Lisa Sukkel, Collection Management Librarian, Law Library
1997
This document aims to report the methods and results of the Conspectus review of the Law Library's collections conducted in 1993-1996, and to identify future collection issues for consideration. Conspectus refers to a standardised means of describing library collections via a database of evaluations of such collections. The Australian version of this database currently holds 45,000 records from 47 participating libraries and provides invaluable data for resource sharing and collection development arrangements with other libraries, a more complete picture of resource patterns held nationally, and an opportunity for individual libraries to evaluate their collection whilst undertaking the exercise.
Before presenting the results and the implications of the Conspectus exercise for the Law Library, it is important to describe both the library and user environments in which the evaluated holdings exist.
The major holdings of legal material in the University of Melbourne Library are found in the Law Branch Library. This large collection of legal sources, printed, electronic and microform, has been housed in the northern wing of the Law Quadrangle since 1959, when the removal of the General Library collection from this site to the newly built Baillieu Library in October 1958, freed the premises. Legal material had, however, long been part of the General Library holdings and there had been a separate law collection since 1951 when a Law Room was created. Library staff specifically assigned to deal with this collection were also first appointed in this period. The core collection from this period, has been built upon since this date in response to the teaching and research requirements of the Faculty of Law. A period of particular growth was in the late 1970's in line with active period of collection development throughout the whole university library. By 1995/6 the collection had grown to approximately 140 000 volumes (including microform equivalents) and has as its principal source of income, a materials vote from the University Library budget. Linked to the Monash index, these funds were $580,000 in 1995.
The Law Library collection falls into two parts, printed sources and other sources (electronic and microform).
Printed sources
These sources in the collection are mainly serial in nature, reflecting the reliance of Law on court decisions and legislation and the importance of current information as contained in looseleaf services and journals. Over the past five years, expenditure on serials has constituted close to 80% of the total materials expenditure.
The printed materials in the Law Library are organised into seven collections or locations :
Law reports and Legislation
There is a strong emphasis in these first two components of the printed collection on Australia and the other English speaking common law jurisdictions: the U.S., New Zealand, Canada and the U.K. However some civil law jurisdictions in Europe and Asia are also represented. Whilst there is an emphasis on current material in these collections, there are also extensive backruns of legislation and reports, including much older English and Australian material.
Reference
The reference collection includes general and legal dictionaries, encyclopedias, bibliographies, printed library catalogues and handbooks. It also includes the most of the case law digests in the collection. It reflects the same jurisdictional bias as the collections of primary sources.
Periodicals
There are roughly 300 current subscriptions to journals represented in this collection. The great majority are from the English speaking common law jurisdictions. A few European journals are in languages other than English.
Natural Resources
This collection of material relates specifically to natural resources and environmental law and was created to support the Centre for Natural Resources Law established in the Faculty of Law in the 1970s. Initially special funding was obtained to develop a collection of materials to support the Centre's work. However, since then, it has been supported out of the Faculty bookvote. While it was once a distinguished collection, this is no longer the case and the collection will be incorporated into the general monograph collection during the Moys reclassification project in July 1996.
Monographs
This collection of 40,000 titles is essentially the Law Library's lending collection, containing textbooks, research material and some serial holdings. Although the subject range of the material covers the whole spectrum of the DDC sequence (000-999) only a small proportion of the collection - approximately one tenth - falls outside the 340 range. Within the 340s the collection has developed fairly evenly across the principal subject areas represented, and expresses a pronounced emphasis on Australian, English and North American publications and English language material.
Rare Books
The Rare Books collection holds approximately 1000 titles, some dating from the seventeenth century. It is principally legal and monographic and is currently poorly housed. The twin issues of preservation and accessibility will need to be addressed in the forthcoming collection development policy for the Law Library.
Other sources
Electronic
This component of the collection has grown exponentially in the past two years, with the Law Library now providing access to over thirty databases and spending an increasing proportion of its expenditure on legal sources in the electronic format. Much of this material is CD-ROM based and loaded on the Law Faculty network, thus facilitating access for students and staff. There is also wide scale access to LEXIS NEXIS for users. Many of these titles so far collected duplicate paper resources held in the collection such as law reports and legal reference tools, and will necessitate consideration of the most appropriate format/s for such information in the near future.
Microforms
The Law Library has also invested heavily in this format. The collection includes personal and institutional archives, bibliographies, law reports, statutes, treaties, periodicals and formed collections. Notable elements are Harvard University's D'Olivart collection on international law, English Scottish and Irish nominate reports and pre-N.R.S. U.S law reports. It is a collection which continues to grow and will require rehousing and increased equipment support in the near future.
Whilst the Law Library has the principal responsibility to serve the teaching and research needs of the Faculty of Law and those on campus requiring legal information and thus by far the largest law collection, many other branch libraries hold material which falls into the 340 sequence of DDC. The largest of these are the Baillieu Library, Education Resource Centre (ERC), and the B and AB collections housed in the ERC. However, there are also holdings to be found in branch libraries such as the Architecture, Brownless Medical and Engineering libraries and in special collections such as the BX and AX collections.
Alongside the holdings in the 340 range of Dewey Decimal, the parliamentary material found in the 328 range also greatly support the users of legal material. Whilst the Law Library does hold some material in this category - recent Hansards and government gazettes for several jurisdictions - the vast bulk of this material is found in the Baillieu Government Document collection. In combination with the Special Collections for material pre-dating 1900 and the Baillieu microform collections for some jurisdictions such as the United States, this rich resource provides ample support to legal research. Evaluation of holdings in this Dewey range shall follow in the Baillieu Conspectus exercise, to be completed by 1997.
