Harris County Law Library
Image Credit: Prairie View A&M University
Today we pay tribute to 13 Black soldiers who were hanged on December 11, 1917, for alleged participation in Houston’s Camp Logan Riot. Click the links within to learn about the context of this historical event and the men whose convictions were overturned just last month, 106 years later.
Read moreOur goal in sharing the apparatus of search is to help information seekers more intuitively grasp the complexity of sophisticated database queries and to achieve better information outcomes. Constructing complex search strings can be difficult, but building proficiency as an expert-level searcher can be fun! Understanding the multidimensionality of search and leveraging the power of its complexity might even begin to feel like play.
Read moreThe Friday after Thanksgiving is National Native American Heritage Day, although it is perhaps more commonly thought of as Black Friday, a coincidence that some have rebuked, as it links a reverent celebration of Native peoples and culture with the start of the holiday shopping season and the busiest most consumer-driven day of the year. Some have suggested alternatives to the rampant consumerism of the day: acknowledge native land, explore the many digital exhibits available online at the National Museum of the American Indian, or lift up indigenous voices by learning more about the continuing struggle to give Native Americans equal access at the ballot box. Review the links provided within.
Read moreWednesday, October 26, is Vote Early Day! We at the Harris County Robert W. Hainsworth Law Library are official partners in this annual non-partisan effort. Our goal in joining up with this worthy cause is to encourage early voting and to ensure that busy schedules, Election Day lines, or last minute problems won’t stop you from sharing your voice. Included in this post are links to the information and resources you need to be informed about where, when, and how to cast your ballot and be counted in Harris County.
Read moreToday, September 8, is National Ampersand Day. In addition to sharing a few fun facts about this squiggly symbol, we will discuss a not-so-recent but still-so-trendy practice in the naming of law firms. Over the last 15 years or so, BigLaw has adopted a more polished, less conventional approach to branding. Instead of the more traditional practice of identifying all named partners in the title of the firm, larger firms have opted for more airy austerity. In 2010, just three Am Law 100 firms officially used a single surname, but in 2023, these abbreviated brands are the rule more than the exception. Shortened names may help build stronger brand identity, as those in favor of the trend like to point out, but these elegant eponyms, according to others, lack a critical element – the ampersand, a most elegant emblem itself.
Read moreWhat’s behind the name? “Ex Libris Juris” is Latin for “from the books of law” and much of the information here will relate to the legal information collected and curated by the Law Library. Additionally, “Ex Libris” has long appeared on bookplates – labels appearing inside the front cover of books – and has acquired the connoted meaning “from the library of” to show ownership of the book. Using this connotation, the phrase becomes “from the library of law” and better describes the posts about digital resources, event announcements, and research tips that will regularly appear here.
