UHLC Nota Bene

Researching legislative history is important in order to determine the legislative intent behind difficult statutory language. For most states, locating legislative history documents is virtually impossible, but Texas provides a substantial amount of information online through the following two websites: Texas Legislature Online http://www.legis.state.tx.us/ Legislative Reference Library of Texas http://www.lrl.state.tx.us/ The goal is to locate the bill file which contains different versions of the bill, analyses, committee reports, history of the bill, and anticipated fiscal impact of the bill. Follow these simple steps to research Texas Legislative History: 1. Locate the code section by using the Texas Legislature Online website and click "Statutes" from the main page. Look for the statement at the end of the code section that contains the legislative session and chapter number. 2. Go to the Legislative Reference Library of Texas website, click "Bill Chapter Cross R...

Giving numbers is the simplest way to paint a picture of an organization. Below are some numbers of the O’Quinn Law Library, collected at the end of the third quarter of 2009: Collections and facilities 1. Printed volumes................270,542 2. Microfiche (sheet)............1,622,817 3. Microfilm (reel)................1,973 4. Films & video......................137 5. Active serials...................2,429 6. Special collections..................3 (Maritime Collection, Foreign & International Law Collection, UH LLM theses Collection) 7. Databases subscribed................41 8. Total Linear feet of shelving capacity........30,294 Occupied space............................25,219 Personnel 1. Current staff size..................19 2. Professional librarians.............11 3. Librarians holding both MLS & JD.....8 Operation 1. Weekly public service hours.........................106.5 2. Weekly reference service hours.......................73 3. Awareness...

"Nota Bene" means "note this well" or "take particular notice." We at the O'Quinn Law Library will be posting tips on legal research techniques and resources, developments in the world of legal information, happenings at the Law Library, and legal news reports that deserve your particular attention. We look forward to sharing our thoughts and findings and to hearing from you. N.B: Mark a note to visit "Nota Bene" regularly. -Spencer L. Simons, Director, O'Quinn Law Library and Assistant Professor of Law