The Christian Science Monitor reports that ReDigi, a start-up based in Massachusetts which allows users to resell digital music on their site, was told by a federal judge that producer's rights are violated by such a practice.

According to the law, e-books are considered an original version of the author's work. If you've already bought a version and then sell it to someone else, you're making an illegal copy of the original work (the text you downloaded).

By contrast, according to the law, if you sell a used print book to your friend, you're not making another copy of it, so you're not going against the author's copyright.

ReDigi plans to appeal the decision.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:14 PM to eBooks | Permalink

The UW Law School has recently published an outstanding new issue of The Gargoyle, our alumni magazine. A very attractive online edition of the magazine is available on the Law School website.

The feature article in this current issue is about Women in Law. It highlights the careers of six UW Law School alumnae, including Senator Tammy Baldwin, Belle Case La Follette, Vel Phillips, Marygold Melli, Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, and Dean Margaret Raymond.

An interactive timeline featuring the achievements of Wisconsin's Women in Law is also available. It includes numerous interesting photos and videos.

Note that a complete, searchable archive of The Gargoyle is available on the Law School's website.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 1:16 PM to UW Law School | Permalink

Congress.gov is a beta site by the Library of Congress that contains U.S. legislative information. It will eventually replace THOMAS.gov.

At this point, the beta Congress.gov contains legislation from the 107th Congress (2001) to the present, member profiles from the 93rd Congress (1973) to the present, and some member profiles from the 80th through the 92nd Congresses (1947 to 1972).

For more information, see the comparison of coverage currently available via Congress.gov and THOMAS.gov.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 9:48 AM to Data & Databases | Permalink

From the Wisconsin State Journal:

Former UW Law School Dean George Bunn, a noted nuclear arms expert and negotiator, died of spinal cancer Sunday in Palo Alto, Calif., said his son Matthew Bunn. He was 87.

A more detailed obituary appears at Stanford University's Center for International Security and Cooperation site.

George Bunn served at the UW Law School from 1969 to 1986. He was dean of the from 1972-1975.

The Bunn family has a long ties with the UW Law School. Other family members include Judge Romanzo Bunn, who served as a lecturer in the 19th century; Charles Wilson Bunn, who received his bachelors and law degrees from UW; and Charles (Bob) Bunn, a long-time member of the Law School faculty from 1934-1962.

There is an interesting article about the Bunn family in the Autumn 1969 issue of The Gargoyle.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 8:13 AM to UW Law School | Permalink

Stop by the Law Library this week and help us celebrate National Library Week!

• READ Poster
  View this year's poster featuring Steve Barkan, Professor of Law and Director of the Law School Library
  - On display inside the library entrance on the 5th floor
  - View posters from previous years on our Facebook page

• Trivia Contest
  Law students, faculty and staff - Test your skills in sports, movies, history and more
  - Tues., April 16th at 5:00 pm in the Law School Atrium

• Make your own READ Poster
  Law students, faculty and staff - Bring your favorite book and be a literary star!
  - Wed., April 17th from 11:00-2:00
  - Thurs., April 18th from 1:00-4:00
  To reserve a time for a photo, email circ@law.wisc.edu or ask at the circulation desk. Walk ups also welcome.

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 8:46 AM to UW Law School | Permalink

2013 WI Act 5, which modifies the establishment of a publication date for acts, quietly went into effect yesterday.

According to the Wisconsin Legislative Council the act does several things:

• Removes the authority of the Secretary of State to designate the date of publication
  
• Instead, under the Act, the date of publication of an act is the day after the date of enactment unless a different effective date is expressly prescribed
  
• The Act requires the Legislative Reference Bureau to publish each act on its date of publication
  
• An act's effective date is the day after its date of publication

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 4:04 PM to Legislation & Regs | Permalink

The AALL Spectrum Online has a very interesting article examining advertisements from legal periodicals and bar publications published during the Second World War, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Cold War.

"Due to the scale and scope of the conflict, every aspect of civilian life was affected. The American legal system, including legal publishing, was greatly transformed by the conflict."

Many very interesting ads are reprinted in the article. I think that my favorite is the one from Shepards pondering "Were the Pilgrims Communists?"

Posted by Bonnie Shucha at 2:26 PM to Legal Publications | Permalink