Wisconsin State Law Library

Serving the Wisconsin Supreme Court and State of Wisconsin

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What’s New – Connie Von Der Heide

WSLL Staff Updates

Last month WSLL said farewell to two part-time staff.  Liz Zimdars, who had worked at our Reference Desk on Thursdays since August 2007, received her master’s degree in May from the UW-Madison School of Library & Information Studies. She’s continuing in her part-time position at Sun Prairie Public Library while seeking full time law library employment.  Ted Smith, who was our Shelver and Briefs assistant, will begin studies at Emory University Law School this fall.  We wish them both well.

Two new part-time employees also joined the staff last month. 

Minetta KoblingsMinetta Koblings is our new Briefs assistant, and also works at the Circulation Desk and processes Document Delivery requests.  Minetta, who will be a senior at UW-Madison this fall, is studying History with a certificate in teaching English as a Second Language.  She has previous public library experience and is considering pursuing a master’s degree in library and information science. 


Devin RogersDevin Rogers is our new Shelver, and she also works at the Circulation Desk and processes Document Delivery requests.  Devin’s a recent graduate of the State University of New York at Geneseo, with a degree in Anthropology.  She and her husband just moved to Madison, where he will begin doctoral studies at the UW this fall.   Devin has previous shelving and circulation experience in a public library environment, and she also plans to pursue graduate studies in library and information science. 


 

Erin Schlicht

We’re also pleased to welcome Erin Schlicht, graduate student in the University of Washington’s Information School, who is completing her directed fieldwork course (i.e. practicum) here at WSLL this summer.  A Wisconsin native, Erin is enrolled in U of Washington’s online education program for library & information science, while working full time as the evening/weekend supervisor at the University of Wisconsin Law Library here in Madison.  Her fieldwork will include assisting at the WSLL Reference Desk and the Milwaukee and Dane County Legal Resource Centers, as well as a variety of tasks and projects in both public services and collection management. 


 

Upcoming Classes

Registrations are now being accepted for our fall legal research classes, listed below.  For complete details and registration information, please visit our Classes & Tours webpage.

Using Westlaw at the State Law Library
Wednesday, August 6, 2008,  9:00-10:00 a.m.

Come learn about FREE Westlaw available at the Wisconsin State Law Library! This class will showcase WestPack, a Westlaw service offered on the library’s public access computers. This service includes free searching of state and federal primary law - cases, statutes, codes and legislation. Library patrons also have access to KeyCite, online forms and treatises, such as McQuillin: The Law of Municipal Corporations, Norton Bankruptcy Law and Practice 2d, Fletcher Cyclopedia of the Law of Private Corporations, and much more. This class will offer useful tips on effective searching in both Boolean and Natural Language modes.
FREE Class.  1 CLE credit applied for. Registration is limited to 8. Print registration form

Finding Wisconsin Public Records
Tuesday, September 23, 2008,  9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Want to learn more efficient ways to find records of individuals and businesses? This information packed class will help you find Wisconsin public records in a variety of government agency resources.  Learn timesaving tips on searching for criminal records, state and local court records, business entity records, liens, foreclosures and real estate records, and more.   Sign up today to become a more effective searcher.
Fee: $125.00.  3 CLE credits applied for.  Registration limited to 8. Print registration form

Using the Wisconsin Court System Website
Wednesday, October 8, 2008,  9:00-10:00 a.m.

Need help finding information on the Wisconsin Court System's website? Learn how to efficiently access Circuit Court records, find mandatory forms, search Supreme Court and Court of Appeals opinions, and check the status of appellate cases. You’ll also explore additional resources such as the Self-Help Center, court administrative office pages, and RSS feeds.  Join us for a tour of this useful website.
FREE Class.  1 CLE credit applied for.  Registration is limited to 8. Print registration form

Coming in November: a FREE one hour class on Wikipedia – stay tuned for details!

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New Titles at WSLL – Carol Hassler

Keep track of new print and online resources by checking our new titles list. Each month we post a list of new titles added to our collection.  Lists are divided into as many as 40 general topic areas, with a user-friendly "Jump” feature that lets you go directly to the titles in your particular topics of interest.  Examples of topics include:

Wisconsin TitleLooking for Wisconsin information?  Quickly locate Wisconsin related titles by scanning for this symbol.  

Click on a title to view its full Library Catalog record. With a single click you’ll be able to see detailed information such as which volumes the library has and whether they're currently available, and access an electronic version of the publication if there is one. Monthly lists are archived for one year, allowing you to go back and quickly review all new titles added over the past 12 months.

Titles from this month include:


New Titles RSS Feed
See our latest New Titles list for the complete list of new arrivals.

For assistance in accessing these or other resources, please contact our Reference Desk.

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New Summer Reading – Carol Hassler

We’ve added a wealth of donations to our Prose & Cons collection in the last month.  Check one out!

