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Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library

1019 Congress
Houston, Texas 77002
7137555183

Harris County Law Library

Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library

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Ex Libris Juris - HCLL Blog

Tech Tuesday: Library Technology Exhibit

January 2, 2018 HarrisCounty LawLibrary

The Harris County Law Library has seen many changes since it opened on October 1, 1915, including many changes in technology. This month's exhibit features several treasures from the past century representing the evolution of technology in the Law Library and in the practice of law. Don't miss the exhibit, which will be located in the library's lobby throughout January.

The electric light bulb was the first technology introduced to the Law Library, followed three decades later by a new development in sound recording technology.

SoundScriber Dictation Machine purchased for use at the Harris County Law Library in the mid-1940s.

The Soundscriber Dictation Machine, which featured an amplified microphone and soft-vinyl recording discs was introduced in 1945. It allowed attorneys to dictate notes, letters, and other documents while conducting research in the Law Library.

 

Westlaw Automated Law Terminal (W.A.L.T.) (c. 1982) - a similar terminal was available in the Harris County Law Library as early as 1985. {photo courtesy of Thomson Reuters}

In the 1980s, electronic legal research made its debut with W.A.L.T. (West Automated Legal Terminal), Harris County Law Library's portal to the Westlaw database. This dedicated computer terminal allowed users to access the Westlaw database over the Internet, but the cost of online legal research was prohibitive for most users. Electronic searching could cost up to $150 per hour, so print materials remained popular.

Demand for print resources guided the Law Library's collection development decisions throughout the 1990s. The library began purchasing books on computers and the law, but developments in tech quickly outpaced their usefulness. Fortunately, Westlaw and Lexis were becoming more accessible and robust. Today, the Law Library relies heavily on electronic resources. With 25 public legal research computers available for patron use, a great variety of digital content is readily available.Computers are Internet-connected, allowing for access to several databases, including Lexis, Westlaw, HeinOnline, O’Connor’s Online, and the State Bar of Texas Practice Manuals. 

The library's presence on social media -- Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram --  has also grown, providing users with up-to-date access to information about Law Library resources, services, and events, including the CLE sessions presented by the Law Library's Legal Tech Institute.

The Legal Tech Institute is an ongoing series of free learning opportunities focused on using technology for more efficient legal work. Since October of 2016, a new learning session has been offered each month with content designed for a diverse audience of legal tech beginners and experts. Microsoft Word for Lawyers, Excel Essentials, and Finding & Formatting Legal Forms are just a few of the courses that LTI has presented so far. Representatives from Westlaw and Lexis have rounded out the schedule with regular Vendor Visits.

LTI continues to grow with an ever-expanding menu of learning opportunities both in person an online. Earn CLE credit and improve your tech proficiency by visiting the LTI webpage where on-demand recordings of previous events are available. Look for even more offerings via our Hands-On Legal Tech Training courses which are scheduled to launch in 2018.

In Legal Tech Institute, Tech Tuesday Tags Legal Tech, Centennial, Exhibit

Software Solutions for Your Small Business or Law Practice

December 19, 2017 HarrisCounty LawLibrary

December is Small Business Resource Month at the Harris County Law Library. All month long, we're featuring resources, tailored for solo and small firm attorneys, who own, operate, manage, or advise small businesses. 

Finding the best law practice management software to meet the needs of your small firm can be a challenge. There are many different options to choose from at a range of prices and levels of sophistication. The Legal Tech Institute at Harris County Law Library provides links to several law practice management software packages, along with a link to the American Bar Association Legal Technology Buyer's Guide. While we do not endorse any particular product or service, we do list a limited number of affordable options.

Features offered by the various programs are similar. In general, they offer functionality for client communications, billing and accounting, task management, document automation, time tracking, and calendaring. Comparing how the programs differ is key. The following are good questions to ask when deciding which law practice management software is best for you?

  • Is it a cloud based system? How much data storage is provided? Is access secure for you and your clients? 
  • Is there a mobile version for access on the go? How good is it? Does it provide access to all features or is it limited?
  • Does it integrate with any third-party programs such as Box, Dropbox, Fastcase, Google Drive, Office 365 or Quickbooks?

