Encounters with Sources
Law Library Journal, Vol. 93, pp. 355-361, 2001
7 Pages Posted: 22 Jan 2010
Date Written: April 1, 2001
Abstract
This essay discusses ways that reference librarians become familiar with sources. There are many paths: classroom instruction, reading, word of mouth, trial and error. I illustrate the learning process by recounting several examples from my reference work, ranging from an old source in print (Congressional Globe) to a professional journal added to Westlaw. Other examples are tracking a model law in the Handbook of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws and helping a public patron find a case when he had only skimpy information about it.
Keywords: reference, legal research, law librarianship
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