Banned Books Week: September 27-October 3, 2015

Every year at the end of September, libraries, bookstores and other reading aficionados celebrate our freedom to read during Banned Books Week. According to the American Library Association, a challenge to a book is “an attempt to remove or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A banning is the removal of those materials.”

In Oregon, the Intellectual Freedom Clearinghouse collects data on challenges and bannings in the state. For 2014-2015, there were 14 challenges to books, magazines, sound recordings and videos in public and school libraries, only one of which resulted in material being removed from shelves. Some of the more frequently challenged books since the OIF started collecting data in 1988 include Daddy’s Roommate by Michael Willhoite, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz, In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak, Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden. Check out the full list here.

Want to learn more about the legal background of banned books? Check out the ALA’s list of notable First Amendment court cases, or stop by SOLL to peruse our resources on censorship and freedom of speech.

Oregon Appellate Court Oral Arguments -- Week of September 28

The Oregon Supreme Court has no cases set for oral argument this week.

The Oregon Court of Appeals hears oral arguments from 9/28 to 9/30 in the Supreme Court Building.

Oregon Appellate Courts Style Manual 2015 Update

If you are writing for the Oregon Court of Appeals or the Oregon Supreme Court you are confronted with a multiplicity of formatting and style decisions. Everything from line spacing to citations must be precisely and correctly drafted. Rule 5.20(4) of the Oregon Rules of Appellate procedure directs attorneys and judges to look to the Oregon Appellate Courts Style Manual for guidance.

Today is your lucky day! The Oregon Appellate Courts Style Manual 2015 update went into effect in August. This is the first major update since 2002 and incorporates suggestions and improvements in technology since 2002. It clarifies more topics with expanded examples and gives guidance regarding citations to electronic sources.

The 2015 Oregon Appellate Courts Style Manual is available for download on the OJD Publications Website

·         Appellate Courts Style Manual – Web Version With Hyperlinks (PDF)

·         Appellate Courts Style Manual – Printer Friendly Version (PDF)

·         Appellate Courts Style Manual – EPUB for reading devices

·         Appellate Courts Style Manual – MOBI for reading devices coming soon

·         A Summary of changes to the Style Manual

The Manual is brought to you through the hard work of Mary Bauman, Lisa Norris-Lampe, Julie Smith, Mary Yunker , Pat Zolllner and Barkley the library guard dog.

Oregon Appellate Court Oral Arguments -- Week of September 14

The Oregon Supreme Court has no cases set for oral argument this week

The Oregon Court of Appeals hears oral arguments on 9/21 in the Justice Building and on 9/24 in the Supreme Court Building.

SOLL Search Tips: Looking for a Dictionary?

As you may know, the State Law Library has a number of legal and English language dictionaries available for your reference. We’ve now compiled all our dictionaries into easily sortable lists, so you can see everything that’s available in one place, whether it’s the most recent edition of Black’s Law Dictionary or an “exposition of certaine difficult and obscure words and termes” from 1602. By default, the lists are sorted by title, but you can sort them by year, author, or a number of other facets using the dropdown menu at the top right corner of the results.

Access the list of English language dictionaries here: https://o90009.eos-intl.net/O90009/OPAC/Search/SpecialTitles.aspx?List_Code=48866812&clicked=true&PatronSearches=false

and the list of legal dictionaries here:
https://o90009.eos-intl.net/O90009/OPAC/Search/SpecialTitles.aspx?List_Code=48959736&clicked=true&PatronSearches=false.

Oregon Appellate Court Oral Arguments -- Week of September 14

The Oregon Supreme Court hears five cases set for oral argument September 14th and 15th

• 9/14 9:00 am - Oakmont, LLC v. Department of Revenue - S062342
• 9/14 9:00 am - State of Oregon v. William Michael Althouse - S062909 (A152626)
• 9/15 9:00 am - State of Oregon v. Ema Ramos - S062942 (A150423)
• 9/15 9:00 am - State of Oregon v. Kade William Kirschner - S063069 (A154602)
• 9/15 9:00 am - Rosa Aurelia Palacios Espinoza v. Evergreen Helicopters, Inc. - S062903 (A147028)
• 9/15 1:00 pm - State of Oregon v. Linda Jean Bonilla - S062962 (A153808)

The Oregon Court of Appeals hears oral arguments on 9/15 in the Justice Building and on 9/17 in the Supreme Court Building.

Oregon Appellate Court Oral Arguments -- Week of September 10th

Happy Labor Day!

The Oregon Supreme Court hears four cases set for oral argument September 10th.  

• 9/10 9:00 am - Fountaincourt Homeowners Association v. FountainCourt Development, LLC - S062691 (A147420)
• 9/10 9:00 am - State of Oregon v. Sunie Shawn Waterhouse - S062799 (A153037)
• 9/10 1:30 pm - J. Michael Goodwin v. Kingsmen Plastering, Inc. - S062925 (A151821)
• 9/10 1:30 pm - Casey J. Deckard v. Diana L. Bunch - S062948 (A151792)

The Oregon Court of Appeals hears oral arguments on 9/10 in the Justice Building and on 9/11 in the Supreme Court Building.