The collections and services of the Law Library aim to provide, as with all of the University of Melbourne Library system, information for a large and varied group of users. Interested members of the public, high school students, legal professionals, other law libraries, and students and staff for other academic institutions use the legal resources provided, alongside those from the University of Melbourne. Whilst every attempt is made to ensure the best possible allocation of resources between these different groups of users the core group remains the students, teachers and researchers in The University, most particularly the Faculty of Law. Because of this, it is important to consider the stated information requirements of this group when evaluating the collection.
The library collection requirements of the Faculty of Law
Some of the best indications of the requirements the Faculty of Law has for the library's law collection lie in the Faculty's objectives, research activities and teaching programs.
The objectives of the Law Faculty
The complete objectives for Faculty of Law in 1994/6 are given in Appendix A. Following are lists of subjects targeted by the Faculty within this document for continuing strength, further development or new development.
Existing priority areas
Asian law
Commercial law
Judicial administration
Legal
theory
Law and social justice
Media and communications law
Intellectual property law
Labour law
Targeted for new strengths:
Aboriginal law and society
Natural resources law
Public law
Targeted for further development :
Family law
Finance law
Health and medical law
Information
technology law
Maritime law
Migration law
Legal history
Areas of activity indicated by the Research report
The University of Melbourne Research Report 1994 lists other subject areas of importance to the Faculty:
Conflict of Laws
Constitutional Law
Criminal Law
Discrimination Law
Equity and Trusts
European Community Law
Law
and Economics
Evidence
Legal Education
Restitution
Taxation
Law
Torts
Trade Practices Law
Current teaching commitments
Finally further subjects of importance, in light of both undergraduate and postgraduate teaching programs in 1996 are :
Contracts
Insolvency
Restrictive trade practices
Roman
law
Succession
Recognised Law Library standards
Another final important measure for evaluation for any library collection are professional standards. However in the absence of agreement between the Council of Australian University Librarians and the Committee of Law Deans on university law library standards, no authorised standards presently exist for evaluation of Australian law collections.
Aims of the Conspectus review
By using Conspectus methodology the Law Library intended :
Methodology
To achieve these results the University of Melbourne Library collections were assessed using the criteria laid down in the Australian Conspectus Manual:
Three indicators were sought for each area of the collection.
CL Current collection level
AC Acquisition commitment
GL
Collection goal
The indicators were graded as follows :
0 Out of scope: do not collect
1 Minimal: few selections; introductory; very basic
1a Minimal with
uneven coverage
1b Minimal with even coverage; few selections, but key
authors; some core works and a spectrum of views
2 Basic information
2a Basic information: introductory e.g. general
information, support students enrolled in introductory level courses
2b
Basic information: augmented e.g. support students in basic courses
3 Intermediate
3a Intermediate: introductory e.g covers primary
topics in a subject area, support undergraduate study
3b Intermediate:
augmented e.g. covers primary and secondary topics in subject area, supports
undergraduate and most postgraduate coursework
4 Research e.g. current and retrospective resources, supports postgraduate and independent research
5 Comprehensive e.g includes as far as is reasonably possible all significant works of recorded knowledge in all applicable languages
Current collection level (CL) was determined for each area by tabulating the findings in each of the three criteria. Where there are substantial differences between the bibliometric data - list checking and shelf scanning - and academic staff ratings (a difference of two levels in the Conspectus rating scale), a median rating was assigned. For Acquisition commitment (AC), the grading was determined by consultation between the previous Law Librarian, Stephen Connelly and past Collection Management Librarians, Shaunagh Harte and Priscilla Stott and incumbent Lisa Sukkel. The Collection Goal (GL) was largely determined by the current Law Librarian, Ruth Bird.
3.1 List checking
The list checking process was undertaken in 1993/4 and used the following bibliographies:
Law books in print: law books in English published throughout the world and in print through 1990 6th ed., Glanville, 1991
International legal books in print 1990 - 1991 London, Bowker - Saur, 1990
Fong, Colin Finding the law Sydney, Legal Information Press, 1990
Law Books 1876 - 1981: books and serials on law and its related subjects New York, Bowker, 1981
Beyerly, Elizabeth Public international law: a guide to information sources London, Mansell, 1991
de Nicolai, Linda Legislation in Looseleaf services South Perth, TFC Business Information Systems, 1993
Index to legal periodicals New York, Wilson
The list checking process provided an invaluable adjunct to the shelf scanning process by providing some qualitative aspects of collection evaluation alongside the essentially quantitative aspects of shelf scanning. However, the results need to be considered in light of a number shortcomings in the lists chosen.
One of the most evident problems in the bibliographies chosen is the North American bias. It was difficult to avoid choosing bibliographies that exhibited such a bias from a field lacking alternatives. Fong was an important source in countering this bias for Australian material, but the results from the list checking for jurisdictions falling outside the North American context should be interpreted with care. Similarly the monographic bias of the majority of these lists needs to be considered when using the results for evaluating serial holdings. It should also be noted that as none of the lists used were critical bibliographies, the failure to hold all titles listed is not as significant as would be with bibliographies which sought to list only the essential legal works. Finally the results ignore the impact of full text electronic sources and formed microform collections, as individual titles in these holdings were not checked against the lists. Major holdings in these types of sources were considered in the overall Conspectus rating but are not reflected in the list checking tables.
The decision to use list checking tools which concentrated on current materials was deliberate in light of one of the aims of the Conspectus exercise within the Law Library being to stimulate suitable recommendations for new orders. The practical value of knowing a particular title had not been collected when that title was out of print was seen to be lower than when the title was able to be ordered. This part of Conspectus did lead to a great many new orders for the collection. The use of such tools however, does mean that data upon the historical depth of the collections is by no means complete.
Results obtained from this phase of the exercise are both incorporated into the final Conspectus ratings given to subjects and presented in tables 1-3 in Appendix B.
3.2 Shelf scanning
The shelf scanning process involved the recording of the number of shelves filled by monographs on all subjects evaluated. This process did not cover periodical collections. The data was sampled over two periods ; the Law library collection being evaluated in 1993/4 and the holdings in other sites being evaluated in 1996. Results from the Law Library need to now be considered in light of the major weeding project which took place in the summer break of 1994/5.
