John Marshall Harlan ‘24

 

On March 28, 1955, NYLS alumnus John Marshall Harlan ’24 formally took his seat as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.  An article titled “Mr. Worth Street,” appearing in the April/May 1998 issue of the NYLS student newspaper The Reporter, provides a short sketch of the Justice’s professional career and his connection to the school.

The law school celebrated the formal naming of the portion of Worth Street between Church Street and West Broadway as Justice John M. Harlan Way in May 1991 as part of the law school’s centennial celebration.

Coronavirus Legal Research

The Law Librarians at the Library of Congress have created a Coronavirus Resource Guide, a regularly updated source of federal and state legislation as well as presidential executive orders and proclamations addressing COVID-19. The guide also provides links to Congressional Research Service Reports relating to the coronavirus (43 published to date).

Online Access to the Bluebook

The publishers of The Bluebook: a Uniform System of Citation are offering online access, at no cost, to members of the NYLS community who do not have access to a print copy.  If you wish to take advantage of this offer, please email the Library at reference@nyls.edu.  Your request must come from a NYLS email address.

Remote Access to Casebooks and Texts

The publishers of law school casebooks and texts recognize the current health emergency, and have agreed to make these books available electronically to our students. The Mendik Library is working out the details of remote access with the publishers.

Below are access details we’ve received so far, organized by publisher. If you’re not sure which company publishes your book, consult the Library’s Online Catalog. Click on “Course Reserves” and you can search by course or professor’s name. The catalog record will indicate the publisher.

Our goal is to make this list as inclusive as possible. While these are the major publishers of law texts, your text may not be included. We’ll be adding and enhancing this information continuously, so check this page frequently. If you experience difficulty with remote access, or have any questions, contact us at reference@nyls.edu.

LexisNexis and Carolina Academic Press: Many of these publishers’ textbooks are available through the VitalSource platform. Click on this link, to access the VitalSource login page. You MUST use your New York Law School email address to create a VitalSource account. Then click on the “Explore” link to search for your casebook or text.

West Academic and Foundation Press: You should call 877-888-1330 and identify yourself as a student at a coronavirus-impacted school. You’ll be connected with a customer service representative who will give you access instructions.

Wolters Kluwer, Law & Business, and Aspen Publishers: Many of these publishers’ textbooks are available through the VitalSource platform. Click on this link, to access the VitalSource login page. You MUST use your New York Law School email address to create a VitalSource account. Then click on the “Explore” link to search for your casebook or text.

The Bluebook – a Uniform System of Citation: Watch this page for further details

Remote Access to Required Texts

The publishers of law school casebooks and texts recognize the current situation, and have agreed to make these books available electronically to our students.  If you use a textbook published by West Academic you should call 877-888-1330, and identify yourself as a student at a coronavirus-impacted school.  The Mendik Library is working with additional publishers to work out the details of access.  Please consult the Library homepage http://www.nyls.edu/library for further information.

On This Day: March 9, 1950

On this day in March 1950, Ferdinand Pecora, who attended New York Law School from 1903-1905, delivered the Commencement Address for the law school’s commencement exercises at the New York County Lawyers’ Association. Pecora received an Honorary Degree from the Law School in 1958.

He was best known in his role as Chief Counsel to the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Banking and Currency, where he was instrumental in the post-Wall Street Crash of 1929 congressional hearings that led to the enactment of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which represented fundamental reforms to the American financial system.

Pecora went on to become one of the first SEC Commissioners, as well as a Justice of the New York Supreme Court.

See more at: https://digitalcommons.nyls.edu/distinguished_judges/2/

Black History Month

February is Black History Month, and a recent HeinOnline blog post offers “5 Easy Ways to Research Black History in HeinOnline.”  The post highlights five of its research databases, including Slavery in America and the World.  You can access the blog post here, and you can access all the HeinOnline databases here.

Find Love in the Library!!

Can you find love in the Library? Yes, you can! Click here to access our Valentine’s Day Info Hunt.

WIN study aids, Lexis points, NYLS swag, and other useful items, while having fun doing some easy legal research about some offbeat cases. Each question comes with step-by-step instructions to get you to the answer.

Print the PDF entry form (or pick up a copy at the Reference Desk) and drop it in our Reference Desk Raffle Drum by 5:00 pm on Thursday February 13. Then join us outside the library at 5:30 for some sweets and the prize drawing at 5:45pm.

Martin Luther King Day

Legislation signed in 1983 marked the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a federal holiday. It is celebrated on the third Monday of each January. In 1994, Congress designated the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday as a national day of service, now led by the Corporation for National and Community Service.

This year, the NYLS community is honoring Dr. King’s legacy through a service project for God’s Love We Deliver on January 24, 2020.  NYLS students and staff will be volunteering to assist in the preparation and delivery of nutritious, high-quality meals to people living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other serious illnesses, who are unable to provide or prepare meals for themselves. The effort is being organized by NYLS’s Impact Center for Public Interest Law.

Presidential Impeachment Library

Through our subscription to HeinOnline, you can now access Hein’s Presidential Impeachment Library, an online collection bringing “together a variety of documents both contemporaneous and asynchronous to each president’s impeachment, presenting both a snapshot of the political climate as each impeachment played out and the long view history has taken of each proceeding.” The collection will continue to grow as the current impeachment process plays out.