Whether or not they work in regulation corporations or company authorized, academia or authorities, regulation librarians play a central position in testing, recommending and deploying authorized expertise, based on the American Association of Law Libraries’ 2023 State of the Profession report, an exhaustive 252-page survey of the authorized info panorama.
That is the third time AALL has performed this survey, which is definitely three separate surveys of U.S. regulation librarians based mostly on the kind of group for which they work — one for these in regulation corporations and company authorized departments, one other for these in educational settings, and one other for these in authorities.
The survey is a deep dive into all sides of the career, together with library budgets, working environments, staffing, skilled abilities, skilled growth, and extra.
Whereas the report’s protection is wide-ranging, I have a tendency to leap to the findings associated to authorized expertise. Just like what I wrote concerning the AALL’s 2021 report and 2019 report, this yr’s survey continues to underscore the instrumental position regulation librarians play in innovation and expertise adoption inside their organizations.
‘A Essential Function’
With regard to agency/company regulation librarians, the survey discovered that they “play a vital position in bringing new expertise and analysis merchandise to their organizations.” Particularly:
- 89.1% are concerned with testing expertise and analysis merchandise.
- 94.5% are concerned with recommending expertise and analysis merchandise for buy.
- 100% are concerned with negotiating library, info useful resource and database contracts.
As could be anticipated, 100% of agency/company librarians are liable for overseeing analysis databases. Some 36% oversee their organizations’ information administration programs. Forty p.c say they oversee different expertise.
Amongst these working in educational regulation libraries, resembling at regulation faculties, their duties embody overseeing analysis platforms and databases (70.6%) and the library’s web site (54.4%). Almost half oversee the built-in library system or library administration system.
For regulation librarians working in authorities, they’re liable for offering management and administration for his or her organizations’ expertise choices, the survey finds.
Particularly, 57.9% of presidency regulation libraries report that employees recommends expertise and analysis merchandise for buy and 81.6% say that employees is concerned with negotiating library contracts.
Virtually all authorities regulation libraries — 91.9 p.c — handle their organizations’ analysis databases. As well as, 33.3% oversee information administration programs and eight.8% supervise their establishments’ intranet or SharePoint websites.
Most-Used Analysis Instruments
The report additionally offers knowledge on the analysis merchandise which might be hottest amongst regulation librarians, based mostly on numbers of energetic subscriptions.
For regulation agency and company regulation libraries, the most well-liked platform is Wolters Kluwer, utilized by 92.3% of respondents. Different well-liked companies have been:
- Westlaw (or Westlaw Edge), 86.5%.
- Bloomberg Regulation, 84.6%.
- HeinOnline, 76.9%.
- LexisNexis, (or Lexis Plus), 65.4%.
- Different, 15.4%.
- Fastcase, 11.5%.
- Casetext, 7.7%.
With regard to specialty analysis instruments utilized by regulation librarians at regulation corporations and company authorized departments, the survey discovered the most well-liked to be:
- Information aggregators, 87.5%.
- Docket Navigator, 56.3%.
- Lex Machina, 47.9%.
- Capital IQ, 43.8%.
- Monitor Suite, 39.6%.
- Pitchbook, 39.6%.
- Different, 20.8%.
- MergerMarket, 18.8%.
- Bureau van Djik (a.ok.a. Orbis), 16.7%.
- Factset, 12.5%.
- Trellis, 12.5%.
- Gavelytics, 2.1%.
For regulation librarians working in authorities settings, the most well-liked digital sources when it comes to energetic subscriptions have been:
- Westlaw, 97.3%.
- LexisNexis, 89.2%.
- HeinOnline, 62.2%.
- Wolters Kluwer, 43.2%.
- Fastcase, 27%.
The survey didn’t ask educational regulation librarians about their most-used analysis instruments.
Get hold of the Report
Extra info on the AALL State of the Occupation report could be discovered on the AALL’s website. An executive summary is obtainable for obtain for gratis. The complete report can be purchased in print or digital codecs, with costs beginning at $179 for AALL members and $279 for nonmembers.
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