by Gerard Fowke

Research Consultations are Really, Really Great and They Will Almost Definitely Improve Your Paper

Researching a paper can be intimidating. In my experience, this emphatically applies to many situations where the paper in question is for a law school course. Most law students have only just recently become familiar with the fundamental sources and strategies of legal research, and applying them to a lengthier treatment of a multidimensional (and often interdisciplinary) topic adds another layer of complexity.

Fortunately, your friendly neighborhood librarian is here to help, in the form of a research consultation. We are available to meet with you one-on-one to give you highly individualized advice on researching your paper. This includes help with many different aspects of the paper-writing process, including refining your thesis, checking for preemption, developing a research plan, identifying relevant resources, finding authorities that support your arguments, and more.

Efficient, high-quality research can make a big difference with any paper. Research can be very path-dependent, and the strategies you choose earlier in the process will lead you to different sources, and those sources will inevitably shape your arguments and ideas in the final product. Impeccable research isn’t just something you do to build an impressive footnote count! (Although a consultation will undoubtedly help you with that as well.)

Research consultations are not only extremely helpful, they are also very easy to schedule. To do so, you can hit us up at lawreference@gsu.edu, email your personal librarian, or simply stop by the reference desk. With that high degree of convenience in mind, I’m going to close out this blog post by stridently demanding that you stop whatever you’re doing and schedule a research consultation right now. I mean, don’t you want to write a better paper?

04.05.21

by Cassandra Patterson

Personal Librarian: Meg Butler

During the spring and fall semesters of this year, we are highlighting our Personal Librarian program by featuring one of our Law Librarians.

The Personal Librarian program is another way that the GSU Law Library connects to students. In this program, students are paired with a Librarian, and through communications, they stay up to date on library services and ask questions that they may have during their time at the Georgia State University College of Law.

This month we are featuring Meg Butler, our Associate Director for Public Services. She has been at the GSU Law Library for 10 years!

The following is a little Q&A from Meg:

What do you do? In the library, I am the Associate Director for Public Services, and that means that I work to make sure that the library is doing what it needs to do to fulfill the needs of our patrons–faculty, students, and citizens.
Did you always want to be a librarian? Sometimes. When I was little, in elementary school, I “worked” in the library. And middle school. And high school. And somehow I didn’t manage to become a professional librarian until later.
Favorite movie? This is a very difficult question to answer. I have enjoyed a bunch of serious movies. But the movies that I love to watch over and over again are Addams Family Values and The Pirate Movie. I like them because they make me laugh.
Favorite legal resource? The Bluebook. Who doesn’t love something so easy to complain about?
Favorite place in Atlanta? I enjoy working in my front yard. So maybe my front yard? I can chat with neighbors, enjoy the weather, and watch my kids ride bikes or scooters.

You can learn more things about Meg, like her favorite class and lunch spot near the law school, as well as about the personal librarian program at this link.

02.12.21

by Cassandra Patterson

Featured GSU Law Librarian: Pam Brannon

During the spring and fall semesters of this year, we are highlighting our Personal Librarian program by featuring one of our “fabulous” (a favorite term of this month’s featured Librarian) Law Librarians.

The Personal Librarian program is another way that the GSU Law Library connects to students. In this program, students are paired with a Librarian and through communications, they are able to stay up to date on library services and ask questions that they may have during their time at the Georgia State University College of Law.

This month we are featuring Pam Brannon, our Coordinator of Faculty Services. She has been at the GSU Law Library for over 13 years! The following is a little Q&A from Pam:

What do you do? I’m in charge of the services that the library provides to faculty – such as researching arcane (and non-arcane) topics and working with faculty research assistants – and supervise the library’s research GRAs. I also do a lot of other things, including work at the reference desk, teach research methods, and help decide what we purchase.
Did you always want to be a librarian? Not really, although I gravitated toward libraries fairly early (I was in my elementary school’s library club – basically, I shelved books). When I graduated from undergrad, I thought I was going to go back to grad school (probably in English lit) to be a professor. But then I started working at the UGA libraries, and I decided pretty quickly afterward that I wanted to be a librarian.
Favorite class in school? In undergrad, either History of Rock Music or Ulysses. In library school, I really enjoyed my Book Publishing class, but that may just have been because we got to talk about comic books with a guy from DC Comics. In law school, probably Sexual Orientation & the Law.
Favorite legal resource? I love the Federal Register, and both the Federal Register website and Regulations.gov are wonderful because they really help do what the Federal Register was designed to do – make the process of federal rulemaking more transparent and more accountable to the people.
Favorite place in Atlanta? Even though I don’t go there much at all anymore, I still love Little 5 Points.

You can learn more things about Pam, like her favorite movie and sport, as well as about the personal librarian program at this link.