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| About This Site | SIU School of Law | SIU Law Library |
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Frequently Asked Questions
During the school year, the law library is usually open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.; Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.; Saturday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.; Sunday, 1:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. The library closes earlier during school vacations and during the summer, and may be closed all day some Sundays and holidays. View complete information on Law Library Hours or call (618) 453-8796. Anyone may use the law library during regular library hours. How do I schedule a law library tour? SIU professors, Logan College professors, or area high school teachers who wish to bring or send their classes for law library tours should contact James E. Duggan, at (618) 453-8791 or duggan@siu.edu. Prospective or incoming law students may ask that a library tour be included in their visit to the law school. To arrange a Visit to the Law School, go to the SIU School of Law website and click on "Admissions" in the left column. May I check books out of the law library? In order to check books out of the law library, you must have a law library borrower's card. SIU students, SIU faculty, and Illinois residents can obtain a borrower's card, at the circulation desk during regular library hours, by presenting a photo ID and completing a form. Acceptable forms of photo ID include an SIU student ID card, SIU faculty ID card, Illinois driver's license, or Illinois state ID card. Borrowing privileges will be blocked for non-return of materials, or for excessive late returns of materials. Because of the type of materials in the law library collection, only a small percentage of materials may be checked out from the library. In general, periodicals (such as journals and case reporters) and any book that is updated (such as loose-leafs and books with pocket parts or supplement pamphlets) may only be used in the library. When are reference librarians available to help me? During the school year, reference librarians are usually available Monday through Wednesday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm and 6:00 - 9:00 pm; Thursday and Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm; not on weekends. There is no evening or weekend reference service during school vacations or in the summer. You may speak to a reference librarian in person (directions to the law library) or by telephone at 453-8708. You may also e-mail the reference librarians at: lawlib@siu.edu. View information on our "Ask a Law Librarian" e-mail reference service. What kinds of questions can I ask the reference librarians? Although we are happy to assist legal researchers, the reference librarians may only provide help with answering factual questions and research questions. Reference librarians must not answer questions seeking legal advice. People seeking legal advice should visit the websites of institutions that specialize in helping people find legal representation, such as the American Bar Association or the Illinois State Bar Association. Factual Questions are questions like the following:
Research Questions are questions like these:
We cannot answer questions like the following, because they call for Legal Advice:
Can I e-mail my questions to the reference librarians? The SIU Law Library provides e-mail reference service to the law school faculty, students, and staff, the university community, and members of the community. "Ask a Law Librarian" at: lawlib@siu.edu. Although happy to assist users of e-mail, reference librarians can only answer questions about legal research and factual research. See "What kinds of questions can I ask the reference librarians?" above for more information. Because of the potential for virus infections, please do NOT send any email messages with attachments. All messages with attachments are immediately deleted. There is no reference service on the weekends - this includes the e-mail reference service. For more in-depth research assistance please telephone the reference desk at 453-8708 or stop by the law library and speak with a reference librarian. How can I get research help when the reference librarians are not available? Check the many research tips and research guides on the law library's website. What is the Web address for the Self-Help Legal Clinic? The Self-Help Legal Clinic's web page is located at http://www.law.siu.edu/selfhelp/. The Illinois State Bar Association's referral service, IllinoisLawyerFinder.com, is designed to serve everyone who can afford the services of a lawyer. If you prefer a telephone referral, call the Illinois State Bar Association at (217) 525-5297 Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. If you cannot afford an attorney and want information about legal aid, visit Illinois Legal Aid Online. Illinois Legal Aid Online provides lower-income and vulnerable Illinois residents with information about their legal rights and responsibilities, referrals to free and low cost legal aid offices, multimedia training and education, and forms and instructions for representing themselves. If you believe you qualify for Legal Services Corporation funded programs and live in Alexander, Gallatin, Hardin, Jackson, Johnson, Massac, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, Saline, Union or Williamson County, call Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation at 800-642-5335 or 618-684-2282. For more information about the kinds of problems Land of Lincoln handles or to find the branch office for your county contact Land of Lincoln. The Legal Services to Older Persons program of the Legal Clinic at the SIU School of Law provides civil legal representation to persons 60 years of age and older who reside in the 13 southernmost counties of Illinois (Alexander, Franklin, Gallatin, Hardin, Jackson, Johnson, Massac, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Saline, Union, or Williamson county). Contact the Legal Services for Older Persons at 800-673-6130. The Domestic Violence Clinic at the SIU School of Law provides representation to victims of domestic violence in plenary order of protection proceedings (not in emergency order of protection proceedings, victims' advocates generally do that). There is no age limit but we can only serve those going to court in Jackson, Williamson or Union County. Contact the Domestic Violence Clinic at 618-536-4423. The Domestic Violence Clinic also has an Expansion Project which uses contract attorneys in six counties (Union, Jackson, Massac, Alexander, Saline, and Pope) to provide representation of victims of domestic violence in plenary order of protection hearings. The victim advocates in these six counties make referrals to these attorneys. Victims