Close to finishing law school? Learn about us!

Yesterday we had some law students in their last year at UB visiting us. As their "tour guide" notes,

One aspect of the tour that was particularly interesting for the students was the availability of free Lexis, private study rooms, and Wi-Fi. I told the students that many attorneys meet with clients in the private study rooms, while using the wireless connection to access email, Lexis and the Internet. It was clear they were already pondering the possibilities as I talked about it - one of them immediately commented, "We could use the library as our law office." The idea that they could start their own law practice without the expense of an office was something they hadn't thought possible. When combined with the library's massive print collection, the students acknowledged that our facility really does offer just about everything a young attorney would need to get started in the profession. In fact, one of them has already returned (a day later) to conduct research for her current law school assignment!

Sunshine

Next Sunday, March 23, at 3:00 P.M., the Little will present Forbidden Voices, a documentary profiling three dissident bloggers who've braved repression in their home countries, as part of its Women's History Month Film Series. The stories of Yoani Sanchez of Cuba, Zeng Jinyan of China, and Farnaz Seifi of Iran will no doubt make compelling viewing.

Closer to home, it's important to note that this is Sunshine Week, a national initiative, in the words of its website, to promote a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information. Participants include news media, civic groups, libraries, nonprofits, schools, and others interested in the public’s right to know. The American Association of Law Libraries and the American Library Association will be taking part in Sunshine Week activities. For more information, see here and here.

Update: The Democrat and Chronicle has several pieces online addressing Sunshine Week concerns locally. Here's a site we learned about there and would like to pass along: Open New York, an open data portal "bringing together local, state and federal data in one place."