The May 2013 issue of the Internet Law Researcher newsletter (which is available to members of the Duke Law community through Westlaw's GLILR database) rounds up a bibliography of legislation and articles related to digital asset estate planning. To locate the article in Westlaw Classic or WestlawNext, use the citation 18 No. 5 Internet L. Researcher 1.
Planning for death has always been an uncomfortable and difficult topic for most people, and the growth of social media and other online accounts has added a new layer of complexity to sorting out the affairs of the recently deceased. Author Ken Kozlowski describes the current situation as "a big mess" in which "the federal Stored Communications Act (SCA) [is] being cited as a reason for services such as Facebook to withhold access to deceased individuals' accounts, passwords, stored photos, etc." Five states have passed legislation related to control of deceased individuals' online accounts, and undoubtedly more state legislatures will follow suit.
The Internet Law Researcher article recommends a number of publications from legal and mainstream sources, including the recent law review student note by Maria Perrone, What Happens When We Die: Estate Planning of Digital Assets, and the blog Digital Passing. The recommended resources offer tips for developing a plan to handle digital assets after death, and serve as a good supplement to the Goodson Law Library's collection of estate planning guides, most of which do not discuss digital assets in detail.
To locate more basic estate planning materials, try the Legal Information Reference Center's section of Wills & Estate Planning, which contains e-book version of self-help law titles like 2012's Get it Together: Organize Your Records So Your Family Won't Have To and 2011's Quick & Legal Will Book. The Goodson Law Library's collection also contains more specialized materials like Estate Planning for Same-Sex Couples or the Bloomberg BNA Tax Management Portfolio Estate Planning for the Unmarried Adult. To locate items in the Duke Libraries Catalog, try a subject search for "estate planning – United States" or Ask a Librarian.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Friday, May 3, 2013
Life After Westlaw Printers
Last year, Westlaw announced that it would cease support for dedicated printers in summer 2013. As a result, the two Duke Law dedicated Westlaw printers will be removed from the library during the week of May 13, and users will no longer see these machines as a printing option within Westlaw Classic or WestlawNext.
But wait! You can still print out Westlaw-generated documents at the Goodson Law Library – you'll just need to send them to the Law School's ePrint system instead. Our recommended method is to first download the documents within WestlawNext or Westlaw Classic for a quick review, in order to ensure that you send only those pages you actually need to the printer; for example, the research references and case notes within annotated code sections can increase a print job exponentially!
However, users may also wish to consider the more environmentally-friendly option of online storage, in folders. Within Westlaw, this feature is exclusive to the newer WestlawNext interface, but is a great way for users to organize multiple research projects or issues. Access and manage your folders from the link in the upper right-hand corner of WestlawNext. There is no limit to how many documents you can store in your various folders, unless you wish to export them to your computer (in which case, a folder cannot contain more than 100 items). For collaborative projects, you can also opt to share folders with others in your "organization" (i.e., Duke Law).
LexisNexis plans to keep its dedicated printers for the time being (one in the Document Production Room on Level 3 and one in the journals area on Level 1), but they too offer a useful folder storage option within the Lexis Advance interface. Folders are accessible from the "My Workspace" drop-down menu in the upper right-hand corner of any screen within Lexis Advance. Lexis Advance folders can be annotated, searched, and shared with other users.
Bloomberg Law has never offered dedicated printing to law schools, but they do also provide an internal "Workspace" folder system, which can likewise be annotated, searched and shared. Workspace documentation can be accessed in Bloomberg's Help Center.
Before you print, consider your online options for storing your legal research findings! While the folder systems can undeniably limit users to a single research system (or create a confusing system of multiple folders on the same topic across different research services), they also certainly offer some advantages over stacks of printouts. Perhaps most importantly, the built-in citator services continue to update within your online folders, meaning that you'll be able to tell at a glance whether a case in your folder has received negative treatment since the last time you viewed it. The sharing and document annotation options also make these an appealing method to collaborate on research projects.
For help with using the folder storage within legal research services, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
But wait! You can still print out Westlaw-generated documents at the Goodson Law Library – you'll just need to send them to the Law School's ePrint system instead. Our recommended method is to first download the documents within WestlawNext or Westlaw Classic for a quick review, in order to ensure that you send only those pages you actually need to the printer; for example, the research references and case notes within annotated code sections can increase a print job exponentially!
However, users may also wish to consider the more environmentally-friendly option of online storage, in folders. Within Westlaw, this feature is exclusive to the newer WestlawNext interface, but is a great way for users to organize multiple research projects or issues. Access and manage your folders from the link in the upper right-hand corner of WestlawNext. There is no limit to how many documents you can store in your various folders, unless you wish to export them to your computer (in which case, a folder cannot contain more than 100 items). For collaborative projects, you can also opt to share folders with others in your "organization" (i.e., Duke Law).
LexisNexis plans to keep its dedicated printers for the time being (one in the Document Production Room on Level 3 and one in the journals area on Level 1), but they too offer a useful folder storage option within the Lexis Advance interface. Folders are accessible from the "My Workspace" drop-down menu in the upper right-hand corner of any screen within Lexis Advance. Lexis Advance folders can be annotated, searched, and shared with other users.