3.3 Evaluation by academic staff
Interviews were conducted in 1994 with the academic staff liaison officers in the Law Faculty in the following subjects :
Administrative law
Artificial intelligence and the law
Banking
and finance
Constitutional law
Contracts
Corporations law
Equal opportunity law
Equity and Trusts
European law
Evidence
Family law
Feminist legal theory
Intellectual property and
trademarks
Jurisprudence
Labour law
Natural resources law
Law of procedure
Property law
Taxation law
Torts
Insurance
law
Accident compensation law
Trade practices
The form used as a basis for these interviews is attached in Appendix C.
The emphasis in these interviews was on Collection Level (CL) and Goal Level (GL), rather than Acquisition Commitment (AC). The interviews sought information from the academics as to how they viewed the collection and where they desired it to go in their subject area. As such, these interviews gathered a range of useful information of a generally qualitative nature that balanced, and in some cases, conflicted with the information collected in the preceding phases of the exercise. A list of such subjects areas of contention can be found by comparison of the raw bibliometric data and academic rating in the final four columns in Table 4 in Appendix B.
This Table also presents the general evaluations arising from the interviews. When summarised, the 23 interviews present a number of consistent comments upon the collection :
Results
Overall
The overall Conspectus ratings for the three indicators assigned to the subjects within the law holdings of the University of Melbourne are to be found in Appendix D, both in text and graph form. Appendix D also contains a conversion of data referring to both CL and AC into the main subject divisions in the Moys Law classification, the scheme to which the collection will soon be transferred. This incorporates the earlier information, but necessarily involves further estimates by library staff.
The overall data can be, at its briefest, summarised into the table below.
Table 1: Overall frequency of Conspectus gradings by indicators
| Conspectus grading | Collection Level (CL) No. / % |
Acquisition Commitment (AC) No. / % |
Goal Level (GL) No. / % |
| 1 - Minimal | 14/13.6% | 21/20.4% | 15/14.1% |
| 1a - Minimal, Uneven coverage | 10 | 12 | 6 |
| 1b - Minimal, Even coverage | 4 | 9 | 9 |
| 2 - Basic information | 28/27.2% | 31/30.1% | 15/14.6% |
| 2a - Basic information, Introductory | 11 | 18 | 4 |
| 2b - Basic information, Advanced | 17 | 13 | 11 |
| 3 - Intermediate | 51/49.5% | 31/30.1% | 37/35.9% |
| 3a - Intermediate, Introductory | 32 | 20 | 14 |
| 3b - Intermediate, Augmented | 19 | 11 | 23 |
| 4 - Research | 10/9.8% | 20/19.4% | 31/30.1% |
| 5 - Comprehensive | - | - | 5/4.8% |
As these figures show just under 60% the law collection is of an intermediate level or higher with the goal that figure shall rise to 70% whilst 28% is a 3b or higher with 57.2% of subjects having a goal of this level. This disparity between the actual and ideal at the higher levels of the grading scale reflect a larger trend for the goal level of a subject to be higher than the collection level. 60% of subjects require an improved collection level to meet expectations.
When the three indicator levels of CL, AC and GL are compared, the scale of the task and some of the problems in reaching those goals becomes more evident. Full lists of how each subject fairs in these comparisons between the three indicators are found in Appendix B, List 1-2.
Table 2 reveals for 27% of subject areas requiring an increase in collection level to meet goal level, there needs to be an improvement of 2 Conspectus grading levels. Such a shift in gradings constitutes considerable material commitment, a commitment which can only be partially offset by those subject areas which require lower collection levels to meet goals.
The situation is further exacerbated by the acquisition commitment for a subject often being out of step with the intended goal level as Table 3 shows. Again 60% of subjects require an improved acquisition commitment to reach their goal, for just over half of these an increase of at least two grading levels is required. Goal levels simply cannot be met if current acquisition commitments are maintained whilst for 6% of subjects the Library will be acquiring too greatly. A thorough evaluation of commitment levels will need to be undertaken to ensure that appropriate levels are maintained for subjects we do not greatly desire as well as those we do.
Table 2: Current collection level vs goal level
| No. of subjects | % of total subjects | |
| Requiring improved collection level to meet goal level | 62 | 60.2 |
| 1 Conspectus level | 34 | 33 |
| 2 Conspectus levels | 24 | 23.3 |
| 3 Conspectus levels | 4 | 3.9 |
| Collection at an appropriate level to meet goal level | 34 | 33 |
| Requiring a reduced collection level to meet goal level | 7 | 6.8 |
Table 3: Acquisition commitment (AC) vs Goal Level (GL)
| No. of subjects | % of total subjects | |
| Requiring improved acquisition level | 62 | 60.2 |
| 1 Conspectus level | 30 | 29.1 |
| 2 Conspectus levels | 18 | 17.5 |
| 3 Conspectus levels | 11 | 10.7 |
| 4 Conspectus levels | 3 | 2.9 |
| Acquired at an appropriate level | 35 | 34 |
| Requiring a reduced acquisition level | 6 | 5.8 |
The consequences of not addressing such inequities are indicated in Table 4. Whilst for just under a third of subjects, current acquisition levels will result in a narrowing of the gap between the ideal and actual collection level, for over 20% there will be a widening of this gap. Disparity between AC and GL also effects subjects who have actually met their goal level. Just under 5% of subjects will actually see such a balance undermined due to under-commitment.
Comparison with Law Faculty requirements
When those subjects identified by Faculty objectives, research activities and teaching commitments are measured against the Conspectus results, there is also cause for concern. For complete date see Table 5, Appendix B. If level 3b/4 is considered an appropriate collection level to support such research and teaching interests only 22% of subject falls into this category. Although close to 75% of the subjects have a collection goal at an appropriate level, only 16% have an acquisition commitment to attain/retain such a level. Indeed for several subjects, for example legal history and law and social justice, the current acquisition commitment level means that the collection level will actually deteriorate. For some subjects such as Aboriginal law and society and health and medical law, extra collection support is available through new development grants. This still leaves, however, 25 subjects that require at least one Conspectus level improvement in acquisition rates. Obviously, such findings indicate the need to re-evaluate and redirect acquisition commitments, directed by what the Faculty requires for teaching and research.
Table 4: Comparisons between AC, GL and AC
| Relationships between Conspectus indicators | No. of subjects | % of total no. of subjects |
| > differential between AC and GL than between CL and GL | 22 | 21.3 |
| < differential between AC and GL than between CL and GL | 32 | 31.3 |
| CL = GL | 31 | 30.1 |
| > differential between AC and GL than between CL and GL AND CL = GL | 5 | 4.8 |
Table 5: Evaluation of comparison of conspectus ratings and Faculty requirements
| Indicator grading | Collection Level | Acquisition Commitment | Goal Level |
| 2a - Basic information, Introductory | - | 4 | - |
| 2b - Basic information, Advanced | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 3a - Intermediate, Introductory | 21 | 16 | 7 |
| 3b - Intermediate, Augmented | 6 | 6 | 11 |
| 4 - Research | - | - | 10 |
An examination of the spread of material in the 340 range over the campus reveals that whilst there are pockets of sometimes sizeable holdings in other collections, law does not suffer to the degree of some disciplines. Table 6, Appendix B displays the extent of such holdings along with commentary about each collection.
Some of these scattered holdings are clearly related to the specific information requirements of the principal users of these collections - for example planning law in the Architecture library or issues in medical negligence in the Brownless collection. For some collections, however, there is duplication either in actual titles or collecting interests, of the holdings of the Law Library. In this way, the ERC law holdings replicate in a far reduced scale many components of the Law Library collection. Other holdings contain unique titles which fall within the collection brief of the Law Library collection. However there are sometimes valid reasons behind such "scatter". For some material, such as the considerable UN material in the B collection, support the research of many disciplines and thus are most appropriately housed in the general research collection B. Similarly interdisciplinary titles on subjects such as law and politics and law and society, cover several disciplines and come to be housed in the Baillieu library.
However, although the degree of scattering for core material is not great for law material, the issues of inappropriate duplication and/or collection placement needs to be addressed upon completion of Conspectus for the other relevant collections, principally the Baillieu and ERC to ensure that material is best sited to serve its intended user group and shelf space, always a valuable resource, is best utilised.
Strengths
For some core parts of the collection, in particular the Australian Commonwealth and State laws, regulations and cases, the results of Conspectus are uniformly good. High goals are matched by strong commitment levels building on already very strong collections.
Areas of particular strength for individual subject areas are :
International law
Jurisdiction & jurisdictional relations of
states
Constitutional law and history
Equity
Generally over all subjects, there are strong holdings particularly in Australian material, but generally in common law jurisdictions. Such material has both historical depth and solid current holdings and is supported by journal, reference and electronic resources.
Weaknesses
Balancing such strengths are problems areas, both of a general and specific nature. For many subjects, there is a tendency for uneven collecting patterns. There is also an overall paucity of nonEnglish material, even for topics such as European and international law.
Areas of particular weakness for individual subject areas are :
Current
Constitutional reform
European Community Law
Family law
Law of Asia, Orient and Far East
Regulation of trade
Future
Conflict of laws
Disputes & conflicts between states
Judicial administration
Law and social justice
Legal education
Legal history
Legal theory
Relationships between states
Roman
law
Succession
The intended outcomes from the Conspectus process for the Law Library range from the immediate to the long term, and address some of the most fundamental questions about the law holdings within the University of Melbourne library system.
Some of the outcomes of Conspectus for the Law Library have already been achieved, or shall be in the near future :
Many more of the projected outcomes, however, are longterm and will be undertaken in the next several years :
Such a list of intended outcomes is no small task and will require considerable work by the Law Library staff in protracted consultation with their key user groups. The eventual completion of such projects, shall however, be essential to ensure that the Library provides the most appropriate collection for its users in a world of rapidly changing information resources and finite funding sources.
The Conspectus project in the Law Library has involved the effort of many people over the past three years. The three Collection Management Librarians, Shaunagh Harte, Prisicilla Stott and myself, have all contributed to the collection, evaluation and presentation of the data. Other staff in the University of Melbourne Library involved in Conspectus, have also contributed, through their expertise and practical support. Shirley Sullivan, Collection Librarian for the Physical Sciences and former Conspectus Librarian, deserves special mention for both her practical assistance and advice. Finally, the Law Librarians, past and present, have played major roles. Ruth Bird, current Law Librarian, has brought her fresh eye to the data and provided an invaluable source of comment for the final draft of this document whilst Stephen Connelly, former Law Librarian, left as one of his last projects a draft version of this report which provided not just the structure and much of the content of the final report, but much of the spirit of the final recommendations to come from this exercise. It is fitting that one of his last tasks was to contribute to the future of the Law Library of the University of Melbourne.
Lisa Sukkel
Collection Management Librarian
Law Library
University of Melbourne
May 1996
To be the best centre for research, teaching and scholarship in law in Australia, and among the leading centre for research, teaching and scholarship in law in the world, judged by international standards
Strategies
1.1 Expand the academic staff of the Law School.
1.2 Increase the number of chairs in the Law School
1.3 Continue to develop a program for the achievement and evaluation of high qauality teaching and learning in the Law School.
1.4 Improve the quality of teaching, academic, administrative and student facilities of the Law School
1.5 Develop further a comprehensive program of staff development for all members of academic and administrative staff.
1.6 Extend the utilisation of computers in teaching, research and administration.
1.7 Increase substantially the financial resources of the Law School.
Targets
To make a significant contribution to ideas, knowledge and learning in the University, Australia, and the rest of the world.
Strategies
2.1 Increase the quality and level of research activity and output of staff and students of the Law School.
2.2 Maintain a commitment to existing priority areas: Asian law, commercial law, judicial admininstration, legal theory, law and social justice, media and communications law, natural resources law, and public law.
2.3 Develop further the strength of the Law School in the following areas: family law, finance law, health and medical law, information technology law, intellectual property law, international law, and labour law.
2.4 Establish a strength in the Law School in the following areas: Aboriginal law and society, maritime law, migration law, legal history.
Targets
- Corporations and Securities Law
- Intellectual Property Law
- International Law and Human Rights
To be a vigorous, fearless and diverse community of legal scholars, as students, teachers and researchers.
Strategies
3.1 Attract the most able students in undergraduate and graduate programs.
3.2 Attract the most able members of academic staff with a wide range of legal interests.
3.3 Promote an environment of collegiality and cooperation among all staff in the Law School.
To exercise its influence and discharge its obligations in the interests of the wider community, with a particular commitment to justice.
4.1 Participate with the legal profession in a review of the requirements for admission to practise law.
4.2 Contribute to law reform in Australia and overseas
Targets
To maintain a strong commitment to affirmative action and equal opportunity
Strategies
5.1 Improve the Law School's record as an equal opportunity employer in relation to ethnicity, disability and gender.
5.2 Improve the gender balance at all levels of academic staff.
5.3 Improve the quality of facilities for staff and students with disabilities.
5.4 Provide equal opportunities for staff development for staff with disabilities.
Targets
List checking results
Table 1: Periodicals evaluated in list checking exercise
| Category checked | Held/Numbers | % Held |
| Law reports (Aust) | 89/115 | 77 |
| Looseleafs (Aust) | 52/97 | 54 |
| Journals | 310/682 | 45 |
Table 2: Subjects not evaluated by jurisdiction in the list checking exercise
| Subject | Held/Titles checked | % Held |
| Jurisprudence | 130/353 | 37 |
| Comparative law | 146/252 | 58 |
| Conflict of laws | 102/198 | 52 |
| International law | ||
| Treaties, cases etc | 20/49 | 41 |
| Sources of international law | 21/46 | 52 |
| World community | 12/43 | 28 |
| Relations between states | 9/16 | 56 |
| Jurisdiction and jurisdictional | ||
| Relation of states | 59/116 | 51 |
| Dispute and conflict between states | 4/14 | 28 |
| Law of war | 25/64 | 39 |
| International co-operation | 63/157 | 40 |
Table 3: Subjects evaluated by jurisdiction in the list checking exercise
| Subject | Australia | UK | US | Canada | Other |
| Constitutional law | 95% | 70% | 49% | 40% | 42% |
| Administrative law | 94% | 87% | 33% | - | 48% |
| Taxation law | 89% | 23% | 33% | 10% | 13% |
| Trade practices | 83% | 20% | 33% | 25% | - |
| Insurance law | 81% | 75% | 16% | 29% | 50% |
| Banks and banking | 71% | 36% | 18% | 13% | - |
| Securities | 100% | - | - | - | - |
| Bankruptcy | 69% | 70% | 13% | 17% | 29% |
| Intellectual property | 95% | 80% | 30% | - | - |
| Property | 100% | 67% | 39% | 50% | 20% |
| Torts | 83% | 82% | 29% | 20% | 0 |
| Contracts | 80% | 50% | 28% | 25% | 44% |
| Corporations law | 64% | - | - | - | - |
| Labour law | 100% | 63% | 30% | 22% | 30% |
| Consumer law | 75% | 50% | 8% | - | - |
| Environment law | 67% | 44% | 40% | 25% | 65% |
| Media and communications law | - | 100% | 35% | 50% | - |
| Natural resources | - | - | 50% | - | - |
| Courts and procedure | 55% | 95% | 35% | 12% | 45% |
| Evidence | 75% | 64% | 13% | 20% | 20% |
| Courts and procedure | 55% | 95% | 35% | 12% | 45% |
| Evidence | 75% | 64% | 13% | 20% | 20% |
Table 4: Results from the academic interviews (with comparison to Conspectus overall rating)
Explanation of abbreviations/terms used
Aust. - Australian material held in the collection
Conspectus
rating : academics - grading given in the course of the interviews with
academics
Aus. - rating of the Australian material in the collection
Int. - rating of the international material in the collection
Conspectus
rating : collection - grading given
CL - Collection level
AC -
Acquisition commitment
Ref. - level of Reference material held in the
collection
Int & comp. - level of International and comparative
material held in the collection
Loose-leaf - level of loose-leaf services
held in the collection
Foreign lang. - level of foreign language material
held in the collection
Online d.bs - level of online databases held in the
collection
History of collecting -
E - Even history of collecting in
the subject area
UE - Uneven history of collecting in the subject area
P - Poor coverage of the subject area
S - Satisfactory coverage of
the subject area
G - Good coverage of the subject area
NA - Not
applicable (ie. not relevant for this subject, academic not in a position to
judge due to recent appointment)
UK - Unknown (ie data incomplete)
SUBJECT Journals Ref. Int & Loose Foreign Online History of Aust. Conspectus Conspectus
comp. -Leaf lang. D.b. collecting rating: rating:
academics collection
Aus. Int. CL AC
Administrative law S S G UK UK UK E G 3B - 3A 3A
Artificial intelligence S P UK P S NA NA NA - - - -
Banking & finance G S S NA NA NA UE G 3B 3B 3A 2B
Constitutional law G S P S P P UE G 3B 2B 3A 3A
Contracts G S S G NA NA UE G 3B 3B 3B 3B
Corporations Law S S P G NA P UE G 3B 2B 3A 4
Equal opportunity Law S S S S NA NA NA NA - - - -
Sex Discrimination Law S S S S NA S E G 3B 3B - -
Equity & trusts S S S NA P S UE S 4 3B 3B 3B
European Law G NA G S NA NA UE NA - 3A - -
Evidence S S P S NA NA UE S 3A 3A 2A 2A
Family Law S S S G NA P UE S 2A 2A 2B 3A
Feminist legal theory P NA S NA NA NA NA S - - - -
Intellectual property S S P P NA G UE G 3A 3A 3A 3A
Jurisprudence G G S NA P NA E G 4 3B 3A 2B
Labour Law S G P UK P NA UE G 4 3A 3A 3A
Natural Resources Law P P P UK UK UK UE UK - - - -
Procedures NA S P S NA NA UE G 3B 1B 2A 2A
Property Law S UK S G S NA E G 4 3B 3A 3A
Taxation Law S S G G NA NA NA NA - - 3A 3B
Torts, insurance &
accident compensation S G P UK NA P UE G 3B - 3A 3A
Trade Practices Law P G G G NA UK UE S 3A - - -
Trade Marks Law S UK S G NA NA UE G 4 3B - -
TOTALS
no.s of poor 3 2 8 2 4 4 - 0 - - - -
no.s of satisfactory 14 13 10 7 2 2 - 5 - - - -
no.s of good 5 4 4 6 0 1 - 13 - - - -
no.s of unknown, not
applicable 1 4 1 8 17 16 4 5 - - - -
no.s of uneven - - - - - - 15 - - - - -
no.s of even - - - - - - 4 - - - - -
The interests of the Law Faculty compared against Conspectus data
Subjects Coll. Level (CL) Acq. Com. (AC) Goal (GL) Aboriginal law and society 3a 3a 3a Asian law 3a 3a 3b Commercial law 3a 3a 4 Conflict of laws 3b 2b 4 Constitutional law 3b 3b 4 Contracts 3b 3b 3b Criminal law 3a 3a 4 Equity and trusts 3b 3b 4 European Community law 2b 3a 2b Family law 2b 3a 3b Finance law 3a 3a 4 Health and medical law 3a 3a 3a Information technology law 3a 3a 3b Intellectual property law 3a 3a 4 International law and human rights 3b 3b 4 Judicial administration 3a 2a 3b Labour law 3a 3a 4 Law and social justice 3a 2b 3b Legal education 3a 2a 3a Legal history 3a 2a 3a Legal theory 3a 2b 3b Maritime law 3a 3a 3b Media and communications law 3a 3a 3b Migration law 3a 3a 3a Natural resources law 3a 3a 4 Public law 3a 3a 4 Roman law 3a 2a 3a Succession 3b 2b 3a Taxation 3a 3b 3b Torts 3a 3a 4 Trade practices 3b 3b 3b
Law holdings throughout the University of Melbourne Library
Library No. Of % of total law Comments
Shelves holdings
Law Library - General 989 24.7% For descriptions of these collections see full report.
Please note that for the reports & legislation figures,
this includes multiple copies of titles.
Natural resources 91 2.3%
Reference 193 4.8%
Reports & legislation 2340 58.5%
Baillieu 160 4% A large collection of legal material covering the whole
range of 340's. Whilst the majority of titles cover
topics which impinge on Arts Faculty subjects, some
material is specifically for law and at times replicates
Law Library holdings.
Education Resource
Centre 84 2% A surprisingly well rounded collection. Holds much
material from the 1980's and 1990's including multiple
copies of core legal texts. Alongside this, research
material such as serials and conference sets exist. As
well as the expected material such as holdings on
education and the law, there are holdings in virtually
all areas of the law. A particular area of strength is
in all aspects of private law.
Media Collection 2.5 - A mixture of tapes and videos, with an emphasis on
Australian video material. Covers all DDC range by
strongest in private law.
B collection 113 2.8% A large collection covering all areas of law but
exceedingly strong in international law. The dates of
material range from 1880 to the present, with the bulk
of work published post WWII. This collection represents
the bulk of non English holdings in law.
AB collection 8 - A relatively small collection with strengths in
government reports and annual reports from departments.
Whilst some older material, most published in the past
20 years.
BX collection 3.5 - A range of subjects, languages and dates (1700-1900)
Includes some early report material.
AX collection 1 - By definition, Australian material prior to 1900. Half
concerns constitutional & administrative law.
Architecture Library 9 - A reseasonably sized holding of legal material,
concentrating on particular areas such as construction,
planning property and environmental law.
Brownless Medical Library 2.5Ü - Although holdings cover many areas of law, particular
strengths in medical negligence and public health.
