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Law Librarians


Outlook

Employment Prospects

Employers

Only a small percentage of the librarians employed in the United States specialize in law librarianship. Law librarians work in college and university law libraries, libraries of law firms, the law departments of business corporations or other organizations, libraries of nonprofit legal aid and other organizations, and for the government (in prisons and in state, county, and city legal departments or courts). Law librarians also work for vendors of legal information resources as sales or training staff or liaisons that work with law librarians.

Starting Out

There are many options to keep in mind when searching for a job as a law librarian. Newspapers and trade journals are good job sources, but keep in mind that local government law libraries and law firms might only advertise job openings locally, whereas national and international law firms and academic law libraries tend to advertise their job openings nationally. Other good resources include the American Association of Law Libraries Web site, which has an online career center (https://www.aallnet.org/careers/) that provides information on law library positions available across the country. It also has links to local AALL chapter Web sites, which list local job openings. The Special Libraries Association (SLA) also posts job openings for law librarians on its Web site, https://www.sla.org/career-center/.

Law librarians who have law degrees often worked as law clerks during law school, thus gaining experience in the actual work setting while completing their education.

Advancement Prospects

Law librarians advance by moving into managerial positions or taking positions at larger firms or organizations. Some law librarians may become college professors. Others earn a law degree.

Tips for Entry

Read about careers for law librarians on the Web site of the American Association of Law Libraries, https://www.aallnet.org/careers/about-the-profession/.

Select a college or university where you can obtain a degree in library science or a related field.

Try to find a summer internship at a large law firm or in a state or federal government agency that has a law library.
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