Research Assistance


Legal Information Librarians are available to assist with research, online searching, questions about the collection, and locating sources not owned by Boston University. Students working on seminar papers, certification papers, or journal notes are welcome to make an appointment for a research consultation with a reference librarian. The librarians can help you develop a research strategy for a successful research paper experience. Please note: they cannot provide legal advice.

Reference Hours

Monday-Friday: 11am-3pm

Summer Hours: 10am-2pm

Contact during Reference Hours

Contact outside Reference Hours

 

Law Journal Members

Each journal has a liaison on the library staff.  These liaisons coordinate training with the editorial staff, provide support to source gatherers and tech checkers, and provide continuity from year to year.

The library has created a general source gathering guide as well as an international source gathering guide to help you locate basic categories of materials.  We can also help you with borrowing materials for your journals, tracking down items not on the shelf and requesting materials from other libraries (called interlibrary loan or ILL).  For journal specific information on ILL procedures see the general source gathering guide and select the tab for your journal.

We also offer administrative support, including subscription management, help with macros, and support for digital publishing. Please contact Emily Mann for more details.

Have a question not answered here? Please Ask Us or chat with us.

Lexis+, Westlaw, and Bloomberg Support

Lexis+, Westlaw, and Bloomberg Law are commercial electronic services that contain extensive and growing databases of case law, statutes, regulations, law reviews, treatises and secondary resources, news, business information, and other legal and non-legal materials.

JD and LLM students receive Lexis+ and Westlaw instruction during their first year of law school. Bloomberg Law contains resources that are more useful in 2L and 3L years.  Many opportunities are available for advanced and topical training for academic course work, journal activities, and to prepare students for summer and permanent employment. Ask a reference librarian for information about training opportunities or check the research training calendar.

All three services are accessed using personally assigned passwords. Information about how to register for these services will be sent to you from the library before the start of the year. If you have any issues, you can email Kate Cochrane (katec@bu.edu) for assistance.

Use of these databases is restricted to current law students only. In addition, Lexis+ and Westlaw usage is strictly limited by contract to curriculum-related research. The systems may not be used either directly or indirectly for any client or entity not part of the law school educational program.

Research Assistants to Law Faculty

Every faculty member has a liaison on the library staff. This librarian will work with faculty RAs to help them develop a research plan or to point out specialized resources.  You can also use Chat or the Ask Us button if you have a question during library hours.  There are also research guides for specialized resources.