The transformative journey of law librarianship has been marked by significant milestones, from the transition from hard copy to online access, to the current development and implementation of artificial intelligence (AI). This article is based on a presentation at the BIALL Conference in June 2024 by Melissa Mills, Knowledge Manager at William Roberts Lawyers, and explores this evolution, focusing on her experiences and insights gained over the years, particularly in the Australian context.

Peter Clinch, the former Law Librarian at Cardiff University, is a multiple award winner and prolific writer on all things to do with legal information research. Here he talks to LIM about how he initially worked as a town planner, his long career in law librarianship, and his views on the challenges now facing the profession.

Author, broadcaster and researcher Stephanie Hare's presentation on technology ethics was one of the most spoken about events at last year's BIALL conference, a thought-provoking talk that left many wanting more. With this in mind, Mike and Jas Breslin sat down with Stephanie to talk about the fascinating and very readable book it was based on, her thoughts on why technology ethics is especially important to information professionals, and whether she believed AI will ever do law librarians out of a job.

Three academic and one law firm librarian, Susan Boyle, Virginia Conrick, Pattie Punch, and Ann O'Sullivan collaborated to create a ‘Lawyering Toolkit’. It was devised to support learners on the legal lifecycle from higher education to the corporate sphere and beyond. Arranged by skills level, it was imagineered via the online BIALL Irish Group meetings during the Covid pandemic. Learning steps were visually scaffolded in LibGuides to build a quick reference platform. This article describes how the Toolkit proof-of-concept developed through experiential reflection and shared discussion. It tracks the construction of a prototype to presentation at BIALL Conference 2022 and incorporates feedback from the conference and the BIALL Irish Group. It is envisaged that the Lawyering Toolkit will ensure a more collaborative and consistent approach to legal information literacy in the Republic of Ireland.

Recruitment within the legal information sector has been challenging in recent years, in both the UK and the US, with a market that has been heavily skewed in favour of applicants. Which is why the City Legal Information Group (CLIG) hosted a virtual conference in late February to look at the current state of the recruitment market, the best ways to hire the very best people, and also the methods individuals might employ to find work in the sector themselves. Here Caroline Asbjornsen, a researcher at Watson Farley & Williams LLP and a member of the CLIG committee, talks us through what turned out to be a fascinating discussion.

This article, written by Kate Faulkner and Wendy Lynwood, considers the skills of law librarians and shows how they can assist those who also hold a copyright specialist role. Most librarians encounter some aspects of copyright within their role. However, the understanding that law librarians have with regard to law, legal research capabilities, teaching and liaison skills equips them to take on copyright, sometimes in addition to their law library role, or to move into a full-time copyright specialist role.

In this article, based on his presentation at the BIALL Annual Conference in July 2022, the author Greg Bennett, a law librarian, discusses the insights he gained by becoming a student of law, and so, a user of a law library.

In Autumn 2021 the British and Irish Association of Law Librarians (BIALL) carried out a follow-up survey to the May 2020 ‘Covid-19 Industry Survey'. BIALL President, Catherine Bowl, gives an overview of the findings of ‘State of the Nation' survey which was published in December 2021. The results of the survey are to be found on the pages that follow this introduction.

Goldsmiths, University of London, started teaching LLBs in Law in 2019/2020. Greg Bennett was hired in 2018 to be the subject librarian for law, and to stock the library before teaching commenced. In this article, based on his presentation at the BIALL Online Annual Conference in June 2021, the author will discuss his decision-making and selection processes regarding his choices about what to include, and what not to include in the collection.

The British and Irish Association of Law Librarians (BIALL) carried out a survey of BIALL members during May 2020 in order to gain a view, at a point in time, of the impact of Covid-19.1 National lockdowns in both the United Kingdom and Ireland had come into force in March 2020. The survey was a way of gauging how the legal information community was responding to the challenges and changing circumstances brought about as a result of the pandemic. This brief introduction by Karen Brown, President of BIALL, sets the scene for the results of the survey which appear in the pages that follow.2

The role of the law librarian or legal information professional is thought by some to have been diminished significantly by technological advances which provide instant access to an enormous range of materials direct to individual users at their desks. The reality is that the wide range of instantly accessible materials makes the experience and knowledge of the information professional more important, not less; and imminently expected advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence are likely to confirm the vital importance of the legal information professional at the centre of legal services.

