August 1998
Hello to all CFALL members! The CFALL Executive Committee is busy planning the 1998-99 programs and we hope to see all of you at the meetings! Before going any further, I would like to take the opportunity to thank Madison Mosley for a job well done last year as CFALL President. In October 1997, I made an internal job change which moved me out of the Library and into the Network (IS) department. Trenam, Kemker was in the process of implementing the CD-Rom technology and needed a willing and able body to handle the project. Well, I don't know how able I was, but I said I was willing and that became my life. Needless to say, countless meetings with CFALL were missed so I wasn't the "right-hand" VP to Madison. A special thanks to Madison and Wanda for your patience with my hectic schedule last year!
Please take a moment to read about the upcoming events in store for the remainder of 1998. Our September meeting will be an informal `Business Meeting' to give members the opportunity to sign up for our various Committees; share thoughts on the planning of the 1999 programs; discussion on the use of the ListServ, etc. but most of all - to have lunch with friends! Mark your calendars with the dates of the coming events and try to make one of the meetings. I look forward to serving as your President for 1998-99!
Liz McCambridge
eamccambridge@trenam.com
The first meeting of the 1998-1999 year will be held at the Grill at Feather Sound on Wednesday, September 16 at 11:45 a.m. Entrees start at $4.95 and include a variety of items.
The agenda for the meeting includes:
the appointment of committee chairs and members
discussion of the CFALL listserv and website
discussion of the CFALL bylaws
programs for the coming year
Everyone's input is needed to guide future of our organization. We are looking for volunteers to lead programs and offer new ideas.
Please RSVP no later than Friday, September 4, 1998 to Bill Cronin at wcroniniii@aol.com or call 345-8180.
CFALL SHUTTLES
Both Liz and Wanda will offer rides from downtown Tampa to the restaurant, leaving from the Barnett Plaza parking garage at 11:20. We hope to return to downtown no later than 1:25.
DIRECTIONS
2325 Ulmerton Road
From St. Petersburg, take I-275 North to exit 16, for SR-686 towards
LARGO/CLEARWATER. Coming from Tampa, take I-275 South to SR-688 WEST exit
number 18, going towards LARGO/INDIAN ROCKS BEACH. If you
need more specific directions, please give Bill Cronin a call at 345-8180.
The star in the map below may not be exactly where the restaurant is, but it should be close!
Our October meeting will be hosted by Ellie Lopez, librarian at Fowler, White, Gillen, Boggs, Villareal & Banker, P.A. in Tampa, on Wednesday, October 21 at 12:00. Hopefully, Ellie will give us a tour of her new libraries.
We will have a short presentation on public records research by two Fowler, White litigation paralegals, Kelly Foster and Susan DiPaolo. Following the presentation, we hope to have a round table discussion about public records resources, so please bring your tips and questions.
Sandwiches will be ordered from City Street Deli, and dessert will be provided by Liz McCambridge. The cost of lunch is $5.00 per person. The first five people who sign up to bring a non-member librarian (or someone who qualifies as an associate or student member) to this meeting, will get a free lunch for you and your guest.
Please RSVP to Bill Cronin no later than Wednesday, October 7, 1998.
Call 5345-8180 or e-mail wcroniniii@aol.com. A reminder will be sent through
e-mail in late September.
Dial Up Access to Public Records
The counties listed below offer dial up access to some portion of their public records, which may include dockets, property records, liens, and more. To get more information about access, contact the county at the number listed. Hillsborough, Leon and Manatee counties make some records available through the World Wide Web.
Broward County (954)357-7022 Mecca Fink
Collier County (941)732-2642
Duval County (904)630--280 x5115
Hillsborough County (813)276-2029 x7307 George Tonea
Lee County (941)335-2213 Natalie Kaiser
Orange County (407)836-2060
Palm BeachCounty (561)355-6783 Betty Jones
Pasco County (727)847-8181
Pinellas County (727)464-3619
A good reference interview is crucial in filling a request for public records. They may say "I want to know everything about so-and-so.", but when you hand them a 25 page report and a bill for several hundred dollars you find out they really didn't want everything.
