Current Awareness

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Current Awareness

• By Daniel Perlin and Sharon Wang
• Reference Librarians
• April 2nd, 2009

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Agenda

• What is current awareness
• Categories
• Stand Alone services
• Current Awareness in Legal Databases
• RSS feeders, blogs
• Conclusion

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What is Current Awareness

• A service designed to alert scholars or
  practioners of recently-published literature in
  their field of study
• Services can be tailored to the individuals needs

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Stand Alone Current Awareness

• Current Index to Legal Periodicals (CILP)
• From University of Washington
• Published once per week
• Links to articles in Lexis and Westlaw
• Linex Legal
• From the UK
• Tracks legal sources from over 70 jurisdictions
• Current Law Journal Content
• From Washington Lee University
• Can search by journal title, or by boolean terms
• Accessible from law library website

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Stand Alone Current Awareness Continued

• Social Science Research Network (SSRN)
• Allows researchers to put their papers online to
  be viewed before they are published
• Open access source- most articles are free for
  downloading
• Email subscription to topical electronic journals
• Global Legal Monitor
• Weekly newsletter that provides legal news around
  the world

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Current Awareness in Databases

• Quicklaw
• How to set up an alert service in Quicklaw
• Quicklaw topical newsletters
• Westlaw
• -setting up a Westclip alert in Westlaw
• Legal Trac
• Setting up an RSS Feed
• Index to Legal Periodicals
• Canadian Legislative Pulse
• How to track legislation

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RSS Feeds and Blogs

• RSS What does it mean?
• Where can you find them?
• News feeder finder
• How do you set up an RSS feed
• Blogs Blawg
• Directory for legal blogs, podcasts and news feeds

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Conclusion

• Current Awareness keeps you up to date
• Important in both scholarship and legal practice
• Need extra help?
• Daniel Perlin dperlin_at_osgoode.yorku.ca
• Sharon Wang swang_at_osgoode.yorku.ca