Exploring the Future of the Law Library Houston Area Law Librarians February 14, 2007 Steve Anderson Maryland State Law Library

Introduction 2 Topics (yes, only 2!) 1.The future of AALL 2.The library of the future

The Future of AALL Strategic Directions Education Leadership Advocacy –Chapters and SIS’s are welcome to consider their initiatives in light of these factors –Key points –Outreach to external entities –Advocacy Summit on authentication of digital legal information –Continuing education initiatives

The Future of AALL New Orleans Annual Meeting –(Thank you, Houston, for your assistance to your colleagues in Louisiana!) Q&A time!

The Library of the Future Tenet 1: Crystal balls are sometimes cloudy…but –Prepare for an increase in digital materials –Paper continues for a while to be the easiest source of information to preserve –Copyright problems increase –Most users will prefer to use information sources in digital format outside of libraries

The Library of the Future Tenet 2: Libraries only perform three tasks… –Build collections –Preserve and maintain collections –Guide library users to these collections and ensure that users fully take advantage of collections –(In my view, these are the “rightful roles” of the library—both now and in the future.)

The Library of the Future Tenet 3: Libraries must survey their environment… –Perform a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) –Provide superior customer service (Would you recommend this library’s services to a friend?) –Become “embedded” (In your institution’s management; in your user’s information seeking)

The Library of the Future Tenet 4: Libraries must build for the future… –Librarians’ legacies are what we provide for coming generations –Librarians are all stewards –Librarians must envision 2012, 2017, 2057, 2107, 2507… –What happened to the Library of Alexandria?

The Library of the Future Tenet 5: Librarians must act with justice… –Justice is fidelity to a relationship –Consider relationships with library users, colleagues, management, vendors, potential users, and future generations –(For law librarians, there’s an added benefit—others will view the legal profession more positively, thereby enhancing access to justice.)

The Library of the Future Now… remember: –The crystal ball outlook –Libraries’ 3 main tasks –Environmental scanning –Building for the future –Acting with justice And…

The Library of the Future Close your eyes (Close ‘em!)… –What will your library look like? –What do you need to do now to prepare for it? –What will you need in the long-term to get there? –What will the librarianship profession look like? THANK YOU!