The Harris County Law Library will expand virtual, remote services and temporarily suspend in-person services and public events for two weeks beginning Monday, March 16.
The Law Library is a public law library that serves the legal information needs of self-represented litigants, legal professionals, and the judiciary. It receives more than 60,000 visitors each year, 90 percent of whom are not lawyers.
“This action is being taken in response to the emergency public health declarations of Harris County, the City of Houston, and state and national authorities,” said Law Library Director Mariann Sears. “This action is necessary to protect the health and safety of our patrons and staff,.”
To continue serving its patrons, law librarians will offer many library services remotely as part of a “COVID-19 Flatten the Curve Action Plan.” These include:
- Telephone Reference: Call 713-755-5183 to speak with a law librarian Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Law librarians can assist patrons with finding accurate, current, authoritative online legal resources and guide patrons to sources of court and government information. As call volume increases, patrons may leave a voicemail to receive a call back from a law librarian.
- Email: Send reference questions to lawlibrary@cao.hctx.netto receive assistance from a law librarian with online legal resources. To the extent possible, law librarians will also scan and send documents from print resources located at the Law Library and we will work with vendors to increase the number of documents available for scanning under current licensing agreements.
- Enhanced Website Services: Visit www.harriscountylawlibrary.orgto view online content from the Law Library. While in-person services are suspended, law librarians will add additional content to the website, including guides to government resources online and video content to assist self-represented litigants, students, and attorneys.
- Video Conferencing Services: As soon as possible, the Law Library will offer patrons the ability to request a video conferencing session with a law librarian.
- Video Content in Support of Distance Learning: The Law Library offers more than a dozen education videos concerning legal technology and legal research that will be offered to area academic institutions currently transitioning to distance learning.
On March 13, the Texas Supreme Court issued a “First Emergency Order Regarding the COVID-19 State of Disaster” and ordered courts to extend deadlines and suspend in-person proceedings as much as possible. The Harris County Family Courts have suspended many dockets frequently used by self-represented litigants, including uncontested dockets, through the end of the month.
“The decision to suspend in-person services is not an easy one,” Sears said. “More than 250 people per day visit the Law Library from all corners of Harris County to find the legal information they need to access our court system. The Texas Supreme Court’s order extending court deadlines lessens the immediate need for in-person law library services and the emergency declarations make clear public health is our number one priority.”
The public health situation regarding COVID-19 is fluid and new information is emerging daily. Law Library leadership working in conjunction with Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan will monitor the situation and reassess the need to suspend in-person services each Thursday. Information concerning changes in service will be on the Law Library’s website at www.harriscountylawlibrary.org.
Presently, there is no indication of COVID-19 at the Law Library and all measures taken are preventative. The library is encouraging everyone to undertake personal preventative measures to help slow the spread of the virus as suggested by Harris County Public Health, including regular hand washing, disinfecting surfaces frequently, avoiding contact with sick people and large gatherings, and staying home if you are sick.
“I fully support the actions being taken by the Law Library’s staff to keep our patrons safe during this time of caution,” said County Attorney Vince Ryan. “The health of Harris County residents is our top priority.”
About the Harris County Law Library
The Harris County Law Library opened in 1915 and has continued to serve Harris County’s legal information needs for more than a century. After joining the Office of Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan in 2011, the Law Library greatly expanded its technology offerings and services to the public. Today, the Law Library receives more than 60,000 visitors each year, 90 percent of whom are not lawyers. Ryan’s support for the revitalization of the Law Library was recognized by the American Association of Law Libraries in 2016 when he was named the Law Library Advocate of the Year. The Law Library is located at 1019 Congress Street, 1st Floor, Houston, Texas. Visit www.harriscountylawlibrary.org for more information.