A recent article in U.S. News highlights 11 mobile apps of interest to law students. Many of the important apps highlighted in the article include legal research platforms (such as WestlawNext, Lexis Advance, and HeinOnline) and legal news apps (ABA Journal and SCOTUSblog). Another interesting app that is listed is Law Dojo, which is a "series of games that test a player’s knowledge on subjects like civil procedure, torts, contracts, criminal law and more." Three quizzes are available in the free version, and players earn points by answering questions correctly.
Interested in more information about gaming in legal education? The Gallagher Law Library Blog from the University of Washington recently posted on this topic, including a bibliography of scholarship in this area.
For a comprehensive guide to legal mobile apps, consider the UCLA Law Library's LibGuide on Mobile Applications for Law Students and Lawyers. This comprehensive guide breaks down the wide world of apps into categories such as Legal Research and News, Apps for Law School and Bar Study, and Productivity Apps.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Highlights from the 82nd Annual Meeting of the State Bar of South Dakota
Last week, Law Library Director Darla Jackson attended the Annual Meeting of the South Dakota State Bar. Director Jackson attended sessions on Electronic Filing in South Dakota State Court, Law Practice Management, eDiscovery, and legal research using the Fastcase platform. She also participated in the meeting of the South Dakota Indian Country Bar. For more information about the Annual Meeting and CLE programs, see information available on the State Bar's website here. The Law Library will have additional materials from the CLE sessions available in the near future.
Left: Phil Rosenthal of Fastcase demonstrates using the platform for legal research. Fastcase is available to members of the South Dakota State Bar.
Right: The South Dakota Unified Judicial System provided an update and training regarding the Odyssey File and Serve system.
Left: Brendan Johnson, United States Attorney for the District of South Dakota and J.R. LaPlante, Secretary of the South Dakota Department of Tribal Relations were among the honored guest at the South Dakota Indian Country Bar Association Meeting.
Right: The session on eDiscovery featured technical and practical tips from Colleen Zea of Computer Forensic Resources, Inc., (Sioux Falls) and Bob Trzynka of Cutler & Donahoe (Sioux Falls). Panel discussions featured the Honorable Karen E. Schreier, United States District Judge, District of South Dakota, Southern Division (Sioux Falls) and the Honorable Craig A. Pfeifle, Seventh Circuit Judge (Rapid City).
Left: Phil Rosenthal of Fastcase demonstrates using the platform for legal research. Fastcase is available to members of the South Dakota State Bar.Left: Brendan Johnson, United States Attorney for the District of South Dakota and J.R. LaPlante, Secretary of the South Dakota Department of Tribal Relations were among the honored guest at the South Dakota Indian Country Bar Association Meeting.Right: The session on eDiscovery featured technical and practical tips from Colleen Zea of Computer Forensic Resources, Inc., (Sioux Falls) and Bob Trzynka of Cutler & Donahoe (Sioux Falls). Panel discussions featured the Honorable Karen E. Schreier, United States District Judge, District of South Dakota, Southern Division (Sioux Falls) and the Honorable Craig A. Pfeifle, Seventh Circuit Judge (Rapid City).Friday, June 20, 2014
Contractors to Begin Work in the Law Library
Beginning on Monday, June 23, contractors will begin working on improvements to the main floor of the Law Library. Several clusters of study carrels will be removed and construction will begin on a Technology Learning Center. The technology learning center will provide access to new laptops and other technology to facilitate training regarding the use of technology in the practice of law.
Additional work will also begin on the upper level of the Law Library near future. The work on the upper level will support the relocation of new study tables with lighting and data capabilities.
Please be aware that this construction will be ongoing for the immediate future, with an anticipated completion date by the end of July. However, all Law Library resources will remain accessible and circulation/reference services will continue as normal from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Anyone desiring a carrel reassignment due to the construction should contact Connie.Dorzok at usd.edu in the Dean's Suite.
Additional work will also begin on the upper level of the Law Library near future. The work on the upper level will support the relocation of new study tables with lighting and data capabilities.
Please be aware that this construction will be ongoing for the immediate future, with an anticipated completion date by the end of July. However, all Law Library resources will remain accessible and circulation/reference services will continue as normal from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Anyone desiring a carrel reassignment due to the construction should contact Connie.Dorzok at usd.edu in the Dean's Suite.
5th Circuit Upholds Federal Ban on Animal Crush Videos
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld the constitutionality of the Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010 in the case of United States v. Richards. A copy of the opinion is available here.
The 2010 Act bans videos that depict "obscene" acts of animal cruelty. The obscenity requirement was added to the 2010 Act after the U.S. Supreme Court held a prior version of the law to be overbroad and in violation of the First Amendment.
The ABA recently reported on the opinion here. Additional information is available here from the blog of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, which filed an amicus brief in the case.
Interested in other issues related to animal law? Consider Animal Law in a Nutshell, available in the Law Library's Study Aids collection on the main floor.
The 2010 Act bans videos that depict "obscene" acts of animal cruelty. The obscenity requirement was added to the 2010 Act after the U.S. Supreme Court held a prior version of the law to be overbroad and in violation of the First Amendment.
The ABA recently reported on the opinion here. Additional information is available here from the blog of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, which filed an amicus brief in the case.
Interested in other issues related to animal law? Consider Animal Law in a Nutshell, available in the Law Library's Study Aids collection on the main floor.
Track Changes for SCOTUS: Monitoring Post-Decision Revisions to Supreme Court Opinions
A recent study by Richard Lazarus, a Harvard Law Professor, has revealed that changes -- both minor and substantive -- are frequently made to U.S. Supreme Court opinions after they are initially published. The study is highlighted in a recent New York Times article. For example, the article discusses that Justice Scalia recently revised the heading of a section of a dissent he wrote in a case involving the EPA, and a sentence from Justice O'Connor's concurrence in Lawrence v. Texas (2003) was deleted in 2006.
This week, the ABA Journal has reported that a new app has been developed which crawls slip opinions from the Supreme Court website and automatically tweets any differences that are located. A recent tweet highlights a change from "an" to "a" in Republic of Argentina v. NML Capital, Ltd. (2014).
To access slip opinions from the U.S. Supreme Court's website from the current term of court, click here.
This week, the ABA Journal has reported that a new app has been developed which crawls slip opinions from the Supreme Court website and automatically tweets any differences that are located. A recent tweet highlights a change from "an" to "a" in Republic of Argentina v. NML Capital, Ltd. (2014).
To access slip opinions from the U.S. Supreme Court's website from the current term of court, click here.
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Update on Law School Air Conditioning Outage
As of the afternoon of Wednesday, June 18, the air conditioning has been restored to the Law School building. The Law Library is now experiencing normal indoor temperatures.
Law School Air Conditioning Outage
The McKusick Law Library would like to make our patrons aware that the Law School building is currently experiencing an outage of the air conditioning system. As of this point, there is not an estimated time for the system to be returned online. Visitors to the Law Library may experience warmer temperatures than normal. Please ask at the Circulation/Reference Desk if you would desire the temporary use of a fan.
The Prairie Law Blog will provide updates on the cooling situation as they become available.
The Prairie Law Blog will provide updates on the cooling situation as they become available.
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