should contact the Anna Bixby Women's Center in Harrisburg at 618-252-8380 or the Cairo Women's Shelter in Cairo at 618-734-4357 or Metropolis at 618-524-4357 for information on how to meet with a victim advocate. Can I use mediation without a lawyer? Mediation gives you a chance to resolve disputes by talking with the person you disagree with and by trying to find ways to resolve the problem, with the help of the mediator. In mediation, you, and the other people involved, decide, not a judge. However, mediation is not a substitute for legal advice. If you need legal advice, get it before coming to mediation. The Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Clinic at SIU School of Law can provide mediation services for neighborhood disputes such as noise, for consumer disputes such as a service that wasn't performed as promised, or for personal disputes such as personal loans. For disputes like these, involving less than $5000, call the ADR clinic at 453-3257. The Self-Help Legal Center website has information packets about mediation and family mediation. For more information on obtaining a packet, contact the Self Help Legal Center. The Mediation Association of Southern Illinois (MASI) lists First Judicial Circuit Court Approved Mediators for family and civil mediations. The Center for Analysis of Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems (CAADRS) has lists of Illinois Mediation Programs with Reduced Fees or Pro Bono Services for major civil litigation, domestic relations, small claims & landlord/tenant, juvenile & adult misdemeanor, employment, federal and other programs. How can I sue my lawyer or report a mishandled case? To sue your lawyer, you should seek the assistance of a lawyer experienced in such lawsuits. The IllinoisLawyerFinder.com has listings for lawyers who specialize in Legal Malpractice and other relevant fields of practice. Use the drop-down menu to select a specialty. To report a mishandled case or attorney misconduct, contact the Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission. The ARDC is an agency of the Illinois Supreme Court and is responsible for maintaining current records of registration and discipline information for lawyers licensed to practice in Illinois, investigating allegations of misconduct by lawyers, and prosecuting the cases where a lawyer's misconduct suggests a threat to the public or to the integrity of the legal profession. For information on submitting a request for an investigation, go to http://www.iardc.org/howtorequest.html. For information on contacting the ARDC, go to http://www.iardc.org/howtocontact_orginfo.html. Where do I complain about a bad judge? The Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board is the sole disciplinary entity to inquire into allegations of misconduct and physical or mental incapacity of Illinois judicial officers. After investigation and upon determination by the Judicial Inquiry Board that there is a reasonable basis to charge a judge with misconduct or incapacity, the Judicial Inquiry Board will file and prosecute a formal complaint before the Illinois Courts Commission. For more information, go to the Judicial Inquiry Board's page of "Often-Asked Questions About Judicial Conduct in Illinois" at http://www.state.il.us/jib/faq.htm. Why can't a law student help me? Law students are forbidden by the Illinois Supreme Court to assist anyone with legal questions except under its Rule 711. Please do not ask any of our law students to help you, as this would be unauthorized practice of law by them, and might result in their not being allowed to practice or to take the bar exam. May I discuss my legal problems with a law professor? The law professors are employed to teach, and many are not licensed to practice in Illinois, since that is not necessary for law teachers. The law library does not give out the names or phone numbers of the professors in response to such questions. How do I get to the law library? The law library is located in the Lesar Law Building at 1150 Douglas Drive, on the campus of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Take Illinois 13 to Oakland Avenue. If you are driving west, there is a Hollywood Video to your right at the intersection of Route 13 and Oakland Avenue. If you are driving east, there is a fire station to your right at the intersection of Route 13 and Oakland Avenue. Go south on Oakland Avenue until you reach the 4-way stop at Chautauqua Road. Cross Chautauqua Road and go down the hill to where Oakland Ave. dead-ends at Douglas Dr. Turn right. The Lesar Law Building is on your right. The Lesar Law Building is identified as building 34 and appears on the left side of this PDF campus map. For other campus maps, please go to http://www.siuc.edu/maps/. Visitors may park in metered spaces along campus streets and in designated parking lots. There are metered spaces for visitors on Douglas Drive, which curves left just after you pass the Lesar Law Building. There are also some metered visitor parking spaces in the small lot just as Douglas Drive curves to the left. For more information on visitor parking on campus, please go to http://www.siuc.edu/visitor/parking.html. You can make photocopies of any Law Library materials except for some books too fragile for such handling. One of the photocopiers takes change, or you can purchase a copy card. (Students can use their Debit Dawg account / student ID card.) The cost for photocopying is 25 cents per page if you use change, or 10 cents per page if you use a Debit Dawg Card or SIUC Copy Card. There is no change machine in the law school and the law library keeps no cash or change. You will have to bring your own change or use the change machine at the student center, on the 1st floor near the Info Station. May I use the law library's computers? There are computers available for public use for research purposes, but not for word processing. The computer lab is reserved for students, faculty, and staff with a university network ID. Can I print from the computers? Yes. You must have a copy card to print from the computers. (Students can use their Debit Dawg account / student ID card.) The card will be charged 10 cents for each page printed. Color copies are also available for 70 cents per page. Please see Photocopiers & Laser Printers in the Law Library or ask a member of the library staff for assistance with printing. Can I use the computers to type my paper or fill out my forms? No. The computers available to the public do not have word processing software. I will have to use microfilm or microfiche to do my research. Can I make copies from the film or fiche? Yes. You must have a copy card to print from the microfilm/microfiche reader. The card will be charged 10 cents for each page printed. Please ask a member of the library staff for assistance with printing.
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