This is in response to the discussion begun by Elizabeth Bell
regarding Advanced Legal Research. Here are the J. Reuben Clark
Law School, as a requirement for graduation, all students must
complete 10 modules of advanced legal research training. Each
module last approximately a half day and is taught at various times
during the school year, generally during semester breaks, placement
break, and on some Saturdays.
At the end of the school year, in April, we teach a seminar we
call the "Advanced Legal Research Training Seminar". Its focus is
preparing students for their summer clerkships. It begins with a
keynote speaker (usually a prominent local attorney) followed by a
panel made up of a law firm librarian, a judicial clerk, someone
from the AG's office and a second- or third-year student who has
clerked with a large law firm. (This all varies from year-to-
year.) They address the subject of what it takes to have a
successful clerkship. The rest of the week is spent teaching our
half-day modules, along with Advanced Lexis and Westlaw training.
Some of the modules we have developed are review courses on
judicial, legislative and administrative sources (these are taught
only during the Seminar week), legislative history, federal tax law
research, federal securities, environmental, government documents,
non-legal databases, treaties and international agreements, court
rules, and research methodology. We are continually developing new
topics as we see the need.
These courses are taught by Library Faculty, including myself,
Kory Staheli, Dennis Sears, Gary Hill and Constance Lundberg, all
who have dual degrees. Obviously there is a great deal of time
spent in preparing our lectures, handouts, exercises and overhead
illustrations. I would guess that the average 1-2 hour lecture
takes 20-30 hours (or more) preparation. It has been somewhat a
drain on our resources. However, in the past 18 months, since we
began this program, we have gradually increased the number of
courses taught until now we have quite a number.
The biggest problem we have faced in all this is scheduling.
The only time we could hold our Advanced Legal Research Training
Seminar conflicts with the Law Review Write-on. Consequently, we
hold it two weeks running, with the second week being on a smaller
scale (i.e. we don't do the keynote speaker and panel discussion
twice although it is video taped). We have had very positive
feedback from the students on the value of the program, although
many grumble since it is a requirement for graduation. We have
found it necessary to require the students to sign up in advance.
We didn't do that last Christmas break and I had only one student
show up for my class on legislative history and then decide that he
had already had that course.
I hope this has been valuable and not too lengthy. If anyone
has question regarding our program, any of the library staff would
be glad to send more information.
Karen Newmeyer
newmeyerk@lawgate.byu.edu
Brigham Young University
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