Private Law Librarianship
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Jaime Klausner and Avery Le
In addition to mastering the substantive body of law in their practice area, the new associate (NA) must also gain their footing in the actual practice of law, an often daunting amount of information and novel skill-sets to absorb. NA in this context is an attorney within the first five years of either public or private practice. The legal librarian (LL) is most often the NA’s initial guide into practice, especially the large law firm LL because of the intensity and demanding need for research. In relation to the NA, the LL role frequently exceeds simply providing research guidance; the onus on training the NA in developing skills-based knowledge is often the responsibility of the LL by default. In law firms that have a legal research department, the LL is most fitting to assume this role.
- Debunk and balance employer expectations with the new associate’s experience and realities of practice
- Acknowledge the importance of incorporating a multitude of resources and necessary research skills into new hire orientation and training
- Identify multi-faceted relationships with other departments, associations, and vendors for collaboration opportunities to prepare NAs to practice
Working with New Associates
Expectations vs. Reality
The NA feels pressure to master, or at a minimum become familiar, with the prolific anthology of substantive knowledge in their practice area as well as how to access such data. Unfortunately, law students are frequently only exposed to the “Big Three” legal information vendors– Bloomberg Law, LexisNexis, and Westlaw; in our experience, the post-graduate NA is often surprised at the amount of resources at their disposal when they begin practice. A significant part of NA orientation is providing awareness of the breadth of available subscription research resources. Further, the LL often highlights the seminal secondary sources in the NA’s practice area, especially for those who have graduated with a general, non-practice area-specific education.
Further, the perception of practicing law which is cultivated in law school is often incongruous with reality. Speaking from personal experience, co-author Jaime Klausner had an entire semester in law school to draft a brief in her legal writing class. It is not uncommon for the governmental or law firm NA to be given just days, if not hours, to craft same. During law school, there are few time limitations on assignments, nor financial constraints in researching. Yet the NA’s employer expects the NA will already have knowledge as to when the logical conclusion of their research has been reached as well as the skill-set to draft a concise document within short time parameters- competencies not typically taught in law school. Therefore, the LL with a juris doctor degree may be at an advantage in working with and assessing the post-graduate NA’s practice area knowledge and research aptitude.
These are not the only examples of how