Top of page

Archive: April 2015 (18 Posts)

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

The Phase Out of Non-Machine-Readable Passports

Posted by: Robert Brammer

The following is a guest post by Shameema Rahman, a senior legal research specialist in our Public Services Division. The Convention on International Civil Aviation (also known as the Chicago Convention) was signed on December 7, 1944, by 52 countries.  The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) was officially established on April 4, 1947, following the …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

The Unacknowledged Legislators of the World

Posted by: Jennifer Davis

The following is a guest post by Brandon Fitzgerald, project manager of a Law Library staffing contract, writer and student of poetry and literature. In honor of National Poetry Month, I want to consider the intersections between law and poetry. Each entails persuasion and  precision of language. Word choice and word placement are central to …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

Recent Materials Related to Islamic Law

Posted by: Kelly Buchanan

The following is a guest post by Connie Johnson, a senior legal research analyst at the Law Library of Congress.  Connie has previously written posts on an event and associated research guide related to translations of foreign law, one of our Human Rights Day events, and water rights at Star Island.  She also jointly wrote …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

Henry VIII by William Shakespeare

Posted by: Margaret Wood

Since it is April, and today is Shakespeare’s birthday, it is time for our annual post on this great playwright.  Last year, in  honor of our upcoming Magna Carta exhibit, I blogged about the play King John.  This year, in honor of Wolf Hall, I thought it would be fun to read and write about …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

An Interview with Gail Warren, Virginia State Law Librarian

Posted by: Andrew Weber

The following is a guest post by Andrew Winston, a legal reference librarian in the Public Services Division of the Law Library of Congress.  Andrew interviews the Virginia State Law Librarian, Gail Warren.  We have previously interviewed another state law librarian, Jennifer Frazier, from Kentucky. How long have you been the Virginia State Law Librarian, and …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

Francis Scott Key: the Lawyer-Poet

Posted by: Jennifer Davis

Both law and poetry require a fluid grasp of language and a critical need for precision and economy with words; possessing these skills can be the key to making one person successful in both endeavors. There are a few times in history when well-known poets started their professional lives in the law (John Donne, Archibald …

Ornate red and ivory wall decoration, with plaque and symbols

Frontier Racing and Injured Pride: The Duel Between Andrew Jackson and Charles Dickinson

Posted by: Robert Brammer

One of things I enjoy about working at the Library of Congress is visiting our Manuscripts Division to read first-hand accounts of historic events. After reading a biography of Andrew Jackson, I looked through the finding aid for his papers and came upon a letter from a Tennessee lawyer named Charles Dickinson. The estimated number …