[blindlaw] Number of Reader Hours

[Carrie Ann Lucas]

Hi,

This was not true at my law school (University of Denver 2001-2005).   I had
full access to Westlaw and Lexis from day one, and while we had two class
sessions to teach us how to do book research, I never once had to do so in
law school, and I did not become blind until my second year of law school.
My professors encouraged us to use both online research services from day
one.  I know Westlaw and Lexis support this because students are then
dependent on them after graduation.  

Carrie Ann Lucas
Attorney/Equal Justice Works Fellow
Center for Rights of Parents with Disabilities
Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition
655 Broadway, Suite 775
Denver, CO 80203
303.839.1775 (voice
303.839.0015 (TTY and CapTel)
303.839.1782 (facsimile)
800.817.1435 (voice)
877.267.1621(TTY and CapTel)
www.ccdconline.org   

-----Original Message-----
Jim,
Your hunch is correct.  When I took Legal Analysis, Research, and Writing,
the Professors suggested that traditional library research was by and large
useless for me.  First year students are not allowed to have "full access"
to either on-line research service; instead, "old fashioned" book and
library work is required.  My Professors realized that the likelihood of me
using a library in practice was minimal, and they proceeded to give me "full
access" in my first semester.  I still needed to complete the citation
practice as all other students, only mine was done using the Internet.  
Additionally, we used the ALWD manual instead of the Blue Book.  This manual
was very similar to the Blue Book with several minor differences.
I was able to obtain the ALWD manual in an electronic format, which made
using it as a reference manual very user-friendly.  To my knowledge, the
Blue Book was and is not available electronically.
I hope that bar review is going well for you.
Regards,
Craig