News from the law library
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
Our Law Library Information Assistant position is open to all law students who are eligible for Student Awards and Financial Aid (SAFA) work study positions. Check your eligibility on the SAFA website.
This is a great opportunities to earn extra $ with flexible hours. As an extra bonus you can learn a little more about our resources and activities, working on projects with the law librarians.
Click here to download the LIBR4 – Law library information assistant position description or visit the Current work study job postings page to view the job description
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. To apply, please email your resume and cover letter to lawref@uvic.ca
To new UVic Law students, welcome, and to returning students, welcome back!
Our regular fall term hours begin on Tuesday September 5th.
The law library’s fall term regular hours are:
Monday – Thursday 8:00am – 8:00pm
Friday: 8:00am – 6:00pm
Saturday-Sunday: 10:00am – 5:30pm
Tours:
The Law Librarians will be providing tours of the law library for 1L, new upper year and new graduate students. Details will be included with your orientation materials.
For full details on Law’s orientation for new students, visit UVic Law’s orientation for new students page.
For UVic Orientation information: https://www.uvic.ca/orientation/index.php
Research Help:
Librarians are available to help with research and citation questions. Book a research consultation appointment or contact us at lawref@uvic.ca for answers to your questions
To support ongoing construction at the Fraser Building, the Diana M. Priestly Law Library will be closed to the public for a 3-month period beginning June 1, 2023. The Law Library will re-open to the public in early September 2023 to align with the UVic Fall 2023 academic calendar.
The Law Library remains open to UVic employees, faculty, and students during construction. However, students are encouraged to use Mearns-McPherson Library as an alternate study space, if access to the physical collection at the Law Library is not needed.
A reminder, access to the Law Library is via the side stairwell off of parking lot 8 during regular library operating hours.
Members of the public requiring law research help or access to materials can contact the Law Library for assistance (250-721-8565 | lawlib@uvic.ca).
Additional information relating to the National Centre for Indigenous Laws (NCIL) construction project can be found on the UVic website https://www.uvic.ca/campusplanning/current-projects/indigenous-law/index.php
The next phase of the Fraser Building construction will require closure of part of the main entrance and the south entrance over the temporary walkway.
Inside the building several spaces will be hoarded off and sealed for demolition and remediation work. This work will prevent exterior access and normal travel throughout the building.
As of Monday May 1st access to the Law Library will be through the temporary north entrance in the Loading Bay.
See the facilities notice and map for more detail.
Users with accessibility needs can access the building through the main entrance and then have an escort through the construction area by Chandos personnel – they can contact Chandos site safety officer Diana at 778-594-2219, or Chandos project coordinator Janey at 604-968-2794.
Guest post by: Aman Atwal, 3L Student at the University of Victoria, Faculty of Law and Nicole Welsh, 3L Student at the University of Victoria, Faculty of Law.
The University of Victoria’s Business Law Clinic has been operating since 1998 to provide free legal research to BC entrepreneurs in pursuit of business-related goals. Led by Director Michael Litchfield, each semester a team of upper year students in the University’s Faculty of Law pursue their interest in business law by staffing the clinic. As the students are not yet lawyers, they are not licensed to give legal advice. However, the information that they can provide concerning business law issues as they relate to planning and operations provides benefits that are twofold. Students learn and put into practice valuable legal skills, and businesses receive useful information concerning legal issues that they might not otherwise be able to access.
Benefits to Businesses/Clients
Businesses/clients can greatly benefit from accessing services offered by the UVic Business Law Clinic. Benefits include the cost effectiveness of student clinics, the vetted information, and obtaining information from passionate individuals. Student clinics can also help to shed some positivity in the community, hopefully inspiring clients to continue the cycle of knowledge sharing and giving back.
Typically, clients are hardworking, under-funded entrepreneurs with great ideas who just require a little guidance. The information is researched by law students interested in business law, then read by the clinical professor and a lawyer who acts as a mentor to the students. This information does not function as advice but is helpful in guiding clients through the various questions they may have, providing them with the right tools and resources. Instead of turning to Google, clients can receive vetted information regarding their issues which can save the business from liability issues.
Clients are also able to receive customized information from those who are interested in the issues presented. The students generally take on clients who have an issue they are interested in, meaning they will likely work hard to obtain all the necessary information. When someone is interested in a topic, it makes them more motivated, resulting in better results for the client.
Accessing a student clinic allows clients with smaller businesses or who are just starting out, to save a significant amount of money which they likely will need for their business. Corporate lawyers’ fees can be quite expensive and student clinics are free. If clients only require information, tools, and resources, it is better to get free help rather than pay lawyers fees for information. The money saved can then go back into the business. Student clinics help alleviate some access to justice concerns which results in more people being able to obtain legal information and help. Many law students already understand the hard journey of getting into law school, including financially. This allows students to give back to community entrepreneurs who also experience financial struggle, hopefully resulting in a meaningful act of service that inspires clients to continue the cycle when they are able to do so.
