As mentioned in my previous post, during my day-to-day work at my cool job, I never know what I’m going to stumble upon. It so happened that, as I was gathering information for my post on sumptuary laws, I came across a page of ‘legal curiosities’ compiled by the UK’s Law Commission and published by …
This week’s Pic of the Week is from Stephanie Rocío Miles, also known as the Bilingual Librarian. Stephanie recently visited the Law Library of Congress and blogged about her experience. She included several pictures from our bigger than a football field size stacks. She graciously allowed me to use my favorite for today’s Pic of the …
The following is a guest post by Cynthia Jordan, Senior Writer-Editor at the Law Library of Congress. October 13, 2011, is being celebrated around the world as the First Annual International Plain Language Day. This new celebration is planned to coincide with the first anniversary of The Plain Writing Act, Public Law 111-274, enacted October 13, …
The following is a guest post by Francisco Macías, Senior Legal Information Analyst. If you’ve ever seen this day marked on your desktop calendars and wondered what it was, think La Niña (née La Santa Clara), La Pinta, and La Santa María. On October 12, 1492, Christopher Columbus landed in the modern-day Commonwealth of the …
The following is a guest post by Francisco Macías, Senior Legal Information Analyst. In the United States, National Hispanic Heritage Month takes place from September 15 to October 15. This month is set aside each year to recognize and honor the countless Hispanic Americans whose cultural legacy has enriched our country and our society. The …
When doing my cool job, I never know what will cross my path. Recently, I happened to discover some items covering early sumptuary laws in England. These laws were prohibitions against what the Monarch at the time considered to be “extravagance,” typically in the form of food or clothing. They were reportedly aimed to preserve the class system …
In my September 23, 2011 post, I discussed the August 23, 2011 referendum in Liberia, conducted largely in preparation for the constitutionally mandated general elections scheduled for October 11, 2011. The referendum included proposals that, if passed, would directly affect the conduct and outcome of the elections: a measure to amend the residency requirement for …
This week the Law Library of Congress hosted Professor Joseph Raz who delivered a very thought-provoking lecture for the second Kellogg Biennial Lecture in Jurisprudence. Professor Raz is a leading proponent of legal positivism, which looks to the sources of laws as the basis for their validity, rather than their content. During the lecture, he offered …
In honor of Constitution Day (September 17, 2011), the Law Library of Congress was pleased to host Dahlia Lithwick speaking on the topic of “The Supreme Court and Free Speech.” The event was held on Friday, September 16, 2011, at 4 p.m. in the Madison Hall at the Library of Congress James Madison Memorial Building. …
The following guest post by Stephen Wesson, an Educational Resource Specialist at the Library of Congress. It is cross posted on the Teaching with the Library of Congress blog. For those of us at the Library of Congress who work with K-12 teachers, a crucial part of our work is promoting the effective instructional use of primary …