Visiting the U.S. Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit Library System - Houston Satellite

March is Federal Practice Resource Month at the Harris County Law Library. Throughout the month we are featuring some of the federal practice legal materials found in our collection. We are also calling attention to a select few online resources, including the Federal Practice Manual for Legal Aid Attorneys.  Law Library staff are always available at the reference desk to help in using any of these materials.

Another helpful resource is the satellite branch of the United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit Library System, located right here in Houston at 515 Rusk.  This Satellite Library, open to the public, is a valuable resource for researching federal legal issues and it's well-worth a visit for those working in federal law.

You can learn about the Satellite Library's services and guidelines using the Visitors' Guide to the U.S. Courts Library in Houston, Texas.  Many of the sources available in the Harris County Law Library collection are also available at the Fifth Circuit Library, but the staff's knowledge and expertise regarding the federal judiciary may add even more value to your research. Federal law is their specialty, and they are happy to help you access the resources you need. The Houston Satellite is also a United States Federal Depository Library, where government publications, including a selection of official sources of our nation's primary legal documents, are housed.

Happy Birthday, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

On this day in 1933, Joan Ruth Bader was born in Brooklyn, New York to Russian, Jewish immigrant parents. After marrying Martin Ginsburg in 1954 and taking his name, she attended law school, graduating in 1959. As Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, she has served on the bench of our nation's highest judicial body for nearly 24 years. During this time, Justice Ginsburg has written several notable opinions but is perhaps better known for her, occasionally, blistering dissents.

In recent years, Justice Ginsburg has become something of a pop culture icon, and today, in honor of her 84th birthday as well as National Women's History Month, we at the Harris County Law Library are celebrating. Many are familiar with the "Notorious RBG" meme that has taken over the Internet and the New York Times bestselling book of the same name, but lesser-known facts about the second woman to ever serve on the United States Supreme Court include her achievements as an athlete, opera emcee, collar collector, and as a namesake to a preying mantis. What's more, she is full of good advice for women, and, after many successful years in the law, has much wisdom to dispense. As a gifted writer (who credits her college professor Vladimir Nabokov with improving her skill) and a sharp, articulate thinker who has been called the Thurgood Marshall of gender equality law, Justice Ginsburg's words are worth heeding. Although she is serious on the bench (and perhaps less funny than her best buddy, Antonin Scalia, according to a tabulation of laughter notations in Supreme Court oral argument transcripts), she is clever and quick with a quip. Justice Ginsburg's brilliance, warmth, virtue, magnanimity, and good humor are qualities to admire. As they say, there is no Truth without Ruth. Happy birthday, RBG!

Women's History Month at the Harris County Law Library

In 1987, Congress passed a law designating March as Women’s History Month. In his proclamation, President Reagan called upon “all Americans to mark this month with appropriate observances to honor the achievements of American women.” This month, the Harris County Law Library celebrates the achievements of a pioneering Houston attorney, Camille Elizabeth Stanford Openshaw, who overcame bias in the male-dominated legal field of the early 20th century to obtain her law degree and make significant contributions in her legal career.

Camille E.S. Openshaw is the subject of both a physical exhibit and digital exhibit at the Harris County Law Library. In our digital exhibit, you can find Openshaw's yearbook photo from South Texas School of Law, where she was the second woman to graduate with a law degree, and her 1935 notoriety as she represented a member of the Bonnie & Clyde gang. As Openshaw persisted to pursue her legal career in a strongly biased era, she demonstrated a strong spirit worth celebrating. 

Today, women continue to make enormous strides in the law in both legal practice and academia. After 130 years, the prestigious Harvard Law Review elected for the first time a black woman, ImeIme Umana, as president , and Yale Law School just named a new dean, Heather Gerken, the first woman to ever hold the position. In a recent Bloomberg Law interview, Ms. Gerken comments on the personal significance of her position, pointing to her role as the mother of a 14-year old daughter while outlining her vision for the future of the institution she now helms. Continued inclusion and promotion of women in the legal profession and increasing overall diversity will remain perennially important topics as the significant contributions of women like Openshaw, Umana, and Gerken continue to receive deserved recognition. Here are a few sources to help you learn about the topic and keep tabs on new developments: