Book smart

For years, I was unaware that my local library offered free ebooks, and by the time I found this out, my Kindle’s battery had long since died.

It turns out that this lack of awareness of remote and digital benefits is common across libraries, including, of course, the Law Society’s. When you think of the Law Society library, you might first think of the rather magnificent room in central London, filled with over 34,000 different titles, and a rather inspiring workspace. And the usefulness of this benefit is likely to depend heavily on where your own work is based. But there are some extraordinary, and potentially cost-saving, library benefits, regardless of your location.

Library services

Common query database

The library keeps a common query database, maintained using a tool based on research conducted by its librarians. This offers precedents on a range of issues that have frequently come up in the enquiries they’ve received, on the latest developments and niche queries, and shows some of the support that the library is able to provide. There is also an extensive online catalogue of books, law reports, journals and more that can be searched.

Research enquiries

As a Law Society member, you are able to submit your own research enquiries, too, and any research up to 30 minutes per query is free of charge. Recent enquiries include:

• precedents for client care and engagement letters – with a common query entry here: 
• commentary on business continuity and disaster planning for law firms
• final client bills and specific wording around a client’s right to assessment – the library was able to find a precedent with specific wording.

The librarians are able to search the library’s comprehensive legal collection and range of subscriptions to find an answer, saving you time and resources. These queries are also completed within two working days, if not quicker. Members often feed back just how cost-saving this service is, which can be especially beneficial in the current economic climate.

Even though the service is available for all Law Society members, it is predominantly used by repeat customers, as there remains a general misconception that the library services are not available remotely.

Document delivery service

The library also provides a document delivery service, Lawdocs, which allows for a range of legal documents, such as precedents, journal articles and commentary, to be sent directly to your inbox. This is a pay-as-you-go service and does not require you to be a member.

Member feedback

You may well ask how a Law Society employee, who is not a lawyer, can judge how useful or effective the library services are, but you don’t have to take my word for it. Here is just some of the positive feedback received from Law Society members:

• “What a quick response. Extremely grateful for the very good research. This service is the best return … if I had gone elsewhere it would have cost thousands and the advice would not have been as good as what the library provided” – from a sole practitioner.
• “Thanks so much for getting back to me so quickly … We stopped buying Current Law Yearbook many years ago, but it is great that the Law Society’s collection is able to fill in the gaps. Law firms such as ours would be lost without you” – from a deputy head of research at a large firm.
• “I won my court case thanks to the Law Society Library” – from Keith Etherington, former litigation solicitor and Law Society Council member, whose full story you can read here on Linked In.