Boston College Law Library

Boston College Law Library is a prominent research library located at Boston College in Newton, Massachusetts, and is part of the Boston College Law School. The library is named after David A. Ellis, a Boston College alumnus and former Massachusetts State Legislature member. It has a long history of providing research support to students, faculty, and staff, and is affiliated with the American Association of Law Libraries and the Association of American Law Schools. The library's collections and services are also utilized by researchers from neighboring institutions, including Harvard University and the University of Massachusetts Boston.

● History

The library was established in 1929, when Boston College Law School was founded by Boston College President William J. Devlin. The library's early collections were influenced by the Catholic University of America and the University of Notre Dame, and were shaped by the Canons of the Catholic Church and the Code of Canon Law. Over the years, the library has undergone several renovations and expansions, including a major renovation in 1996, which was supported by The Boston Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities. The library has also been influenced by the work of notable law librarians, including Robert Berring and Richard Danner, who have written extensively on Law library management and Legal research.

● Collections

The library's collections include over 500,000 volumes, including works on United States law, International law, and Comparative law. The library also has an extensive collection of Law journals and Law reviews, including the Harvard Law Review and the Yale Law Journal. The library's collections are also strong in areas such as Tax law, Intellectual property law, and Environmental law, with works by notable authors such as Erwin Chemerinsky and Cass Sunstein. The library is a member of the Federal Depository Library Program and receives United States government documents, including those from the United States Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. The library also participates in the Boston Library Consortium, which provides access to the collections of other area libraries, including the Boston Public Library and the Massachusetts State Library.

● Facilities

The library is located in the Boston College Law School building, which was designed by Kallmann McKinnell & Wood and completed in 1996. The library occupies over 50,000 square feet of space, including a large reading room, group study rooms, and individual study carrels. The library also has a Computer lab with over 50 workstations, which provide access to a range of Legal research databases, including Westlaw, LexisNexis, and Bloomberg Law. The library's facilities are also equipped with Wireless networking and Printing and Scanning services. The library is accessible to students with disabilities, and is in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Section 508 standards.

● Services

The library provides a range of services to support the research needs of students, faculty, and staff, including Research assistance and Instructional programs. The library's reference staff are available to provide guidance on Legal research and Citation style, and can be reached through Email, Phone, or in-person consultations. The library also offers Interlibrary loan services, which provide access to materials from other libraries, including the Library of Congress and the New York Public Library. The library's services are also supported by a range of online resources, including Research guides and Tutorials, which cover topics such as Case law and Statutory law. The library is a member of the American Association of Law Libraries and the Association of American Law Schools, and participates in the National Conference of Law Libraries.

● Technology

The library provides access to a range of Legal research databases, including Westlaw, LexisNexis, and Bloomberg Law. The library's online resources also include HeinOnline, which provides access to a range of Law journals and Law reviews, and ProQuest Congressional, which provides access to United States government documents. The library's technology services are supported by a range of hardware and software, including Computers, Printers, and Scanners. The library also provides Wireless networking and Mobile apps, which allow students to access library resources from their Laptops and Smartphones. The library's technology services are also integrated with the Boston College Learning management system, which provides access to online courses and Distance education programs. The library is also a member of the Coalition for Networked Information and the Association for Computing Machinery. Category:Law libraries in the United States