Engineering 1 - A dated collection, mostly covering general legal topics
in the 340 and 341 range
Comparison of CL (collection level) to GL (goal level)
Requiring improved collection level
1 Conspectus Level Difference
DDC Subject 340.1 Philosophy & theory of law 340.3 Law reform 340.9 Conflict of laws 341 International law 341.4 Jurisdiction & jurisdictional relations 341.7 International cooperation 342.2 Constitutional law and history 342.4 Structure, powers, functions of government 342.5 Legislative branch of government 343.4 Tax law (general) 343.5 Kinds of taxes by base 343.6 Kinds of taxes by incidence 343.9 Control of public utilities 344.3 Welfare 344.5 Public safety 344.6 Public works 344.7 Education and schools 344.8 Educational and cultural exchanges 345.3 Offenders 345.5 General criminal procedure 346.04 Equity 346.8 Banking and insurance 347.5 General considerations of procedures 347.6 Evidence 347.7 Trials 348.5 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Asia, Orient, Far East 348.994 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Australia 348.9945 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Victoria 349.9941 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Western Australia 349.9942 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - South Australia 349.99429 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Northern Territory 349.9943 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Queensland 349.99436 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Tasmania 349.9947 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Australian Capital Territory 349.9948 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Outlying Islands 2 Conspectus Levels DifferenceDDC Subject 341.1 Sources of International law 341.2 The world community 341.3 Relationships between states 341.5 Disputes & conflicts between states 342 Constitutional & administrative law 342.9 Local government 344.1 Labor law 344.4 Public health 345 Criminal law 345.1 Criminal courts 345.6 Evidence 345.7 Trials 346.1 Persons and domestic relations (family law) 346.3 Torts 346.4 Property 346.6 Business associations and companies 346.7 Commercial law 346.9 Securities and negotiable instruments 347.1 Courts 347.8 Appellate procedure 347.9 Arbitration, mediation, conciliation 349.994 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Australia 349.9944 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - New South Wales 349.9945 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Victoria Conspectus Levels DifferenceDDC Subject 342.3 Constitutional reform 343.8 Regulation of trade 348.9 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of other parts of the world 349.5 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Asia, Orient, Far East Collected at an appropriate level DDC Subject 340 Law 340.2 Comparative law 340.5 Legal systems 342.6 Administrative law and procedure 342.7 Election law 342.8 Jurisdiction of government over persons 343 Military, tax, trade, industrial law 343.1 Military, defence, veterans law 343.2 Law of public property 343.3 Law of public finance 343.7 Regulation of economic activity 344 Social, labor, welfare, health, safety, education and cultural law 344.2 Social insurance 344.9 Culture and religion 345.2 Offences 345.4 Liability, responsibility and guilt 345.8 Juvenile procedure 346.2 Contracts and agency 347.2 Courts with general original jurisdiction 347.3 Courts with appellate jurisdiction 347.4 Courts with specialised jurisdiction 348.3 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of ancient world 348.9941 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Western Australia 348.9942 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of South Australia 348.99429 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Northern Territory 348.9943 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Queensland 348.9944 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of New South Wales 348.9945 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Tasmania 348.9947 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Australian Capital Territory 348.9948 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of outlying islands 349.4 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Europe, Western Europe 349.6 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Africa 349.8 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - South America Requiring less collecting DDC Subject 341.6 Law of war 346.5 Inheritance, succession, trusts, trustees 348.4 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Western Europe 348.6 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Africa 348.7 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of North America 349.7 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - North America 349.9 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Other parts of the world
Acquisition vs goal levels
* indicates collection level and goal
currently match
# indicates larger differential between acquisition level
and goal level than collection level and goal level
@ indicates smaller
differential between acquisition level and goal level than collection level and
goal level
Requiring improved collection
1 Conspectus Level Difference DDC Subject 340.3 Law reform 341 International law 341.4 Jurisdiction & jurisdictional relations 341.6 Law of war # 341.7 International cooperation 342.2 Constitutional law and history 342.4 Structure, powers, functions of government 342.5 Legislative branch of government 343.9 Control of public utilities 344.3 Welfare 344.5 Public safety 344.6 Public works 344.7 Education and schools 344.8 Educational and cultural exchanges 345.3 Offenders 346.04 Equity 346.1 Persons and domestic relations (family law) @ 346.5 Inheritance, succession, trusts, trustees # 347.6 Evidence 347.9 Arbitration, mediation, conciliation@ 348.5 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Asia, Orient, Far East 349.9 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Other parts of the world # 348.994 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Australia 348.9945 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Victoria 349.6 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Africa # * 349.8 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - South America # * 349.994 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Australia 349.9944 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - New South Wales 349.9945 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Victoria 2 Conspectus Levels Difference DDC Subject 340.1 Philosophy & theory of law # 340.2 Comparative law * # 340.5 Legal systems * # 341.1 Sources of International law 342 Constitutional & administrative law 342.7 Election law * # 342.9 Local government 344.1 Labor law 345 Criminal law 345.1 Criminal courts 346.3 Torts 346.4 Property 346.7 Commercial law 346.8 Banking and insurance # 346.9 Securities and negotiable instruments 347.7 Trials # 347.8 Appellate procedure 349.5 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Asia, Orient, Far East 3 Conspectus