ABA works with Law Library of Congress

For lawyers who follow hot button legal matters that are occurring on the global scene, a vital new online tool is available that will make the job easier. The ABA's Standing Committee on the Law Library of Congress, working in conjunction with the Law Library of Congress, has recently helped Law Librarian Dr. Rubens Medina to unveil the Global Legal Monitor.

The Global Legal Monitor is an electronic publication intended for those who have an interest in legal developments from around the world, and will include materials from official national legal publications as well as from reliable press sources. Special sections may include lectures, materials from conferences and symposia, as well as exhibits on timely legal topics sponsored by the Law Library of Congress.

When the Global Legal Monitor was first posted in May 2006, it contained materials from 65 nations and international organizations. That number is expected to grow.

Topics of materials, broken down on a country-by-country basis, include such issues as lawyers and judges, communications and electronic information, elections/campaign law, foreign trade and trade regulations, health law and regulation and human rights.

The Standing Committee on the Law Library of Congress works to serve as the association's voice concerning the continued development and effective operation of the Law Library of Congress. The committee has continued to work toward the development of the Law Library of Congress as a national resource serving not only the Congress but also the legal profession, universities and law schools, as well as the public. With 2.5 million volumes, the Law Library of Congress is the world's largest law library. In the Standing Committee's view, "That house is our house, and it's our job to look after it."

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