Let us help polish off your research!  The Mendik Library has scheduled 30-minute research “open houses” at 1:00-1:30 p.m. on November 11-14 and November 18-21, all in room L203. If those times don’t work you can always get research help from the librarians at the reference desk, either in person, by email (reference@nyls.edu) or by phone (212.431.2332).

You don’t want to miss the Halloween Info Hunt drawing on Thursday 10/31.  Great prizes and sweets too!  No costume required (but welcome).  Pick up an entry form at the library reference desk or download it here and view the online slides.

Happy soon-to-be-Halloween from the Mendik Library!

As an early Halloween treat, here’s your opportunity to WIN great study aids, law dictionaries, faculty books, pre-loaded OneCards, NYLS swag, and who knows what else!  Just answer the 6 Haunted Halloween Info Hunt questions. Your answers don’t need to be perfect—just close!

Click here to access the questions.  Each slide includes just one question, along with step-by-step instructions that will get you to the answer.

Print this answer sheet (or pick up a copy at the Reference Desk) and drop it the Raffle Drum on the Reference Desk by 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 31, and then join us outside the library at 5:45 p.m. for some sweet treats and the drawing.

Over on the SCOTUSblog, Prof. Stephen Wermiel offers a quick review of the debate dividing the justices about when to overrule constitutional precedent and when to follow it.  It’s a debate he describes as certain to continue when the Court begins its new term on Monday.  Read the post here.

The new Supreme Court term is set to begin this year on Monday October 7, 2019.

For previews of arguments scheduled for this term, visit the SCOTUSblog. Cornell’s Legal Information Institute (LII) also offers a comprehensive preview of the upcoming term.

You can listen to oral arguments at the Supreme Court’s Oral Arguments link, where the audio is posted at the end of each argument week. You can access the parties’ briefs at the Supreme Court’s web site. (Under Case Documents click the link for Docket Search.)

Take a break from the tedium of law study and enjoy the pleasures of punctuation!

September 24 is National Punctuation Day: “A celebration of the lowly comma, correctly used quotation marks, and other proper uses of periods, semicolons, and the ever-mysterious ellipsis.”

How do you celebrate such an event? Find ideas here on the National Punctuation Day website.

Constitution Day is observed each year on September 17 to commemorate the date on which thirty-nine delegates to the Constitutional Convention, held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, signed the United States Constitution in 1787. The Convention was convened as a result of dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation, the first constitution of the United States.

In celebration of Constitution Day (and Citizenship Day) this year, a number of federal judges have been conducting naturalization ceremonies for hundreds of new citizens at a dozen major and minor league ballparks across the country. The effort will continue through September 20.

For deeper coverage on the world’s longest surviving written charter of government, download the Library of Congress’s free app containing the official, annotated version of the United State Constitution, U.S. Constitution: Analysis and Interpretation.

The original Constitution is held at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. but you can pick up your own pocket-copy at the library’s reference desk!

September 11 marks one of the darkest days in New York City history. That day in 2001, close to 3,000 people were killed when four US commercial planes were hijacked and then weaponized. Two of the planes were intentionally flown into the Word Trade Center’s Twin Towers, New York City landmarks within walking distance of the Law School. Both towers soon collapsed.

New York Law School community members were deeply affected by the events. Many shared their thoughts, experiences, and recollections. Some of them are summarized below.

Andrew Baffi ‘02, was working as a commercial airline pilot while attending New York Law School in 2001.  He offers his perspective on 9/11 in the December 2001 issue [page 5] of the New York Law School Reporter

The Honorable Roger J. Miner ’56, was in his chambers on the 22^nd floor of the federal courthouse on Foley Square that day.  He recounted his experience here:

Later that year, the Law School published Eight Blocks Away: Memoirs of September 11 2001, highlighting the memories and reflections of Law School community members.  Contributors to the memoir included:  Former Law School Dean Richard Matasar, Associate Librarian and Professor of Legal Research Bill Mills, Professors Arthur Leonard, David Schoenbrod, Nadine Strossen, Stephen Ellmann, David Ferstendig, Lawrence Grosberg, Michael Perlin, Richard Bernstein and Jethro Lieberman. Students and staff members also contributed their own personal stories and a collection of emails and memos details the school’s recovery process.

Does your phone or laptop need a charge? Stop by the Library’s Circulation Desk and the juice is on us; no charge to charge – it’s free! Charging is limited to 30 minutes if another student needs the charger too. Otherwise, you can fill ‘er up.

The Mendik Library will be closed on Labor Day, Monday September 2, 2019. It will be reopened for its regular hours on Tuesday September 3, 2019. Check the Library’s home page for all hours information.