News from the law library
The Zotero for Law research guide has been updated to include a “Zotero for Law” video, which walks through the basics of Zotero, including tips and tricks for capturing cases and legislation correctly.
The sections of the guide have also been updated to include step-by-step instructions for cases and legislation, pinpoint citations and troubleshooting in Zotero.
Happy holidays from all of us at the law library!
Study space and research help closes on December 23, 2023.
Check our website for updated hours and any changes or closures made by weather impacts.
See you in the new year – we open again on January 2, 2024.
Three group study rooms on the main floor of the Law Library are now available to students. Rooms 163, 165, and 167, which were previously blocked off due to construction, are now available and can be booked in person at the loans desk.
The Law Library would like to wish all students good luck on their exams!
With the exam period upon us, we wish to ensure we offer all law students the support and study environment that is needed at this time. We alert all library users to the following updates and reminders.
Details of the Law Library hours can be found here.
Room bookings
Starting December 7th all group study rooms will be reserved for law student use only.
During this period group study rooms may be booked at the loan desk.
Research and citation help
Research and citation help is available. Drop-by librarian offices or contact us by e-mail or make an appointment.
Other supports
Remember that Amicus Team support remains available to law students throughout the year and that the law library’s respite room is available in case you need a quick cat nap – just ask for the key at the front desk.
Switch up your study location and take advantage of the law library’s natural light and standing workstations.
Other study spaces on campus
Fraser Building study space during building hours:
Mearns-McPherson Library will be offering extended hours during the exam period. Starting December 6th you can stay until midnight! See hours & location.
In addition, the campus has multiple computer labs offering bookable project rooms and group work tables.
For more information about studying supports and services visit https://www.uvic.ca/students/academics/final-exams/study-supports/
On behalf of the UVic Graduate Student Law & Society Research Group:
Part of the Personhood Series:
Date: Monday December 11th at 12:30 PST over Zoom.
Title: Repairing our Relationship with Rivers: Water Law and Legal Personhood
Presenter: Professor Erin O’Donnell (University of Melbourne Law School)
Description: Since 2017, rivers around the world have experienced a profound transformation in law: they have become legal persons, legal subjects, living persons, and/or living entities. This alchemical transfiguration from legal object to legal subject renders the river uniquely visible, and legible, to the law in ways it has not been before, and often brings with it new legal rights and powers. In this presentation, I ask what this transformation means for water law, and what the implications are for established water law frameworks. To date, the impact on water law has been relatively minor: new river persons have never yet received any legal rights to the water flowing between their banks. But their existence challenges the foundational assumption of Western water law: that water is merely a resource, capable of exploitation for human consumption. These new river entities demonstrate the power of law as a mode of repair, and create an opportunity to repair and restore our relationship with rivers. So far, water law has maintained its distance from this emerging transnational concept, but this position is becoming increasingly untenable. When a river is a living entity, or a legal person, the question for all water scholars and practitioners becomes: what does it mean to be in good relations with the river?
Bio: Dr Erin O’Donnell is a Senior Lecturer and ARC Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne Law School. She is a water law and policy expert, recognized internationally for her research into the ground-breaking new field of legal rights for rivers. Her work explores the challenges and opportunities these new rights create for protecting the multiple social, cultural and natural values of rivers. Her work is informed by comparative analysis across Australia, Aotearoa New Zealand, the USA, Bangladesh, India, Colombia, and Chile. Since 2018, Erin has been a member of the Birrarung Council, the voice of the Yarra River in Melbourne. In 2023, Erin commenced an ARC-funded research fellowship to explore the opportunity of treaty to address aqua nullius, increase Traditional Owner power and resources in water, and create more sustainable and legitimate settler state water laws. Erin’s latest book, Legal Rights for Rivers: Competition, Collaboration, and Water Governance, is available now from Routledge.
Zoom: https://uvic.zoom.us/j/85230608035?pwd=emdOVmNYUFcraFNPVjhacE9ZazJLZz09
Meeting ID: 852 3060 8035
Password: 479621
Contact: estebanvallejotoledo@uvic.ca & evalinde@uvic.ca
On Thursday November 30th, the Law Library will close at 5:30pm, due to a water shutdown in the Fraser building. Mearns Centre-McPherson Library will be open until 11pm.
Westlaw Edge is a powerful product gives you access to regularly updated case law and statutes, complete with the exclusive KeyCite citation service, and includes secondary sources, expertly written forms, legal memos, newsletters, journals, and practice tools.
Join Allison Bale for a virtual training session over Zoom, on Wednesday, October 4th at 12:30pm to highlight what Westlaw Edge has to offer and to share tips and tricks for effective searching.
For more information and to register, go to: https://libcal.uvic.ca/event/3753871
Enhance your law school studies with Lexis+ Canada, a leading online legal research service for cases, legislation, secondary materials, and more. Angeline Han, a former UVic law grad, will be coming to campus on Monday, Sept. 25, 12:30pm to highlight what Lexis+ has to offer and to share tips and tricks for effective searching.
For more information and to register visit: https://libcal.uvic.ca/calendar/lawlibrary/lexis
In celebration of Black History Month, here is a virtual display of resources showcasing historical and current innovations Black people have made to the study and practice of law in Canada.
Black History Month events
EDI Strategic Toolkit: Evaluating Organizational Inclusion – from Law Society of Ontario and Canadian Association of Black Lawyers
BC Black History Awareness Society – events
Lawrence Hill in Conversation with Shelagh Rogers (GVPL)
Books
Constance Backhouse, Colour-Coded: A Legal History of Racism in Canada, 1900-1950 KE4395 A7B32 1999
Viola Desmond’s Canada: a history of blacks and racial segregation in the promised land FC106 B6R49 2016
Articles
Rachel Baille, “Minority of One: Violet King’s Entry to the Legal Profession“, (2012) 24:2 CJWL 301-327
Deirdre Rowe Brown, “Robert Sutherland: Celebrating the Legacy” (2009) 35 Queen’s LJ 401-420
Blogs
Black History Month – timeline of legal trailblazers by Nelligan Law blog
Black Law Students’ Association of Canada Blog
Multimedia
Podcast: “Legally Unplugged” (Young Lawyer’s Division Canadian Association of Black Lawyers)
Webinar: Ryerson University webinar for Black History Month “Celebrating Trailblazers in Canada’s Legal Community”
Film: Journey to Justice
Black Communities in Canada Collection – National Film Board of Canada collection of films by Black filmmakers, creators, and allies.
UVic has more resources available on the Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression Libguide
Legal Research Refresher Sessions
Do the LRW research tutorials seem like a distant memory? Are you staring at your open memo not knowing where to start?
Then come to one of our lunch hour research refresher sessions presented by law librarians: Sarah and Emily. Sessions will be happening on Zoom, no preregistration required.
Week 1 : Emphasis on secondary sources and resources for researching Canadian state law
January 18 & 20 from 12:30-1:20pm (same session each time)
Join Zoom Meeting: https://uvic.zoom.us/j/83568501183
Week 2: Emphasis on citation
January 27 from 12:30-1:20pm
Join Zoom Meeting: https://uvic.zoom.us/j/87313829051
The law library also has a legal research and writing guide: https://libguides.uvic.ca/lrw that you may find helpful as you are working on your open memo assignment. There you can find a research strategy overview, links to a sample research plan, and primary and secondary legal research starting points.
If you have any questions… remember, we’re here to help you. Ask us!