Guy Holborn revisits the research he carried out in preparing the chapter on law libraries from 1850 to 2000 in the Cambridge History of Libraries in Britain and Ireland. Much of the material he gathered was not included in the chapter as published for reasons of space. Drawing from both the previously published chapter and the unpublished material, he selects four themes relevant to BIALL in its 50th anniversary year: legal education and law libraries, the development of law firms and their information services, the content of law libraries and the information needs of the profession, and the emergence of the professional law librarian.

In this article Dunstan Speight, President of BIALL 2018–2019, provides a short overview of current challenges and opportunities facing the profession. In addition to trends affecting all types of law libraries, the article discusses some of the main issues facing the three main types of information service: academic, law firm and chambers, and professional bodies. The article concludes with a discussion of how core skills and experience are still relevant in the fast-changing world of legal information.

The legal information landscape has always been one of instability and change. The rate of these changes seems to be speeding up as societal and technological changes interact and impact our lives. In the face of this volatility, we should remain constant by being the human factor between information and our clients. We are the interface between new technology and the changing information usage behaviours of our clients. We must understand both aspects to ensure the best outcomes. Our client centric attitude positions us perfectly to be leaders when exploring, and perhaps even creating, new solutions. We are best placed to bring them back to our institutions and provide the human touch to ensure they are implemented in a way that will succeed and add value. It is important to embrace this constant state of flux and find our value in being supportive change agents, while also ensuring that we can ensure, and advocate for, the importance of safeguarding legal information for generations to come.

In this article, where Liz Murray, Information Resources Manager at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS) in London, interviews Claudia Holland, Head of the Library of the Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law, the strategic direction of the new Head Librarian is explored. The strengths of this major international, comparative private law library are considered and the balance between providing electronic access to law resources while still maintaining an excellent legal print collection is examined. The importance of networks and collaboration is also highlighted.

This paper is based on a parallel session at the BIALL Conference 2016 which was given by Helen Marshall and Kelly Taylor from Pinsent Masons. Pinsent Masons has a ground-breaking team of research analysts providing the firm with in-depth sector and market analysis. This innovative approach has benefits for Pinsent Masons and also for the research team. These include increased visibility within the firm and developing a role as a trusted adviser to the business. The team are drawn from a variety of backgrounds, including experienced law librarians. In this article, Kelly and Helen, who are both from a law librarian background, will explain Pinsents' unique approach to business and sector insight. The article covers how the team adds value to the firm and charts the development of our existing skillsets to meet this new challenge. The article also includes some practical insight into approaching business research and how to overcome common obstacles, notably the challenge in expanding our output from traditional legal research to more business and commercially aware pieces.

Infiltrate and Conquer … looks at how librarians might take inspiration from outside of their profession to gain greater visibility and influence within their own workplaces. The piece is a mixture of experiences: from the author, Emily Allbon, from others who have left the profession but who use those skills in other careers, and also from some librarians outside of law. The focus here is on why, and indeed how, to forge partnerships and encourage collaboration with others inside and outside of your profession. The author's Lawbore website and associated technologies will be discussed throughout the article.

Kathryn Hayes reflects on the PLL (Private Law Libraries) Summit at the 2012 AALL Annual Meeting and Conference in Boston, which focussed on what law libraries and information services will look like in 2020 and what we should be doing now to advance that vision.

Victoria Jannetta describes her experiences at the AALL annual meeting in Philadelphia focusing on various particular sessions given in relation to free speech, Delaware corporation law, company mergers, academic library issues and ebooks.

Fiona Fogden gave a very practical talk at the BIALL Conference 2010 in Brighton on contract negotiation with online vendors and it has been held over to this issue of LIM as it fits so well with our vendor relations theme.