The Goodson Blogson

At the beginning of the school year, we reported on AudioCaseFiles , which provides audio recording of case law from many of the most popular law school casebooks, calling it “an ideal service for auditory learners, those with long commutes, and perhaps even insomniacs.” With final exams a month away, we recently revisited AudioCaseFiles and discovered that the option to “Browse Audio by Casebook” includes MP3s of the cases from several 1L casebooks on the spring 2009 book list: Criminal Law and Its Processes: Cases and Materials (Kadish); Constitutional Law (Chemerinsky); and Property: Cases and Materials (Cribbet). AudioCaseFiles also offers material of interest beyond the first year: more than 4,000 hours of trial practice videos from real cases in a variety of jurisdictions. The full list of trial video is available at http://www.audiocasefiles.com/crl_cases ; you may also browse video by practice area or jurisdiction. Register for AudioCaseFiles with your law school e-mail addr...

The reference librarians are conducting their annual spring "Research Refresher" series until Friday, April 3. Each hour-long workshop tackles a different area of legal research, and is intended to help students make a smooth transition from law school to law practice. Slides, handouts, and audio from this week's refreshers are posted at http://www.law.duke.edu/lib/workshops/ . After you catch up on what you've missed, join us for the remaining refreshers! There are still several great topics to be covered in the series: business and company information; free and low-cost sources for legal research; health/medical research; immigration law resources; and tax law research . The final workshop in the series will discuss strategies for "Putting it All Together: Taking a Research Assignment from Start to Finish." Classes are conducted each weekday from 12:15p.m.-1:15p.m. in the library's Fite Training Room (level 2). View the full schedule and RSVP (optional...

Over the next several weeks, LexisNexis representative James O'Leary and Westlaw representative Greg Halbrook will lead training sessions which are designed to teach new summer associates more cost-effective research skills. Although most employers provide in-house training for new associates, taking these courses ahead of time will give you a competitive advantage upon arrival at your firm. View the calendar and sign up for classes at the following links (login required): LexisNexis "Cost-Effective Research" Training Schedule Westlaw "Prepare to Practice" Training Schedule For more legal research tips and tricks, take advantage of the library's Research Refresher series, which runs from March 23-April 3 from 12:15-1:15 p.m. in the Fite Room. Each day brings a new topic-- check out the full list in the above-linked post, or RSVP (optional) on Facebook .

With one month left until the April 15 deadline for filing federal income taxes, the Goodson Law Library usually begins to hear an increase in tax-related questions from library users. Here are our top three tax questions: 1. Does the library have tax forms? The Goodson Law Library does not maintain a collection of printed tax forms, but visitors are able to access and print the IRS’s collection of Forms and Publications or state tax forms on our public-access workstations. (If you prefer paper copies of forms, check your local Durham County Library branch.) 2. Can library staff help me do my taxes? Library staff are unable to provide substantive advice on legal problems or interpret legal materials for you, including tax laws. However, Duke Law does have a student organization, VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) , which assists low- and moderate-income taxpayers with the preparation of tax returns. VITA’s website provides a calendar with various locations; appointments are re...

Most legal job-seekers already know how to carefully craft resumes and cover letters, and that they must dress-- and behave-- professionally at interviews and call-backs. But it’s how they behave in their "off" time that may ultimately cost them the job: last year, nearly a quarter of hiring managers surveyed by CareerBuilder.com admitted to investigating candidate profiles on social networks and other websites; of these employers, one-third had declined to interview or hire a candidate based upon what they found. ( Full Story ) Suddenly haunted by that Facebook photo album from last year’s Halloween party? Worried about all those spirited debates you had on that geeky listserv back in college? Looking up resources to legally change your name? Hold on! The Goodson Blogson is here to help you clear your good name. 1. Google thyself. See what potential employers will see. Put your name in quotation marks; experiment with and without your middle initial. If you have a very commo...

Each year, law firms report some dissatisfaction with the research skills of summer associates and new associates. (For the results of a recent survey, see Partnership and Solutions for Preparing Job-Ready Attorneys , July 2008.) In today's economy, top-notch research skills could give you a competitive edge in the job market. But what if you've already forgotten everything you learned in LARW? Research Refreshers to the rescue! This two-week, 10-class workshop series will review the building blocks of legal research and also demystify some advanced topics which are commonly encountered in real-world legal practice. All classes will take place in the Fite Room (Level 2 of the library) from 12:15-1:15 p.m. on the following days: Mon 3/23 : "You Want Me to Research What?! ?": Getting Background & Keeping Current Tues 3/24 : Statutes & Legislative History Wed 3/25 : Cases & Court Documents Thu 3/26 : Regulations & Administrative Law Materials Fri 3/27 ...

The Goodson Law Library will operate under reduced service hours from Friday 3/6 until Sunday 3/15, in observance of the Law School's spring break. Fri 3/6 : Library closes at 5 p.m. Sat 3/7-Sun 3/8 : CLOSED Mon 3/9-Fri 3/13 : 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Sat 3/14 : CLOSED Sun 3/15: Regular hours resume Over the break, current Law School students, faculty and staff will retain 24-hour building access with a DukeCard.