Hour GameDavid Baldacci
Hour game : a novel
F BALDACCI

 

Simple GeniusDavid Baldacci
Simple genius
F BALDACCI

 

Three Complete NovelsPatricia Daniels Cornwell
Three complete novels : Postmortem  Body of evidence  All that remains
F CORNWELL

 

Chardonnay CharadeEllen Crosby
The chardonnay charade : a wine country mystery
F CROSBY

 

Under OrdersDick Francis 
Under orders
F FRANCIS

 

Playing for the AshesElizabeth George 
Playing for the ashes
F GEORGE

 

HannibalThomas Harris
Hannibal
F HARRIS

Ambler WarningRobert Ludlum 
The Ambler warning
F LUDLUM

 

Morgans RunColleen McCullough 
Morgan's run
F MCCULLOUGH

 

Move to StrikePerri O'Shaughnessy 
Move to strike
F OSHAUGHNESSY

 

First BillionChristopher Reich 
The first billion : a novel
F REICH

 

Invisible PreyJohn Sandford
Invisible Prey
F SANDFORD

 

December 6Martin Cruz Smith 
December 6 : a novel
F SMITH

 

Murder at the OperaMargaret Truman 
Murder at the opera : a capital crimes novel
F TRUMAN

 

Check for books in our Prose & Cons Collection:

Prose & Cons books circulate for 30 days. Videos circulate for 7 days. Eligible borrowers may contact our Reference Staff to check out these and other circulating library materials.

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Odds and Endings – Heidi Yelk

The month of July is named after Julius Caesar.  Caesar introduced the Julian calendar which featured leap day, a mechanism to help keep the calendar on track with the seasons.  According to Infoplease.com, the Roman Senate honored Caesar for this by naming a month after him.   The original Julian calendar had 12 months. Eleven of them alternated in length between 30 and 31 days, and the month of February had 29 days.  According to the World Book Encyclopedia, the Roman Senate later named the month of August after the emperor Augustus Caesar and decided that, because Julius Caesar’s month had 31 days, Augustus’s month must also have 31 days.  So they took a day from February, making the shortest month even shorter. 

Notable dates in Wisconsin History

July 1, 1934 – Effective date of Wisconsin’s unemployment insurance law, the first of its kind in the nation. [Laws of 1931, ch. 20, signed by Gov. Philip LaFollette in January 1932. From Wisconsin Dept. of Workforce Development ]

July 1, 1967 – The sale of oleo (margarine) in Wisconsin becomes legal.  Wisconsin was the last state to lift the ban on colored oleo. According to newspaper reports at the time, while some stores opened at midnight to sell the first products, other stores refused to stock it.  Dave Zweifel, then a cub reporter for The Capital Times, interviewed Earl Leverich, who had spent years in the legislature trying to keep the ban alive. The 75-year-old Leverich said, “I can’t think of anything worse than all those housewives running around buying that cheap stuff.  This is the worst day of my life.”

July 4, 1836  - The Wisconsin Territory is created.  It included what is now Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota and parts of North and South Dakota.

July 11, 1839 – First patent issued to a Wisconsin resident.  Ebenezar G. Whiting of Racine was issued a patent for an improved plow.  Whiting was associated with the J.I. Case Plow Company.

July 11, 1921 – Gov. John J. Blaine signs legislation guaranteeing women the same legal rights as men, making Wisconsin the first state in the nation to have an equal rights law. (Wisconsin History.org)

July 20, 1976 – Hank Aaron hits his 755th and last home run at County Stadium in Milwaukee.  Aaron was 42 at the time and playing his 23rd season of Major League Baseball.  (National Baseball Hall of Fame)

July 21, 1972 – George Carlin is arrested at Summerfest in Milwaukee.  The July 22, 1972 issue of the Sheboygan Press reported that Carlin, “who dresses and wears his hair in hippie fashion,” was charged with disorderly conduct – profanity after delivering his infamous monologue, “Seven Words You Can Never Say on TV.”  Police waited until after his act to arrest him. Of the profanity, Henry Jordan, then executive director of Summerfest (and former Green Bay Packer) stated, “I’d seen him on Johnny Carson and he was great, but he doesn’t use that on Johnny Carson.  Summerfest is supposed to be a family show.”  George Carlin died June 24, 2008, of heart failure.  He was 71 years old.  (CNN.com)

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Ask a Librarian: 800-322-9755; 608-267-9696 (In Madison); wsll.ref@wicourts.gov
Library Hours/Locations: WSLL (WI State Law Library), DCLRC (Dane Co. Legal Resource Center), MLRC (Milwaukee Legal Resource Center)
Visit Our Website: http://wilawlibrary.gov

Editor: Connie Von Der Heide 608-267-2202 Comments welcome!

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