Mission
The mission of the library’s archives is to collect, maintain, and preserve non-confidential law school records, law-school related manuscript collections, small bar association manuscript collections, and other archives materials that support the curriculum and research missions of the law school and law library.
Collection Contents
- Law School archives. The library collects non-confidential print and media material concerning the law school.
- Several small manuscript collections, primarily those of individuals like former deans and former law librarians, who have papers and artifacts concerning the history of the law school or its predecessor institutions. At present we have the following small manuscript collections :
- Ruth H. Brunson Papers, the law school=s first librarian.
- Murray O. Reed Papers, former Pulaski County Chancellor.
- William O. Nash Papers, former Assistant Dean, Arkansas Law School.
- University of Arkansas Department of Law, predecessor institution.
- Arkansas Law School, predecessor institution.
- University of Arkansas School of Law, Little Rock Division Papers.
- W. Harold Flowers Law Society, a small Arkansas bar association.
- ARKANSAS SUPREME COURT BRIEFS AND RECORDS consists of the record and briefs of the following categories of Arkansas cases: civil, 1836-1926, and criminal, 1836-1963. The library acquired this collection in 1993.
Access
Archives materials are available for use by all researchers, although some photographs have copyright restrictions. Special Collections Procedures and Rules govern the use of archives material. Each researcher must register using our application form and present their driver=s license or other photo ID to the Special Collections Librarian or other librarian who stands in her place. Users must make an appointment with the Special Collections Librarian in order to use archives material and photographs using Room 134, which is secured for that purpose.
Collection Guidelines
The law library director makes the final decision concerning additions to the law school archives, manuscript collections, and the briefs and records collections. The law library director makes the final decision concerning loans to other institutions for exhibits.
- Louisiana Purchase, 1803 to date.
- Arkansas and territorial areas that included Arkansas.
- Forms of material include:
- Manuscripts,
- Court documents and artifacts, briefs, records,
- Law school archives materials,
- Law school photographs,
- Videotapes, slides, DVDs, and other media.
Cooperative Agreements
Our present policy is to lend items for copying for exhibit rather than exhibit. The library discourages loan requests of original archives material for exhibit for the following reasons: 1) it is difficult to get other institutions to return material even though the terms of loans are in writing and 2) original materials should not be exhibited for long periods of time.
Appraisal
The Law Library does not provide appraisal services.
Review of Policy
The Law Library reviews this policy once a year.