After exploring your options, contact the chosen providers to request a free trial and/or a guided demonstration. Then, let the software work for you. Using a law practice management program to automate routine tasks will boost your business, giving you more time to focus on serving your clients' needs. 

In Featured Resources, Legal Tech Institute, Legal Trends, Tech Tips, Tech Tuesday Tags Legal Tech, Small Business

Upcoming Courses from the Legal Tech Institute at Harris County Law Library

November 21, 2017 Heather Holmes

The Legal Tech Institute at Harris County Law Library has a complete lineup of events planned for the next few months. Please visit our LTI Course Catalog to view the upcoming programs and to register for each course. The following are currently scheduled.

  • Vendor Visit - Lexis Advance: November 30, 2017
  • Legal Practice Technology: December 18, 2017 (Please note the new date.)
  • Vendor Visit - Westlaw: January 18, 2018

Through its course offerings, the Legal Tech Institute introduces you to trends in law practice technology. LTI helps you become more proficient legal researchers using the tools freely available in the Law Library, including Westlaw and Lexis Advance. Whenever possible, the LTI provides Texas CLE credit for the courses offered, and we bring this all to you free of charge.  In addition, we also record the courses and make them available via our website within a few weeks of the live presentation. Those who view the videos can claim CLE credit for up to one year after the courses are presented.

If you have an idea for a legal tech topic that you would like to see presented, please let us know. We welcome suggestions and feedback, and we appreciate your involvement in making the Legal Tech Institute the best that it can be.  

In Events, Legal Tech Institute, Tech Tips, Tech Tuesday Tags Legal Tech

Legal Tech Institute CLE: Finding & Formatting Legal Forms

October 24, 2017 Heather Holmes

Please join us for the next Legal Tech Institute CLE, Finding & Formatting Legal Forms, on Thursday, October 26th at 12:00 noon. Presenters will guide attendees in using three of the most popular legal databases -- Westlaw, Lexis, and O’Connor’s -- to locate legal forms. In the second part of the program, presenters will edit one of the forms found in one of the three legal research databases to demonstrate the use of various formatting features in Microsoft Word.

PLEASE NOTE: The location of this CLE has changed. It will be held in the Conference Room on the 17th floor of Congress Plaza at 1019 Congress, Houston, TX 77002. Please see the announcement for further details and to register for this program. 

In Events, Legal Tech Institute, Research Tips, Tech Tips, Tech Tuesday Tags Microsoft Word, Legal Tech, CLE

Legal Tech Institute Celebrates First Anniversary

October 20, 2017 Guest User

The Legal Tech Institute at the Harris County Law Library launched in October, 2016, with the CLE Social Media for Lawyers. Building on the success of that program, we've expanded learning opportunities significantly with a dozen in-person courses and 5 On-Demand training sessions available on our website. As with all programs at the Harris County Law Library, LTI classes are always free and open to all.

Additionally, each LTI video CLE is accredited by the State Bar of Texas and Texas attorneys can receive credit for watching the videos up to a year after the live program. That means the LTI anniversary also marks the end point for receiving Texas CLE credit for our first program. Watch Social Media for Lawyers and report your credit at www.texasbar.com before time runs out!

In Legal Tech Institute, Tech Tuesday, Around the Web, Featured Resources, On This Day
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Ex Libris Juris - HCLL Blog RSS

What’s behind the name? “Ex Libris Juris” is Latin for “from the books of law” and much of the information here will relate to the legal information collected and curated by the Law Library. Additionally, “Ex Libris” has long appeared on bookplates – labels appearing inside the front cover of books – and has acquired the connoted meaning “from the library of” to show ownership of the book. Using this connotation, the phrase becomes “from the library of law” and better describes the posts about digital resources, event announcements, and research tips that will regularly appear here.

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Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library, 1019 Congress Street, 1st Floor, Houston, Texas 77002

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