Law Library Update: NEW Chat & Phone Services!

Alameda County, California sent this bulletin at 06/10/2020 10:25 AM PDT

Law Library Update - NEW Chat & Phone Services!

June 10, 2020 -

NEW Chat & Phone Services! M - F 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Starting Wednesday, June 10th, law librarians at Alameda County Law Library will be available to provide reference assistance via live Internet chat and phone Monday - Friday, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. This is an expansion of the reference service by email and return phone call we have been offering since SIP began. Please note, library staffing is limited.

  • Chat with Us. On the library website, click the “Chat with us” box that appears in the lower-right hand corner of the screen during chat service hours. You will be prompted to enter your first name and email address to begin chatting. Available M – F, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. Library website: http://lawlibrary.acgov.org
  • Call Us. Call the Reference Desk at (510) 208-4832. Available M – F, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. If we don’t answer, please leave a message and we will respond to you as soon as we can.
  • Email Us. You can still email us your reference/document delivery request at lawlib@acgov.org. Available 24/7. We will respond within 24 hours, or the next business day if the email is received during the weekend.

Law librarians can email you specific documents/chapters from the Westlaw, Lexis Advance, and OnLaw databases, or perform keyword searches in these databases at your request and email you the results. We may also be able to direct you to appropriate free internet resources

In your request, please try to be as specific as possible with citations, section/chapter numbers, or keywords/research topic(s).

In-Person Services

Public libraries are considered Higher-Risk Workplaces and are included in Phase 3 of California’s Resilience Roadmap. Public libraries are awaiting further guidance from local public health officials and the Governor about how and when our spaces can safely re-open to the public.

We don’t yet have a timeline for when we can re-open library spaces, provide in-person reference service, resume the monthly CLASP Legal Clinic, host MCLE/educational programs, rent our meeting rooms, or offer Passport Acceptance services.

However, while California is in Phase 2, the Law Library is obtaining the supplies we need to be ready to re-open when we get the go-ahead from the state and county public health departments. When we do re-open, to protect the health and safety of patrons and staff and to ensure the public enjoys equitable access to the unique legal information materials available at the Law Library, library access will be limited and social distancing rules in effect.

For the most up to date information about the library closure and library services, please visit our website at http://lawlibrary.acgov.org.

Access Fastcase, Gale Legal Forms & Nolo eBooks at Home

Access the Fastcase database from home 24/7 via: https://gateway.fastcase.com

  • Username: Alamedacounty / Password: fastcase

Access the Gale Legal Forms database from home 24/7 via: https://infotrac.gale.com/itweb/oakl62165?db=TGLF

  • Password: oakl_log

Access the Nolo eBooks database from home 24/7 via:  https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=ip,uid&custid=ns134829&group=main&profile=lirc

  • User ID: alamedacll / Password: Alameda2019!

Register for Temporary Trial IDs for Westlaw, Lexis & CEB Pro

During library closures, several legal database providers are allowing the public to sign-up for free temporary IDs to access legal databases from home.

Vendor-provided instructions to register for free temporary IDs for Westlaw Edge, Lexis Advance, and CEB Pro can be found on our Library Databases page: http://lawlibrary.acgov.org/library-databases/

Please note, temporary IDs are offered to the public directly from the database providers. Library staff cannot provide temporary IDs or extend trials. Contact database providers directly with questions/problems. Customer support information for each database provider is listed on our Library Databases page. Temporary IDs have time/access/content download limitations.

Alameda County Superior Court Self-Help Center

Alameda County Superior Court began accepting most civil, family, and probate filings, on May 11th via drop box, fax filing, and mail filing. See Emergency Local Rule 1.8a.

Alameda County Superior Court Self-Help Center staff can offer limited assistance via chat and phone:

  • LiveChat Hours: M - F, 9:00 am - noon; M - Th, 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm. Access the chat tool from the Self-Help Center website. 
  • Phone Hours: M - Th, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Call (510) 272-1393.

Virtual Lawyers in the Library (Offered by Oakland Public Library)

Although the Oakland Public Library also remains closed, they are offering a limited number of Lawyers in the Library appointments via phone on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Sunday afternoons.

To make an appointment, call (510) 238-3134 or email eAnswers@oaklandlibrary.org. Visit the Virtual Lawyers in the Library website for more information about this service.