Ross-Blakley Law Library Blog

Exam time is here so we would like to remind you about the following helpful study tools and services the Law Library staff has produced to assist you in preparing for exams.

Extended Hours
The Law Library will be open the following extended hours during exams.

Friday, December 2nd and December 9th           7:00 a.m. – Midnight
Saturday, December 3 and December 10             8:00 a.m. – Midnight

Study Rooms
The law library has group study rooms available for the exclusive use of Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law students, faculty, and law alumni studying for the state bar exam. During exam periods 3 … Continue Reading

This week we are featuring a guide to writing research papers.

The Curious Researcher: A Guide to Writing Research Papers
By Bruce Ballenger
Law Study Skills Collection  LB2369 .B246 2012

The Curious Researcher is a guide to writing research papers that focuses on helping writers make the research and writing process a rewarding one.  The text encourages you to find ways to infuse your academic writing with your own voice and make it lively; the author believes that formal research papers do not have to be dry and boring.  Thus, although you may only have two weeks to finish up that seminar … Continue Reading

Since so many of us at the Law School enjoy the company of our furry friends we thought it might be nice to help animals less fortunate than our own pets with a donation drive for the Arizona Animal Welfare League and SPCA.    

Founded in 1971, the Arizona Animal Welfare League     and SPCA is Arizona’s oldest and largest no-kill shelter. Their facilities provide a temporary home for nearly 2,000 dogs and cats every year. Their mission is to provide excellent care, protection and loving compassion for the life of the animals and … Continue Reading

We know that the tradition of Thanksgiving has been celebrated since colonial days. But do you know how it became a Federal Holiday?
 
The first post-nationhood  proclamation on record was made by George Washington on October 3, 1789. This marked the first time that Thanksgiving was officially recognized by the U.S. Government.
   

After that, Thanksgiving was proclaimed by presidents sporadically until Abraham Lincoln took office; since then it has been an annual affair. Lincoln proclaimed it in 1861, and after that the holiday was observed annually on the final Thursday in November.

 
In 1939, … Continue Reading

This post if from the Cleveland-Marshshall College of Law Library blog.  Hat tip to Tom Hurray for some interesting Thanksgiving trivia.  Hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Did you know that cranberry sauce was invented by a lawyer? In 1912, Marcus Urann, a cranberry grower and lawyer, developed a recipe for jellied cranberry sauce that could be preserved in tin cans. He did so because he did not like to see all the extra cranberries go to waste after the holiday season was over. He later coined the phrase “ocean spray”, and co-founded the … Continue Reading

The Law Library will be open the following hours during the Thanksgiving holiday:

Wednesday, November 23: 7 am – 5 pm
Thursday, November 24: Closed
Friday, November 25: 8 am – 5 pm
Saturday, November 26: 8 am – 10 pm
Sunday, November 27: 10 am – midnight

Happy Thanksgiving!

As many students have memos or research papers due in the coming weeks, this installment of the new book series focuses on a text meant to help you elevate the appearance of your writing.

Typography for Lawyers
By Matthew Butterick
Law Treatises Z246 .B98 2010

Typog­ra­phy is the visual com­po­nent of the writ­ten word. In Typography for Lawyers, Matthew Butterick explains that typog­ra­phy is important because it helps con­serve the most valu­able resource you have as a writer — reader atten­tion. An ugly document does not entice a reader to continue through it. Butterick clearly lays out in ensuing chapters how you can make your … Continue Reading

The Arizona Supreme Court has reinstated Colleen Mathis, the chairwoman of the Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC), who Governor Jan Brewer had impeached earlier this month for “gross misconduct in office.”

Yesterday the Court heard arguments from the IRC’s attorneys challenging Mathis’ removal, and afterward determined that the Governor had failed to demonstrate the “substantial neglect of duty, gross misconduct in office or inability to discharge the duties of office” required by the Arizona Constitution to remove a public official from office.  Read the Court’s order for Mathis’ reinstatement here.

In a statement, Brewer said, “With its reinstatement of the IRC … Continue Reading

There are 26 long days between today and the last day of exams.  To help you get through them, the Law School Academic Support Blog has compiled some steps you can take in the weeks leading up to exams to keep yourself motivated:

Do all of your reading for the last week of classes during Thanksgiving break, and then just review before each class for about 30 minutes to refresh your memory.  Not having to read for those last few classes will give you extra exam review time.
For each class, make a list of topics and … Continue Reading

Pennsylvania’s nickname is the “Keystone State,” and it appears to be living up to that name with the legal hullabaloo that has followed the Penn State sex abuse scandal.

Both federal and state laws are under scrutiny, and lawmakers are calling for reform to both.

Federal law provides a framework for abuse reporting, but state laws are all different.  One recent article called Pennsylvania sex laws “the worst” in the country. Pennsylvania lawmakers (and others) are calling for reform to state laws. 
A key issue likely to be debated in state legislatures is whether reports should go straight to police, and whether new laws are needed to … Continue Reading