Bloomberg Law has never offered dedicated printing to law schools, but they do also provide an internal "Workspace" folder system, which can likewise be annotated, searched and shared. Workspace documentation can be accessed in Bloomberg's Help Center.
Before you print, consider your online options for storing your legal research findings! While the folder systems can undeniably limit users to a single research system (or create a confusing system of multiple folders on the same topic across different research services), they also certainly offer some advantages over stacks of printouts. Perhaps most importantly, the built-in citator services continue to update within your online folders, meaning that you'll be able to tell at a glance whether a case in your folder has received negative treatment since the last time you viewed it. The sharing and document annotation options also make these an appealing method to collaborate on research projects.
For help with using the folder storage within legal research services, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Good Law, Bad Bot
Today, the makers of the legal research service FastCase unveiled the Bad Law Bot, an enhancement to its Authority Check citator feature which uses algorithms to highlight subsequent negative history. Although such editorial characterization is familiar to users of the premium legal research services LexisNexis (Shepard's Citations) and Westlaw (KeyCite), this represents a major step forward for the lower-cost legal research alternative. Authority Check previously provided only a list of linked opinions which cited the original case, and always recommended that users supplement their Authority Check findings with the additional horsepower of Shepard's and KeyCite.
FastCase does still caution that the Bad Law Bot flags are no substitute for the careful analysis of a human attorney – while the presence of a negative Bad Law Bot flag likely indicates some negative subsequent history, the absence of a negative Bad Law Bot flag shouldn't necessarily be interpreted to mean "all clear." (Of course, as Duke Law's research instructors will happily remind you, this is good advice for using the premium citator services as well!) You can see a screencap of the service in action on FastCase’s announcement of the service.
FastCase is available for free to members of the North Carolina Bar Association, as well as through about 25 other state and local bar associations. Many other state and local bars provide their members with rival research alternatives, such as Casemaker and Loislaw; you can read more about all three in our library guide to Legal Research on the Web.
For help with navigating citator services on any legal research platform, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
FastCase does still caution that the Bad Law Bot flags are no substitute for the careful analysis of a human attorney – while the presence of a negative Bad Law Bot flag likely indicates some negative subsequent history, the absence of a negative Bad Law Bot flag shouldn't necessarily be interpreted to mean "all clear." (Of course, as Duke Law's research instructors will happily remind you, this is good advice for using the premium citator services as well!) You can see a screencap of the service in action on FastCase’s announcement of the service.
FastCase is available for free to members of the North Carolina Bar Association, as well as through about 25 other state and local bar associations. Many other state and local bars provide their members with rival research alternatives, such as Casemaker and Loislaw; you can read more about all three in our library guide to Legal Research on the Web.
For help with navigating citator services on any legal research platform, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Federal Budget Research
Yesterday, the U.S. Government Printing Office announced the release of the President's Budget of the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2014. The Goodson Law Library's print copy has not yet arrived, but users can read and search the online version at FDsys or the Office of Management and Budget. And there's even an app version for mobile devices!
For news and information about the President's budget proposal as well as the competing version in the House of Representatives, visit the Center for Effective Government (formerly known as OMB Watch). This nonprofit research center provides analysis of budget proposals. CQ Weekly, a subscription database available to the Duke University community, contains regular reports on budget-related actions in Congress.
Historical budgets can be found through FDsys back to 1996 and through the Federal Reserve back to 1926. The Goodson Law Library also maintains a historical print collection of the federal budget at Documents PrEx 2.8. For assistance with locating current or past federal budgets, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
For news and information about the President's budget proposal as well as the competing version in the House of Representatives, visit the Center for Effective Government (formerly known as OMB Watch). This nonprofit research center provides analysis of budget proposals. CQ Weekly, a subscription database available to the Duke University community, contains regular reports on budget-related actions in Congress.
Historical budgets can be found through FDsys back to 1996 and through the Federal Reserve back to 1926. The Goodson Law Library also maintains a historical print collection of the federal budget at Documents PrEx 2.8. For assistance with locating current or past federal budgets, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
A New Source for Superseded State Codes
HeinOnline has just added a new library of State Statutes: A Historical Archive to its collection. This library contains PDF scans of historic codes from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, with some materials dating back to the early 18th century.
Why is this collection important? It provides easier online access to superseded state code sections, which researchers typically must access in print or microfiche at the Goodson Law Library or through limited online availability. Superseded codes allow you to view the text of the law in force, as amended, on a particular date in time, as opposed to session laws, which provide the text of the law as originally enacted by the legislature. A single code section may contain small pieces from many different session laws, so deducing the text of a code section on a particular date from only the session laws can be a difficult and frustrating process. But if you'd like to compare for yourself, State Statutes: A Historical Archive complements HeinOnline’s existing library of State Session Laws.