An interesting article on reference interviews is located at http://www.batesinfo.com/ref-interview.html. It's called The Art of the Reference Interview. In it, Mary Bates asks "Why can't they ask for what they want?" Some of her anwers include a lack of knowledge about the extent of your information resources as well as a lack of certainty about what it is that they really want.
For a listing of additional articles on the reference interview, see http://www.cla.amlibs.ca/capl/kit.htm#3.
In my search for websites on public records, I found a neat article on finding expert witnesses at http://www.llrx.com/columns/finding.htm called Finding and Investigating Expert Witnesses by Michelle Ayers.
Anne V. Ellis, Director of Librarian Relations, West Online, will speak to us about Intranets at our November 13 meeting at Steak and Ale in Tampa. The cost of the lunch will be underwritten by WestGroup. You are welcome to bring one guest, such as a firm administrator, network administrator or an attorney.
Please RSVP to Bill Cronin at 345-8180, or e-mail wcroniniii@aol.com, no later than November 1, 1998. Seating is limited. A reminder will be sent out via e-mail at the end of October.
Intranets: Today's Cyber Water Coolers
Anne V. Ellis
Today's premier form of communication for law firms is electronic. As law firms become larger and more far-flung in geography, Intranets become more valuable in providing information to attorneys and staff. Law librarians who take an active part in Intranet development and management become more valuable to their firms on every level. This case study looks at how Intranets are developed in law firms, the role the librarian plays in managing information on an Intranet and innovative products that give importance to Intranets.
Anne Ellis, a 23-year librarian with 14 years experience as a law librarian, has strong ties to the law library community both locally and nationally. Anne served as 1997-1998 Chair of the Private Law Libraries Special Interest Section of the American Association of Law Libraries. She is a current member of the AALL Professional Development Committee, Westlaw Advisory Board and co-chair of the Colorado Library Marketing Council. Anne has developed excellent relation with librarians within AALL and the Special Libraries Association. Anne has taught law librarianship in the graduate school at the University of South Florida. In 1996, she received the "Jean Key Gates Distinguished Alumni Award" from USF. Anne holds a Bachelor's degree in French and a Master's degree in Library Science from the University of South Florida.
Anne served as Manager of Library and File Services at Holland & Hart, Denver, Senior Administrative Librarian at Holme Roberts & Owen, Denver, and Director of Library and Records Services at Carlton Fields, Tampa. Anne became Director of Librarian Relations for West Online in August 1998.
The CFALL Annual Meeting took place June 10 at the trendy bistro, Mis en Place. President Madison Mosley, Associate Director of the Charles A. Dana Library at Stetson, called the crowd to order and proceeded with the Association's business.
The meeting quickly turned tense when one of the attendees asked Mr. Mosley how the members were to choose from the pricey menu. He responded that "each individual should use his or her best judgment." President Elect Liz McCambridge could be seen grimacing at the prospect of a bleak fiscal year. Surprisingly, the breaking of the bread continued without incident.
The Association then had the privilege of listening to Ms. Diane Solomon, Executive Director of the Tampa Bay Library Consortium, speak on cooperation in the library community. Ms. Solomon spoke of the success that the interlibrary loan program had in enriching library collections throughout the state and across all types of libraries. The Consortium has been a leader in expanding the resources of libraries through the loan program, developing useful technologies for libraries, and educating the public and fellow librarians.
The meeting concluded with the installation of the officers. Taking the oath were President Liz McCambridge of Trenam, Kemker, Scharf, Barkin, Frye, O'Neill and Mullis, Vice President/President Elect, Wanda Barrett of Special Library Service, and Treasurer, Bill Cronin, also of Special Library Service.
The meeting adjourned and the new President sighed in relief when Ms. Barrett said that the Association's state of economic affairs was "certainly stronger than that of the Russian economy."
-Bill Cronin
RSVP's to Bill Cronin at wcroniniii@aol.com.
We welcome your input. Feel free to call or write to us with any suggestions or ideas!
This issue of CFALL Notes was edited by Wanda Barrett. If you would like to contribute to the November 1998 edition, please contact Wanda at 345-8180 or wanda@everlaw.com.