Wisconsin State Law Library

Recently, one of our librarians came across a Wisconsin Bar Bulletin article from 1976, commemorating Law Day. This article, 200 years of liberty and law, includes photographs from the Governor's proclamation signing, and an oral argument in the Assembly Chambers of the State Capitol "on the issue of Fair Trial - Free Press." It was great to see this window to the past, preserved in the Bar Bulletin. You can read this article and see the pictures now on HeinOnline (49 Wis. B. Bull. 56, 58 (1976)), or in print in the David T. Prosser Jr. Library.

Please join us for Law Day on May 1, 2019. The Wisconsin State Law Library is offering a free CLE-credit class on legislative history research.

Introduction to Wisconsin Legislative History
Wednesday, May 1, Noon - 1 p.m.
Location: Room 150 in the Risser Justice Center, 120 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Watch for signs in the lobby. Room 150 is located on the first floor, at the same entrance for the David. T. Prosser Jr. Library.

I need the legislative history of a Wisconsin statute. Where do I start? What do I do? Participants will look at the primary resources used to research Wisconsin legislative history, learn about the online Wisconsin legislative drafting files, and learn some helpful tips and tricks along the way. This introductory class covers basic research strategies and sources.

This year’s American Bar Association theme is “Free Speech, Free Press, Free Society.” In consideration of this theme, the Dane County Bar Association will present three free CLE programs on Digital Freedom of Speech, Attorney Ethics in “My Cousin Vinny,” and Media and Open Government Issues. All programs are open to everyone, and will be at the Dane County Courthouse.

The Dane County Law Library will be hosting free legal consultations for the public with volunteer attorneys, and courthouse tours are also offered as part of Law Day at the Courthouse.

Celebrate Law Day with the Dane County Bar Association (DCBA) and the Dane County Law Library on Tuesday, May 1st. The theme for this year is “Separation of powers: framework for freedom.”

Come support free access to legal information at the Dane County Legal Resource Center's (DCLRC) book sale on Monday, May 2. The book sale will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the lower-level cafe of the Dane County Courthouse.

The Dane County Bar Association and DCRLC are coordinating this book sale as part of Dane County's law day celebration. The book sale aims to raise enough money for another year's subscription to Shepard's to which the library currently subscribes and provides for free in the library. Shepard's is an important online legal research tool used to retrieve full text state and federal court opinions, verify that a case is still good law, and find additional relevant cases - all crucial steps in the caselaw research process but a service in jeopardy of being cut due to shrinking budgets.

The sale features gently used recreational books, including contemporary fiction and non-fiction, true crime, mystery, cookbooks, memoirs, travel guides, and more. Stop by and browse for "new-to-you" books just in time for summer, and invite your friends to join you! Paperbacks will sell for $1, hardcovers for $2, and there will be a 2-for-1 table.

All proceeds will be put towards next year's subscription to Shepard's online.

Walk-in legal clinics will be offered at four Milwaukee public libraries on Saturday, April 30, 2011. These clinics are hosted by the Milwaukee Bar Association and the Milwaukee Young Lawyers Association. See their Law Day 2011 flyer for more information.

As part of the 2011 Law Day celebration, the Dane County Bar Association and the Dane County Legal Resource Center (DCLRC) are coordinating a book drive in order to have a book sale. The sale aims to raise enough money for another year's subscription to Shepard's, to which the library currently subscribes and offers for free in the library. Donated books are accepted at the DCLRC until Friday, April 29th. The book sale is open to all shoppers on Monday, May 2 from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m in the cafeteria of the Dane County Courthouse. Please come and support free access to legal information!

To celebrate Law Day, the Young Lawyers Division (YLD) of the State Bar of Wisconsin focuses on outreach to schools. The American Bar Association (ABA) has developed an educational theme, The Legacy of John Adams: From Boston to Guantanamo, for use in the classroom and in the community. To learn more about celebrating law day in schools, see the YLD Law Day 2011 page.

As part of the Law Day celebration in May 2011, the Dane County Bar Association and DCLRC will hold a book sale to try to raise enough money for another year's subscription to Shepard's. Shepard's is an important online legal research tool used to retrieve full text state and federal court opinions, verify that a case is still good law, and find additional relevant cases – all crucial steps in the caselaw research process but a service in jeopardy of being cut due to shrinking budgets.

The first way you can help is by donating your gently used, no-longer-wanted recreational books to our "Fill the Shelves for Shepard's" campaign. Popular genres include contemporary fiction, non-fiction, true crime and mystery but all donations are appreciated. Ask your friends and neighbors to donate, too.

Materials will be accepted through May 2 at the DCLRC, Room L1007 in the Dane County Courthouse.

On May 2, all donated materials will go on sale on Lower Level 1 of the Courthouse from 9 am-3 pm. And that's the second way you can help - invite your friends to join you and buy lots of "new-to-you" books, just in time for summer! Paperbacks will sell for $1.00, hardcovers for $2.00 and there will be a 2-for-1 table. All proceeds will be put toward next year's subscription to Shepard's online at the DCLRC. Any leftover books will be donated to the Juvenile Detention Center, Dane County Jails, or the Legal Resource Center's ongoing pro se book sale.