Current state codes are not a part of this online collection. In addition, some historic state codes are still being digitized for this project. Current state codes are available in print in the Goodson Law Library on level 3, and superseded editions of those codes can be located in the Superseded Codes collection and/or the Microforms Room on Level 1. Current and some superseded state codes can also be found online in LexisNexis and Westlaw, with historical editions generally dating back to the early 1990s. Many legislatures also post online versions of their current codes; free superseded editions are less common but may still be available through the state legislature's website.
To locate current state codes or more recent superseded codes which are not a part of this HeinOnline library, or for help using the new HeinOnline database, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
Why is this collection important? It provides easier online access to superseded state code sections, which researchers typically must access in print or microfiche at the Goodson Law Library or through limited online availability. Superseded codes allow you to view the text of the law in force, as amended, on a particular date in time, as opposed to session laws, which provide the text of the law as originally enacted by the legislature. A single code section may contain small pieces from many different session laws, so deducing the text of a code section on a particular date from only the session laws can be a difficult and frustrating process. But if you'd like to compare for yourself, State Statutes: A Historical Archive complements HeinOnline’s existing library of State Session Laws.
Current state codes are not a part of this online collection. In addition, some historic state codes are still being digitized for this project. Current state codes are available in print in the Goodson Law Library on level 3, and superseded editions of those codes can be located in the Superseded Codes collection and/or the Microforms Room on Level 1. Current and some superseded state codes can also be found online in LexisNexis and Westlaw, with historical editions generally dating back to the early 1990s. Many legislatures also post online versions of their current codes; free superseded editions are less common but may still be available through the state legislature's website.
To locate current state codes or more recent superseded codes which are not a part of this HeinOnline library, or for help using the new HeinOnline database, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Summer Legal Research Access
It may be hard to believe now, but in just a few weeks your final exams and papers will be a distant memory as you begin your summer job. Starting in May, many commonly-used legal research resources restrict student access over the summer, to help avoid the use of nonprofit educational passwords at paid summer employment. However, each service treats summer access a little bit differently, and there may be further variations for continuing vs. graduating students. Here’s your guide to summer database access.
- Bloomberg Law accounts are valid between school terms and for 6 months after you graduate. Your Law School Bloomberg account may be used for both academic and employment-related purposes, including full access to federal court filings from PACER (see our research guide). If you do not already have a Bloomberg Law account, you may Request A Law School Account with your Duke email address.
- LexisNexis will provide unlimited access this summer to Lexis Advance, its next-generation research interface. Beginning in May, Lexis Advance will be available for use over the summer for both academic and employment-related purposes. The Lexis.com interface will be available for academic (non-commercial) use only until July. 2013 graduates will have full access to Lexis Advance through July 31; continuing students will have unlimited access until August 31.
- Westlaw offers extensions of your Law School password for academic work, including: summer classes, journal work, projects for faculty, moot court, unpaid/non-profit public interest internships or externships, or a pro bono project that is required for graduation. Commercial use of your Law School password (such as at a law firm summer job) is strictly prohibited. Recent graduates can also extend their Westlaw passwords to obtain 10 free hours of research time for bar exam study. If you qualify for a summer extension of your Westlaw password, log in to the extension page and follow the instructions.
- Other Duke Library Databases: Access to Duke University databases for continuing students is still available over the summer with a NetID and password. Recent graduates will find that their off-campus, NetID-based access to other subscription databases (such as HeinOnline and LegalTrac) expires very quickly after graduation. Alumni may access many University and Law School subscription databases on-site via the reading room computer terminals.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Digging the Deal Pipeline
The Goodson Law Library is pleased to offer campus-wide access to The Deal Pipeline, a source for news about recent corporate deals and transactions around the world. Current University students, faculty and staff may access the site with a NetID and password.
The Deal Pipeline provides valuable news and insight about private companies, which can be elusive compared to the more accessible information about publicly-traded companies in their required government filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The site includes data back to 1989; the latest news stories can be searched or browsed by topic of deal, date, industry, deal amount, and global region. Available topics include bankruptcy, initial public offerings, mergers & acquisitions, private equity, technology, and venture capital. There are also options to browse a Company Finder or a People Finder.
For additional Duke resources containing corporate news and information about deals, visit the Databases by Subject page at the Fuqua School of Business's Ford Library. The list explains any usage limitations; for example, recommended investment database Thomson One requires the use of the Internet Explorer browser, while venture capital resource VentureXPert must be used on-site at the Ford Library on special workstations.
For more help with business and company research, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
The Deal Pipeline provides valuable news and insight about private companies, which can be elusive compared to the more accessible information about publicly-traded companies in their required government filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The site includes data back to 1989; the latest news stories can be searched or browsed by topic of deal, date, industry, deal amount, and global region. Available topics include bankruptcy, initial public offerings, mergers & acquisitions, private equity, technology, and venture capital. There are also options to browse a Company Finder or a People Finder.
For additional Duke resources containing corporate news and information about deals, visit the Databases by Subject page at the Fuqua School of Business's Ford Library. The list explains any usage limitations; for example, recommended investment database Thomson One requires the use of the Internet Explorer browser, while venture capital resource VentureXPert must be used on-site at the Ford Library on special workstations.
For more help with business and company research, be sure to Ask a Librarian.
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