Levels Difference DDC Subject 340.9 Conflict of laws # 341.2 The world community # 342.3 Constitutional reform 343.8 Regulation of trade 345.5 General criminal procedure # 345.6 Evidence # 345.7 Trials # 347.1 Courts # 347.5 General considerations of procedures # 348.9 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of other parts of the world 348.9948 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of outlying islands * # 4 Conspectus Levels Differences 341.3 Relationships between states # 341.5 Disputes & conflicts between states# 349.9948 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Outlying islands Acquisition level appropriate for goal level DDC Subject 342.6 Administrative law and procedure 342.8 Jurisdiction of government over persons * 343 Military, tax, trade, industrial law * 343.1 Military, defence, veterans law * 343.4 Tax law (general) 343.5 Kinds of taxes by base @ 343.6 Kinds of taxes by incidence 343.7 Regulation of economic activity * 348.3 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of ancient world * 344 Social, labor, welfare, health, safety, education and cultural law * 344.2 Social insurance * 344.4 Public health * 344.9 Culture and religion * 345.2 Offences * 345.4 Liability, responsibility and guilt * 345.8 Juvenile procedure * 346.2 Contracts and agency * 346.6 Business associations and companies @ 347.2 Courts with general original jurisdiction * 347.3 Courts with appellate jurisdiction * 347.4 Courts with specialised jurisdiction * 348.9941 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Western Australia * 348.9942 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of South Australia * 348.99429 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Northern Territory * 348.9943 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Queensland * 348.9944 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of New South Wales * 348.9945 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Tasmania * 348.9947 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Australian Capital Territory * 349.7 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - North America 18 349.9941 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Western Australia 349.9942 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - South Australia 349.99429 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Northern Territory 349.9943 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Queensland 349.99436 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Tasmania 349.99437 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Australian Capital Territory Requiring reduced acquisition level to fulfil goal DDC Subject 343.2 Law of public property * 343.3 Law of public finance * 348.4 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Western Europe 348.6 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of Africa 348.7 Laws (Statutes), Regulations, cases of North America 349.4 Law of specific jurisdictions and areas - Europe, Western Europe
Conspectus data converted to Moys classification sequence
Moys no. Subject Collection Acquisition
level level
K Journals and reference books
K1 Journals 3A 3B
K28 Journal indexes 4 4
K29-79 Bibliography 3B 3B
K80 Law libraries, librarianship 3B 3B
K120-126 Dictionaries 4 4
K150-180 Directories 3b 3b
KA Jurisprudence 3A 3B
KB General and comparative law
KB 10-22 Biography, memoirs etc 2 2
KB 30-35 Legal miscellany 2 1b
KB 40-66 Popular accounts 1 1
KB 100-120 Comparative law 2A 2B
KB 290-299 Forensic medicine 0 0
KB 300-399 Criminology 1 1
KC International law
KC 10-65 Primary materials 3A 3A
KC 71 Reference works 3a 3a
KC 80-86 General works 3b 3b
KC 100-136 Public international law
- general, history, theory etc. 3b 3b
KC 140-199 - the state 3b 3b
KC 200-208 - civil rights 3a 3b
KC 210-219 - international criminal law 2b 2b
KC 220-239 - international economic law 3b 3b
KC 240-242 - social laws 3a 3a
KC 245 - atomic energy 3a 3a
KC 250-259 - transport, communications 3B 3B
KC 260-277 - maritime law 3b 3b
KC 280-284 - outer space 3a 3a
KC 300-339 - international relations,
diplomacy, treaties 3B 3B
KC 340-1199 - international organisations 3B 3B
KC 1200-1319 - international disputes, courts 3B 3B
KC 1350-1425 - war 3A 3A
KD Religious legal systems
KD 10-39 General 0 0
KD 60-89 Jewish law 2 2
KD 100-590 Christian churches 1 1
KD 600-650 Islamic law 2 2
KD 700-780 Hindu law 0 0
KD 800-980 Others 0 0
KE Ancient and medieval law
KE 5-20 General 0 0
KE 21-29 Ancient Near East 0 0
KE 30-95 Hellenistic Law 0 0
KE 100-25 Roman Law 4 3B
KE 251-300 Byzantine Law 0 0
KE 310-340 Other Ancient European Systems 0 0
KE 350-380 Medieval and pre-Napoleonic Europe 2B 0
KE 400-480 Roman-Dutch law 1A 0
KE 500-520 Oriental law 0 0
KE 530-540 Others 0 0
KF-KN Common law - primary materials
KF British Isles 3b 3b
KG 1-280 Canada 3a 3a
KG 301-1420 United States 3b 3b
KG 1501-1800 West Indies 0 0
KH 1-60 Australia 4 4
KH 61-80 New South Wales 3b 3a
KH 81-100 Queensland 3b 3b
KH 101-120 South Australia 3b 3b
KH 121-140 Tasmania 3b 3b
KH 141-160 Victoria 4 4
KH 161-180 Western Australia 3b 3b
KH 181-200 Northern Territory 3a 3a
KH 201-220 Australian Capital Territory 3a 3a
KH 301-360 New Zealand 2b 3a
KL Treatises - general
KL 1-36 Legal system 2B 2B
KL 40-44 Legal dictionaries and
encyclopedias 3A 3A
KL 50-119 Legal profession 3A 2B
KL 130-149 Legal education 3A 3A
KL 155-179 Legal research, law reform 3B 3B
KL 200-319 Administration of justice 3B 3B
KL 400-480 Legal history 3B 3B
KM Public law
KM 1-29 General 3A 3A
KM 31-141 Constitutional and Administrative
law - general 3A 3A
KM 171-259 - Citizens, Government 3A 3A
KM 300-307 - Administrative law 3A 3A
KM 331-359 - public finance (Including
Taxation law) 3A 3B
KM 361-391 - local government 3A 3A
KM 400-416 - military law 1A 1A
KM 500-565 Criminal law and procedure
- general, crimes 3A 3A
KM 570-690 - criminal procedure, law
enforcement 3A 3A
KN Private law
KN 1-4 Conflict of law 3b 3a
KN 10-25 Contract, Agency 3b 3b
KN 30-39 Tort 3a 3a
KN 50-83 Property 3b 3b
KN 84-90 Natural resources and energy 3a 3b
KN 94-100 Environmental law 3a 3b
KN 111-120 Intellectual property 3a 3a
KN 150-180 Persons and Social laws 2b 2b
KN 170-180 Family law 2b 3a
KN 180-184 Social law 3a 2b
KN 185-186 Public health, medical law 3a 3b
KN 190-198 Industrial law (Including
labour law) 3a 3a
KN 200-235 Equity and Trusts 3b 3b
KN 250-256 Commercial law - general 3a 3a
KN 260-268 Business associations
(Including corporations) 3a 3b
KN 270-275 Industries, public utilities 2b 3a
KN 280-287 Sale of goods 3A 3A
KN 290-295 Insurance 3A 3A
KN 300-308 Banks and Banking 3A 3A
KN 310-313 Bankruptcy and Insolvency 3A 3A
KN 330-339 Maritime law 3A 3B
KN 340-346 Media and Communications law 3A 3B
KN 347-348 Computer law, information
technology 3A 3B
KN 350-399 Practice and Procedure
(include. Evidence) 2B 3A
KR Africa 2A 1B
KS Latin America 0 0
KT Asia and Pacific
KT 51-1380 Middle East 0 0
KT 1381-2640 Central Asia 0 0
KT 2681 South East Asia 2B 2B
KT 4080 Far East 2B 2B
KT 4701-5801 Pacific 2B 1B
KV Europe 3A 3B
Last modified: August 18 2004.
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