Washington, the 42nd State

November 11 marks the anniversary of Washington joining the Union in 1889 as the 42nd state! Here are some resources related to this momentous event.

The United States Constitution outlines the legal process by which new states are created. Article IV Section 3 says: "New states may be admitted by the Congress into this union." You can find an official copy of the United States Constitution in Title 1 of the United States Code, which can be found in the Gallagher Law Library Reference Area at KF62. Or you can read the text on the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) webpage.

Washington's origins can be traced to the Monticello Convention Petition of 1852. Settlers in the then massive Oregon Territory sent a letter to the federal government asking for the creation of a separate territory. You can find a copy of this petition in the Suzzallo-Allen Libraries Special Collections-Manuscripts collection. The Washington Secretary of State also has a webpage providing more information about this petition.

Terrorism and the Law: Books and Articles at the Gallagher Law Library

In 2005, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan stated at the International Summit on Democracy, Terrorism, and Security that terrorism is a direct attack on the core values of the United Nations: "the rule of law; the protection of civilians; mutual respect between people of different faiths and cultures; and peaceful resolution of conflicts." In fighting terrorism, he continued, "human rights and the rule of law must always be respected." (UN.org, Mar. 10, 2005)

Following the deadly attacks in Paris on November 13, 2015, news outlets worldwide have questioned the effectiveness of current international law in preventing and addressing terrorism. In the past several months, several nations have put forth new laws in attempts to counter these kinds of attacks, but many of these laws have been criticized as too broadly defining terrorism or too harshly treating perpetrators of these acts.

A Law Library in your Pocket

Have you ever wanted to carry a law library in your pocket? Now you can!

LawLibe is a free app on the iTunes App Store available for your iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.

LawLibe is powered by the Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School. LawLibe includes the U.S. Constitution, and you can download additional legal content such as the U.S. Code, Code of Federal Regulations, and State Statutes. You can then access these materials offline. Other features of this app include full-text searching, in-text highlighting, font-size adjusting, and frequent updating.

Thanksgiving Library Closures

The library will be closed to the public at 5 pm on Wednesday, November 25, for the Thanksgiving holiday. The Reference Office will also close at this time.

The library will remained closed from Thursday, November 26 until 8 am Monday, November 30.

Please see our hours page for additional hours information.

Daylight Saving Time and the Law

On November 1, at the stroke of 2:00 AM, Washingtonian clocks collectively rolled back to 1:00 AM (providing many of us an extra hour of much needed sleep). The popular saying “spring forward, fall back” reminds us that it is once again Daylight Saving Time (DST) in Washington State. As we adjust to later sunrises and sunsets, we might reflect on the laws that make DST a reality, and on efforts to change those laws.

In 1960, Washington became the 15th state to adopt DST when 51.7% of voters approved Ballot Initiative 210.  In the official voter pamphlet, the initiative promised “154 more hours of daylight each year.”

Shortened Library Hours for Veterans Day

Wednesday, November 11 is Veteran's Day and is a University of Washington holiday. Gallagher Law Library will be open but with shorter hours. 

The library will be open 8 am to 5 pm. The Reference Office will be open from 1 pm to 4 pm. 

Please take a look at our hours page for more information.

National Love Your Lawyer Day

You have several days to plan how you will celebrate National Love Your Lawyer Day, Nov. 6.

Wait - - - what? There is a National Love Your Lawyer Day?

Yes, the American Bar Association's Law Practice Division has declared the first Friday in November as a day:

• for the public to celebrate lawyers and express their gratitude to them for their affirmative contributions to the public good and the administration of justice
• for lawyers to help promote a positive and more respected image of lawyers and their contributions to society.

The resolution notes that the American Lawyers Public Image Association initiated the day in 2001.

An article in today's National Law Journal (subscription required) provides additional information about this commemoration, observing that the founder of ALPIA created the organization after hearing one too many nasty lawyer jokes. It also mentions a self-published book called Comebacks for Lawyer Jokes: The Restatement of Retorts ($9.95 from Amazon). The author, Malcolm Kushner, is quoted as saying: “The real thing about the lawyer joke isn’t so much they’re mean, it’s that they’re cultural carriers of bad images of lawyers.”

So plan to convey expressions of affection and appreciation for the lawyers in your life on Friday. And if you are a self-respecting lawyer or lawyer-to-be, give yourself credit for the work you do to promote justice.