Monday, April 23, 2012

Back that Data Up!!!

Over the weekend, a student asked me for help with her laptop. But the Blue Screen of Death indicated that Windows 7 couldn’t find her hard drive, couldn’t load Windows, and thus couldn’t get to the class notes and outlines that she needed to study for exams.

Her computer was only two years old, but she wasn’t sure if she had her purchasing and warranty information. Its possible to retrieve data on a bad hard drive, but in more situations that is not going to be cheap or quick. And, worst of all, this student had not backed up her notes and other law school documents. All I could offer her was my sympathy, and the suggestion to find some local tech support help: the law school, like most institutions, just doesn’t have the time or resources to perform data recovery services for students.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Law Library Hours

With extended hours for exams, the ending of one semester, and beginning of the summer semester hopefully this post can clear up any Law Library hours questions you may have.

Current – Regular Hours (Spring Semester)
- Monday – Thursday 7:30 – Midnight
- Friday 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
- Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
- Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Finals Hours – Begin April 23rd to May 4th (Spring Finals)
- All days – 7:30 a.m. – 1:00 a.m.

Regular Hours May 5th to May 10th (Make-up Exam Period)
- Monday – Thursday 7:30 a.m. – Midnight
- Friday 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
- Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
- Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Special Hours
- Friday - May 11 – 7:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Break Hours - May 12th to May 28th (Interim)
- Monday – Thursday 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
- Friday 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
- Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
- Sunday CLOSED

Regular Hours - May 29th (Summer School)
- Monday – Thursday 7:30 a.m. – Midnight
- Friday 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
- Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.
- Sunday 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

How Many Laws Has the Supreme Court Declared Unconstitutional?

The Supreme Court’s role in judging the constitutionality of Acts of Congress has been in the news this week, so an obvious question is: Just how many laws has the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional? Google that and you’ll get some good answers, including the top hit, from WikiAnswers:

WikiAnswers: How Many Laws Has the Supreme Court Declared Unconstitutional?

But these answers don’t provide the full citation to a source you can cite, just a vague reference to where the answers came from, the Congressional Research Service.