Westlaw is offering virtual webinars this week!

Attend Prepare to Practice training and learn to master techniques for cost-effective Westlaw research, an essential skill for every legal job. Advertised time is CENTRAL STANDARD so add an hour for the Eastern Time Zone.  Webinars last 30 minutes.

After logging onto http://lawschool.westlaw.com/ click on Training Calendar on the left near Tony Buscemi’s name in the Support box.

Tuesday (noon) is for law students interested in Public Interest work.

Wednesday (2:00) is for law students interested in Judicial Clerkships.

Friday (2:30) is for law students interested in Transactional work.

How to avoid plagiarizing

Plagiarism, as defined on the University of Akron Office of General Counsel web page, “is the intentional or unintentional use of the words or ideas of another without acknowledging their source.”1 (emphasis added) Deliberate and accidental plagiarism are treated the same by the University and the School of Law.  The University places the responsibility on the students to know what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.  

Most students know to cite the source when they directly quote from another work, but did you know that the following are also examples of plagiarizing? 

  • Substituting synonyms for words used from another work without acknowledging the source.  This is called “Word Switch Plagiarism.”
  • Rearranging  words, phrases, or sentences without properly citing the work.  This is another example of “Word Switch Plagiarism.”
  • Summarizing or paraphrasing from another work without properly citing the source.  
  • Paraphrasing in a way to change the author’s meaning of the passage used.
  • Using the same organizational structure as another source without properly acknowledging the source.  This is called “Organization Plagiarism.”
  • Using another’s creative idea or solution to a problem without acknowledging the source.   This is called “Idea Plagiarism.”

Law students caught plagiarizing will be violating the Law School’s Student Disciplinary Code and will be subject to proceedings under the Code.2   The consequences can be severe and may include dismissal from the University.

The General Rule to follow to avoid plagiarizing is “when in doubt, cite the source.”  Use the links below to familiarize yourself with plagiarism and how to avoid it.  Always remember, if you have a question about what to cite in your research, ask the instructor of your course or ask a law librarian.   It is so easy to ask for help and avoid plagiarism.

For a quick review on plagiarism, try this short CALI lesson called Plagiarism – Keeping Out of Trouble.


Other Resources:

1.  The University of Akron Office of General Counsel – Guidelines for avoiding plagiarism – The University of Akron Office of General Counsel.  “Under University Rule 3359-41-02, plagiarism constitutes a type of student misconduct that is punishable by formal disciplinary probation, suspension, or dismissal from the University.  It is the responsibility of all University of Akron students to know what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.” 

2.  Law Student Handbook.  Click on the handbook for your year of admission and then go to the Student Disciplinary Code section.

 3.  Read the General Writing Requirements (GWR) or the Individual Studies & Research (ISR) instructions carefully.  These documents have instructions on avoiding plagiarism. 

4.  CALI Lesson: Plagiarism – Keeping Out of Trouble

This lesson will explain what constitutes plagiarism, how to avoid plagiarizing, and will offer opportunities for students to test their understanding of plagiarism.

Check your profile on Westlaw and LexisNexis

At least once-a-year law students should update their profiles on LexisNexis and Westlaw.  Last fall, students’ University e-mail address changed to @zips.uakron.edu.   If you registered using the old address, the e-mail function in TWEN and Lexis Web Course software will not work properly.  This is particularly important if you are taking classes that use TWEN or Web Course.  The faculty may use the e-mail function but if you have not updated your profile you will not receive the e-mail.

Here is how you can update your profile on Westlaw and Lexis. 

For Westlaw: Log into Westlaw http://lawschool.westlaw.com/ and just to the right of your name is the UPDATE link.  Click on that link to update your profile.

For LexisNexis: Log into LexisNexis http://www.lexisnexis.com/lawschool/ and click on the GET HELP tab.  At the next screen, click on UPDATE REGISTRATION INFORMATION.

Questions?  Contact Lynn Lenart, 330-972-6357, llenart@uakron.edu.  Office 269, Law Library, second floor.

Food for Fines Ends December 4

Students, faculty, and staff with late fines may donate nonperishable food items and receive credit toward library fine balances. The program benefits the Akron-Canton Food Bank. 2 nonperishable food items = 1 dollar credit Sorry, this offer cannot be used to pay for lost or unreturned materials. There is no limit to how many food … Continue reading “Food for Fines Ends December 4”

Students, faculty, and staff with late fines may donate nonperishable food items and receive credit toward library fine balances. The program benefits the Akron-Canton Food Bank.

2 nonperishable food items = 1 dollar credit

Sorry, this offer cannot be used to pay for lost or unreturned materials. There is no limit to how many food items you may donate. The Law Library will be accepting food items through December 4.

Food items may be donated at the Law Library Circulation Desk.

Most needed items include peanut butter, boxed cereal, and canned vegetables and fruit.

Westlaw and Lexis printing over the winter break

The University will be closed beginning Friday, December 25 and will reopen on Monday, January 4th, 2010.  This means that the Law Library will also be closed.  If you plan on conducting research on LexisNexis or Westlaw during that time period, please do not send your print jobs to the Westlaw or Lexis stand alone printers here in the Law Library.  You may wish to print to your attached printer or download your work to your computer instead. 

For more information about the Law Library’s Hours during winter break, follow this link -> http://www.uakron.edu/law/library/hours.dot

For questions about Westlaw or LexisNexis please contact Ms. Lenart at 330-972-6357 or e-mail her at llenart@uakron.edu