rivalry with the major telecommunication companies, Skype which makes its money from people using the services on a pay as you go basis to call landlines or mobiles, has expanded its subscription packages from 40 countries to 170.

The new monthly packages now also include calls to mobile phones, as well as landlines, and offer savings of up to 60 percent compared to its pay as you go rate.

I have been using Skype for as long as I can remember. Calling computer to computer is free. Calling landlines or mobile phones is often very convenient and ends up being much cheaper than using a cell phone, regular phone, or calling cards. Video option is available. Skype application for iPhone or iPod is available. Voicemail services are available. Recording audio/video software or add-on is available. Chat option is available. Sending text messages or SMS to a mobile phone service is also available. It is intuitive, easy to use, and not costly at all. Check Skype.com for more information.

The 19th Edition of Bluebook Is On The Horizon

The 19th edition of the Bluebook is scheduled to be released in May 2010, according to HeinOnline, and available for purchase from HeinOnline for $32.00.

The online version of Bluebook, available for $25.00 subscription fee, states the following on its order page:

Please be aware that we will be releasing the Nineteenth edition of the Bluebook by June 1.

Summer Access To Lexis, Loislaw, and Westlaw

Summer is approaching, so don't forget to register your Lexis and Westlaw passwords for summer access.

LexisNexis Summer Access

Students may register for LexisNexis Summer Access by requesting access to LexisNexis using their Law School Educational ID from June 1 to August 1, 2010 for academic purposes. Academic purposes include, but are not limited to:

• Class preparation and assignments
• Summer school or course work
• Research associated with moot court, law review, or law journal
• Research associated with pursuing a grant or scholarship
• Service as a paid or unpaid research assistant to a professor
• An internship, externship or clinic position for school credit or graduation requirement
• Research skill improvement, such as improving research efficiency and sharpening your area of law research skills as you prepare for practice
• Study for the Bar Exam
• NEW: Research skill improvement for education purposes. You can take any Lexis Interactive Tutorials to prepare for your summer or fall employment

Please note:

'Academic purposes' do not include research conducted for a law firm, corporation, or other entity (other than a professor or law school) that is paying the student to conduct research, or that is passing along the cost of research to a third party. These are deemed 'commercial purposes.'

Loislaw

Loislaw provides one low, all inclusive flat rate; no hidden charges for hyperlinking, downloading or printing; free training; and 24/7 technical support. Loislaw does not pose any summer access restrictions on students.

If you are not graduating this summer, click here to get the authorization code, so you can register for an account with Loislaw, if you have not already done so. The code is listed on TWEN, under Law Library on Twen - Passwords.

If you are graduating and will no longer be a student, Loislaw is also available for free through the New York State Bar Association website if you are a member.

Westlaw Summer Access

Extend your Westlaw password for the summer. Current students may use the Westlaw password for the following purposes:

• Summer law school classes
• Law review or journal work
• Project for a professor
• Moot Court
• Unpaid, nonprofit public interest internship/externship pro bono work required for graduation

Please note:

Graduating students may extend their Westlaw password for the summer for the purpose of preparing for the July bar exam. Passwords may NOT be used for research for law firms, government agencies, corporations or other purposes unrelated to law school coursework. Students graduating this academic year are not eligible. Even if student does not qualify to extend his/her Westlaw password, the password may still be used 2 hours a month in June and July.

Free and Low Cost Resources

The Pace Law Library also has a guide to free and low cost resources: Free and Low Cost Resources for Legal Research, compiled by Cynthia Pittson.