ALA-APA External Relationships Task Force

American Association of Law Libraries
Summary Report by Margie Axtmann
April 5, 2002

The American Association of Law Libraries is a 501(c)(3) non-profit professional organization incorporated in the District of Columbia and headquartered in Chicago. AALL’s Washington Affairs Office monitors legislative, judicial and regulatory activities and represents the views of AALL in accordance with its Government Relations Policy and the resolutions endorsed by the AALL Executive Board or the membership. AALL’s Government Relations Committee consults with, advises, and provides general direction and guidance to the Washington Affairs Office.

Outside of the information policy arena, AALL has a policy on collaborative activities and joint agreements. Because such activities may take a variety of forms and involve a range of commitments, financial and otherwise, on the part of the Association, they normally require approval of the President, the Treasurer or the Executive Director.

Information Policy

AALL frequently works with other library associations and coalitions on information policy statements and joint testimony. Copies of reports, statements, letters and testimony can be found on the Washington Affairs Office’s web site at www.ll.georgetown.edu/aallwash/.

The Shared Legal Capability is one example of a formal cooperative effort by the American Association of Law Libraries, the American Library Association, the Association of Research Libraries, the Medical Library Association, and the Special Libraries Association. Each participating association contributes funds to retain outside counsel expertise in intellectual property issues, and to maintain and exert a joint library community position whenever possible on key intellectual property policy issues. The SLC has enabled its library association members to achieve accomplishments in the intellectual property policy arena that would not have been possible for any one group individually.

Employment and Salaries

Although the majority of AALL’s formal policies cover government relations and legal information issues, AALL also has a policy on Job Security, Remuneration, and Employment Practices. The published policy is undated, but I believe it was adopted 10–15 years ago. It is available on AALLNET at www.aallnet.org/services/hotline_security.asp. AALL accepts job listings for its web site and its monthly journal. The most recent policy on salaries listed in job postings was adopted in November 1994, and it allows placement listings only for positions whose annual full-time salary meets or exceeds $22,000. It should be noted, however, that salaries in law libraries compare favorably to salaries in most other types if libraries. AALL publishes a full-fledged salary survey biennially. There is no policy on pay equity, and AALL has not lobbied in that area.

Education and Certification

Nearly five years ago AALL, working with the Center for the Study of Certification, conducted a survey of members to gauge the interest in a credentialing program. The survey also:

1. evaluated members’ attitudes and beliefs about the value of a credentialing program to clarify the potential acceptance of and participation in such a program;

2. found broad agreement on a range of competencies and skills pertinent to the work of law librarians; and

3. identified areas where gaps exist between the skills law librarians need for their daily work and those they obtain through traditional library education.

Although a slight majority (56%) of respondents to the survey believed that AALL should develop a credentialing program for law librarians, the support was not considered strong enough to justify the significant investment of human and financial resources necessary to implement such a program at that time.

Instead, as a result of the survey, AALL turned its attention to developing continuing education programs in areas that members identified as not well served by basic library education (management, technology, and teaching) and to refining and validating a set of competencies for law librarians. The AALL Executive Board approved a document entitled Competencies of Law Librarianship in March 2001. Individual librarians may use the AALL Competencies for coordinating their continuing education as they identify areas for professional growth. Employers may use the Competencies to make hiring, evaluation and promotion decisions, and to make recommendations for professional development. The American Association of Law Libraries uses the Competencies as a framework within which to structure professional development programs. This framework provides guidance to ensure that the programs offered will assist law librarians in attaining and maintaining the skills or knowledge necessary for their current and future work.

AALL’s Executive Board also adopted Guidelines for Graduate Programs in Law Librarianship. This policy statement is for the American Library Association to use in its accreditation of graduate library school programs. Its age (1988) and the recent adoption of the Competencies document dictate the need for updating, but currently there is no group working on this.

AALL is always invited to participate in ALA efforts relating to education and certification. An AALL representative served on the Steering Committee for the Congress on Professional Education (1^st and 2^nd), and several AALL representatives attended both Congresses. AALL also had a representative to the Task Force on External Accreditation and was committed to participating in an independent accrediting body if the recommendations had been adopted. As noted in the 2^nd Congress on Professional Education: Initial Implementation Report.

There is no ready-made formal mechanism for collaboration with external associations (e.g. the Special Libraries Association, the Medical Library Association, the American Association of Law Libraries, American Society for Information Science and Technology). There is, however, a history of collaboration. Many, but not all, have an official “affiliate” relationship with ALA; that relationship has recently been primarily one of information sharing. Several have recently collaborated formally in the successful sponsorship of the 2001 IFLA Conference in Boston. Further, the major associations regularly work together in the legislative arena-in changing, issue-oriented configurations. ¹

The report goes on to recommend that ALA “request each of the ‘IFLA partners’ to collaborate in development of a formal (i.e. clearly-articulated, documented, scheduled) mechanism for working together in the area of continuing education; invite other library-based associations to participate in the collaborative process so-designed.”

Although AALL has done a great deal of its own work in the education area, the Association values these collaborative efforts with ALA. I can say with confidence (though unofficially) that AALL would respond positively to a request to work with ALA and other library associations.

Conclusion

I do not understand fully how the new ALA-APA structure will change ALA’s approach to legislative advocacy, pay equity, and educational issues. But I don’t see how the probable changes would affect AALL’s ability to work collaboratively in those areas where we have common interests and agreement, or to reconsider issues such as credentialing if the opportunity presented itself. AALL’s current priorities, set by the Executive Board through a strategic planning process, would not warrant the creation of its own 501(c)(6) organization.

AALL is an ALA affiliate. I think the question of affiliate status is one that resides with ALA. My experience as a Past President of AALL is that it is mainly an information sharing relationship that keeps the doors open for collaboration when the need arises. If ALA defines a different relationship under the ALA-APA umbrella, AALL would consider that option just as it considers any collaborative relationship.

1. See 2nd Congress Final Implementation Report.