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Courts Records & Briefs - Jenkins’ Unique Collection |
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Jenkins has an extensive records and briefs collection of Pennsylvania Appellate Courts: Supreme, Superior, and Commonwealth, and records and briefs of U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and US Supreme Court. There are many valuable components of records and briefs that would draw the attention of both legal and non-legal researchers. In addition to being an excellent example of how to prepare an appellate brief, they also contain a table of citations or authorities that affords the researcher relevant cases on a specific point of law. The appellate record may be a rich resource if you looking for copies of the complaint, answer, preliminary objections, transcript of oral testimony, lower court opinion, or other items. The Jenkins’ Courts Records & Briefs collection is large and growing. It is also noteworthy in the sense that the researcher has access to an index to documents published between 1832 and the present. The index is available via Internet at: www.jenkinslaw.org/crb/index.php. There are some documents that are not yet included in Jenkins’ electronic index. If you cannot find a needed document, do not hesitate to email or to call Jenkins’ Reference. The law librarians may be able to locate it for you. More information on how to access records and briefs may be found on the Court Records & Briefs Guide, available at: www.jenkinslaw.org/crb/guide/. |
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Submitted by: Malgorzata Pawska, Web Content Coordinator
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Comments (0)June 24, 2008
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Spending Long Hours Commuting? |
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If your answer is yes, fill this time by listening to PBI workshops available on CD @ Jenkins. Our recent acquisitions in this area include: Autism and education [sound recording] ——————————– General practitioners’ update 2007 [sound recording] [Mechanicsburg, Pa.] : Pennsylvania Bar Institute, [2007] Practice of law — Pennsylvania ——————————– Pitfalls of family law [sound recording] : malpractice and/or ethical dilemma? ——————————– The stem cell debate [sound recording] : the intersection of law, religion and bioethics [Mechanicsburg, Pa.] : Pennsylvania Bar Institute, [2006] Stem cells — Research — Law and legislation ——————————– Trial of a medical malpractice case [sound recording] [Mechanicsburg, Pa.] : Pennsylvania Bar Institute, [2007] Physicians — Malpractice — Pennsylvania — Trial practice The best way to keep up with Jenkins’ current Acquisitions is by visiting our New Acquisitions page. To find titles related to your area of specialty, use the JAC Advanced Search, enter your subject terms, then use the Material type to limit to Audio. You can also subscribe to our weekly “New for You: Jenkins’ Collection Alert” by loging to My JAC and following steps: For further assistance feel free to contact our Information & Research Department at research@jenkinslaw.org or call 215.574.1505. |
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Submitted by: Katrina Piechnik, Head of Technical Services
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Move Over, King Solomon |
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Today’s New York Times reports on how a defense lawyer in a Florida trial is attempting to use search data from Google Trends to show that his client’s Web site doesn’t violate community standards for obscenity. “Time and time again you’ll have jurors sitting on a jury panel who will condemn material that they routinely consume in private,” said Mr. Walters, the defense lawyer. Using the Internet data, “we can show how people really think and feel and act in their own homes, which, parenthetically, is where this material was intended to be viewed,” he added. The problem with making this claim is that it rests on 3 faulty assumptions: (1) That everyone in the community is online. In 2003, 55.6% of all Florida households had access to the Internet. If you assume 5 percentage points of growth per year since 2003 — which is generous, seeing how Florida grew by about 3 percentage points from 2001 to 2003 — then 25% of Florida’s population still isn’t online. (Data is from the 2007 Statistical Abstract of the United States.) (2) That everyone uses Google exclusively. As of May 2008 Google’s share of total U.S. searches is 71.5%. Thus, the defense is missing almost 30% of the relevant data. (3) That the data in Google Trends is accurate. Here’s what the About Google Trends page says: “Google Trends is a Google Labs product, which means it’s still in its early stages of development. The data Trends produces may contain inaccuracies for a number of reasons, including data-sampling issues and a variety of approximations that are used to compute results. We hope you find this service interesting and entertaining, but you probably wouldn’t want to write your Ph.D. dissertation based on the information provided by Trends.” If I was the prosecutor, I’d blow that quote up, paste it on foamcore, and wave it in front of the jury. Repeatedly. It’ll be interesting to see if the defense’s strategy works. The Times isn’t so sure. It mentions another interesting defense strategy used recently by attorney Jeffrey J. Douglas: “In a federal obscenity case heard this month, Mr. Douglas defended another Florida pornographer. In the trial, Mr. Douglas set up a computer in the courtroom and did Internet searches for sexually explicit terms to show the jury that there were millions of Web pages discussing such material. He then searched for other topics, like the University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, to demonstrate that there were not nearly as many related Web sites. The jury was evidently not swayed, as his client was convicted on all counts.” |
