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Category: Law Library

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Elbridge Gerry and the Monstrous Gerrymander

Posted by: Jennifer Davis

The first “gerrymander” was drawn on a map and signed into law on February 11, 1812. Elbridge Gerry, then governor of Massachusetts, signed into law a redistricting plan designed to keep his political party in power in the upcoming election. Upset that the Federalist Party was critical of James Madison’s foreign policy, Gerry signed the …

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Law Library Program to Further Explore History of Venetian Ghetto

Posted by: Liah Caravalho

On Tuesday, February 21, the Law Library of Congress in collaboration with the Embassy of Italy will host a second program to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Jewish Ghetto of Venice. The first commemorative program that the Law Library hosted on May 24, 2016,  La Città degli Ebrei/The City of the Jews: Segregated Space and …

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Fabriano Paper in Library of Congress Collections

Posted by: Nathan Dorn

This post was jointly written by Nathan Dorn and Sylvia Albro. In this post, we catch up with Library of Congress employee Sylvia Albro, who is a senior paper conservator in the Library’s Conservation Division.  Last fall, Sylvia published a book that presents research she has been conducting on books and manuscripts in various parts …

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An Interview with Daina Andries, Metadata Technician

Posted by: Jennifer González

This interview is with Daina Andries, a volunteer metadata technician with the Digital Resources Division of the Law Library of Congress. Describe your background. I grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. My dad’s family is from Pennsylvania and Michigan. My mom’s family immigrated to Wisconsin from Lithuania after World War II and eventually …

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Jediism is Not a Recognized Religion in England and Wales

Posted by: Robert Brammer

The following is a guest post by Clare Feikert-Ahalt, foreign law specialist for the United Kingdom at the Law Library of Congress. This is a post for all the Star Wars fans and aspiring Jedi out there. The Charity Commission, an independent body established under the Charities Act 2011 that is responsible for regulating and registering …

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Locating a State Constitution: A Beginner’s Guide

Posted by: Barbara Bavis

This post is coauthored by Barbara Bavis, instructional librarian, and Robert Brammer, senior legal information specialist One of our most frequent requests from patrons is for assistance with their constitutional research, particularly with regard to state constitutions.  While the best resource for information is likely the state library and/or state archives of the state that created the constitution …

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Most Viewed In Custodia Legis Blog Posts of 2016

Posted by: Kelly Buchanan

Last week we highlighted the reports on our website that received the most views in 2016. This week,  we wrote about the most viewed bills on Congress.gov for the year and the most read Global Legal Monitor articles. Today, I take a look at the In Custodia Legis blog posts that proved particularly popular in 2016. We …