Reference
Reference
Professionally trained reference librarians are available
to assist patrons in locating print and electronic legal resources.
This may include, but is not limited to, suggesting resources to
help locate case law, statutes, treatises, and other secondary resources
that interpret, explain and analyze the law. The reference librarians
can also assist with locating and accessing our electronic legal
resources. Electronic legal resources include our free legal
databases located at the library and our cataloged web resources.
The Reference librarians have created several Research
Guides to help patrons access the collection. They have also
created a list of useful Web
Resources which can be accessed from outside the library. In
addition to providing these services, the reference librarians teach
classes each
month to help patrons locate and use the library’s resources.
Please note, although the reference librarians offer
many services, they are not able to give legal advice or perform
in-depth research. This means the reference librarians may not provide
any interpretations or analysis of any legal forms, statutes, case
law or any other primary or secondary legal materials. In addition,
reference librarians may not choose which legal form you should
use nor help you complete a legal form. For patrons in need of legal
advice, the reference librarians can provide referrals to local
legal aid organizations and attorney referral services.
Students: Law students and paralegal
students may use the law library’s print and electronic legal
resources for legal research purposes. However, reference services
are limited to locating legal reference materials only. Reference
librarians cannot interpret class assignments nor teach individual
students how to use the resources.
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Law
Library Tours
Upon request and with advance notice, a library tour
can be arranged with one of our reference librarians for groups
of 5 or more. For more details, contact the Head of Reference Services
at: (619) 531-4436. Individuals who would like to take a tour of
the library are encouraged to take our Law
Made Public class which includes a tour of the Main library
and description of the services we offer.
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E-Mail
and Telephone Reference
Reference questions may be submitted via e-mail or
by calling the reference desk at 619-685-6552. Every effort will
be made to answer questions within 48 hours, excluding weekends
and holidays. Please see our E-mail Reference
page for further guidance on submitting e-mail questions.
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Chat
Reference
 Click
on the Ask
Now icon to be connected to a reference librarian using real
time chat software, a service provided by the Metropolitan Cooperative
Library System (MCLS). Questions received via this service will
not necessarily be answered by a reference staff at SDCPLL. This
service is staffed with legal reference librarians located throughout
California.
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