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Submitted by: Dan Giancaterino, Internet Librarian
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May 8, 2008
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The Public Library of Law makes legal search easier for non-lawyers |
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Fastcase is the next-generation legal research system of choice for legal professionals everywhere. Jenkins has Fastcase available at the workstations in the Jenkins’ Reference Room so come visit us to try it out. |
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Submitted by: RayAna Park, Former Web Developer
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According to April 24, 2008
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How to Find Documents Mentioned in Compiled Federal Legislative Histories |
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For visual instructions on many Hein products check their presence on YouTube. |
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Submitted by: Katrina Piechnik, Head of Technical Services
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March 10, 2008
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Ban anonymous internet posting in Kentucky??? |
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According to Kentucky Action News:
First of all, I’m ok with anonymous posters as long as it’s not malicious. Secondly, this bill is ridiculous in every aspect and will probably never go into effect. How would they even enforce this? It’s just like trying to enforce age restrictions on accessing certain websites — almost impossible. And how would they be able to tell if a poster uses their real name? As such, there’s no difference between posting anonymously and posting incognito. Some blogs are authored completely anonymously (ie. the Annoyed Librarian) and are meant to be enjoyed that way. I don’t think this Kentucky Representative has any idea what the internet is. I understand that he’s just trying to curb online bullying but it’s quite a utopian goal, wouldn’t you say? Might as well shield our kids from the internet until they’re 19. |
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Submitted by: RayAna Park, Former Web Developer
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February 5, 2008
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Are you ready for … E-filing? |
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The Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Civil Division recently promulgated e-filing Rule *205.4 which took effect on 1/1/2008. Don’t get too worked up about it yet, a note in the rule specifically states:
I encourage you to read Dan J. Siegel’s recent article in the Law Practice Management supplement to the Fall 2007 issue of The Philadelphia Lawyer, E-Filing is Coming: Here’s How to Prepare*. He points out the many benefits of e-filing and that the process is meant to make it easier to file and access pleadings and other filings. Most importantly he states:
Stay tuned for effective date information. * © 2007 The Philadelphia Lawyer. Used with permission. |
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Submitted by: Ida Weingram, Head of Outreach Services
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January 29, 2008
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Straight from the IRS: Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) Will Affect the 2008 Filing Season |
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If you are like me then you already have your taxes e-filed and you are waiting for your refund. Many people have not heard that the IRS is requiring tax payers who file certain forms to wait until February 11, 2008 to file their taxes. Some of the forms are pretty common like the Schedule 2 for Child and Dependent Care Expenses and form 8396 for Mortgage Interest Credit. See what other forms will require the February 11 start date. You can also subscribe to the IRS e-News to get up to date information. |
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Submitted by: Nikki Butler, Acquisitions/Serials Coordinator
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January 7, 2008
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Full Public Access to the Laws of Pennsylvania is Here |
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Back in July, the General Assembly posted the official consolidated statutes for Pennsylvania on the Internet. Today I noticed that the unofficial Purdon’s Pennsylvania Statutes from West has replaced the official consolidated version. Although Purdon’s is not an official publication of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, it is the best resource to use when researching the laws of Pennsylvania by subject. West’s Purdon’s Pennsylvania Statutes, hosted by Westlaw, is easy to browse and can be searched using natural language or by typing a statute citation in quotations. This free version is not annotated and does not include court rules. If you are looking for the annotations or other resources outside this free site, additional materials can be accessed on Westlaw using a credit card. |
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Submitted by: Kathy Coon, Deputy Director
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December 14, 2007
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Federal Rules of Civil Procedure |
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Amendments to the rules became effective on December 1, 2007. Because the new amendments represent a comprehensive change, the major legal publishers will be sending updates to their federal resources. In the meantime, a copy of the New Federal Civil Rules is available from the U.S. Courts website. |
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Submitted by: Nancy Garner, Head of Information & Research Services
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