Benefits to Students
Participating in a clinical semester at the UVic Business Law Clinic is advantageous for students in a number of ways. Most notably, students are provided the opportunity to better understand the lawyer’s role in facilitating business transactions for clients through the taking of a hands-on approach. Students develop their practical legal skills by learning and applying teachings related to client intake, interviewing, problem-solving, legal research and analysis, and drafting memoranda. Students strengthen their understanding of business law matters including contracts, various agreements, regulation, taxation, structure and financing. In doing so, the clinic also allows students to “test-drive” their future career in an area of law that interests them, to ensure the work is a fit for them. Additionally, by providing hands-on experience, students build confidence in the profession and enhance their employability skills. Students can speak to these transferable professional skills when interviewing with potential employers.
In exchange for their work, students not only gain real-world experience by working with local businesses, but also receive course credit that goes towards attaining their law degree. Students also benefit from knowing that they have made a difference in people’s lives by offering them access to legal information that they might not otherwise have access to.
Further, each student is paired with a local business law practitioner who acts as their mentor throughout the semester. While mentors are assigned to assist with client files and review students’ final work products, they are also encouraged to meet with students to provide advice and share valuable insight on practicing in the profession. In a career where new clients and work opportunities are heavily reliant on networking, it is vital for students to begin building such connections with legal professionals in their practice areas of interest. Building connections and developing relationships with local lawyers through participation in the BLC is a wonderful opportunity for students to expand their networks.
For more information on the Business Law Clinic, or to book an appointment, please leave a message on our voicemail at 250-472-4522, send an email to blc@uvic.ca or send a fax to 250-721-8146.
The Law Library would like to wish all students good luck on their exams!
With the exam period quickly approaching, 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 April 6th all group study rooms and individual study carrels will be reserved for law student use only.
During this period group study rooms and study carrels 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 to 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
Mearns-McPherson Library will be offering extended hours during the exam period. Starting April 11th 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/
Visitors to the Law Library will now be greeted by a new display featuring some of the UVic Library’s special collections. The display is focused on Transgender Rights in Canada and British Columbia and features archival material from the UVic Transgender Archives, books from the shelves of the law library, and QR codes leading to some of the online resources that UVic libraries has to offer.
The archival materials on display focus on Vancouver Rape Relief Society vs. Nixon. The case centred on a human rights complaint filed by Kimberley Nixon against Vancouver Rape Relief Society (VRRS) alleging that they discriminated against Nixon and prohibited her from volunteering on the basis of her being a transgender woman. Nixon was represented by barbara findlay, KC, a lesbian-feminist lawyer who has represented LGBTQ+ people in a number of landmark cases. The barbara findlay fonds feature prominently within the display.
Though Nixon ultimately lost her case on appeal, it remains a significant event in the development of transgender rights in British Columbia and Canada. It assisted in establishing that “sex” as defined within the Human Rights Code protects transgender people in British Columbia. It also encouraged women’s groups across Canada to adopt trans-inclusive policies.
Materials regarding the Nixon case are accompanied by materials from the Caroline White fonds. These materials highlight the dialogue that took place amongst transgender advocates and feminists in the late 1990s and early 2000s about the acceptance of transgender women within women’s spaces, including women’s organizations, shelters, and resource centres. Caroline White is a social justice trainer and educator who played a significant role in facilitating dialogue between transgender women and cisgender feminists.
Accompanying the items from special collections featured in the glass display are a number of materials on the display on the wall shelves. These include copies of Vancouver Rape Relief Society vs. Nixon from all levels of the course, as well as copies of the factums featured in the display. The wall also features books from the Law Library and QR codes leading to online materials, all related to the subject of transgender rights in Canada, the United States, and beyond
The Law Library would like to thank work study student Layne Clarke for creating this new display and writing this post!
Working on your research paper? Don’t forget that the Law Library has many online resources to support your research.
The A-Z Subject List: Key Legal Treatises and Textbooks Research Guide provides the leading treatises and textbooks on many different topics in law. This Research Guide is an excellent starting point for finding key secondary sources on many of the main subjects of law, as textbooks offer a broad overview of a subject, while treatises offer an in-depth analysis including detailed footnotes on leading cases and scholarly sources.
The Law Library also has over 30 subject specific research guides. Research Guides provide lists of books, databases, articles and websites related to a particular subject.
Working on your citations? Check out our citation help page. This page provides links to useful online citation guides as well as other important citation information such as how to cite Indigenous sources.
The Law Library also has Legal Research Videos. These short video tutorials provide steps and tips that will help you conduct legal research including noting-up cases, using secondary sources and locating Canadian federal and provincial (BC) legislation.
If you have any questions… remember, we’re here to help you. To book an appointment with a law librarian visit: https://libcal.uvic.ca/appointments/ResearchHelp?g=5279
“Noting up” means verifying that a particular case is still relevant and has not been reversed on appeal or overruled or criticized by subsequent cases.
“Noting up” is beneficial because it facilitates the discovery of more recent cases dealing with similar facts, that you can use in your legal argument.
Watch our video for a refresher on why and how to note up cases:
See more of our legal research video or ask a law librarian for help.