KCLL Klues: Washington State Legal Research

In this episode of KCLL’s SideBar Santa finds out about the potential liabilities and risks he might encounter during his annual trip.

Listen to Episode 25
Links for Episode 25

Tamara Thompson, on one of my favorite blogs, PI Buzz, advises investigators to keep their searching on social sites ethical. Like Tamara, I do much “passive information gathering on the Internet.” And like her, I do not attempt to “friend” someone whose MySpace or Facebook or other social page I find. I just find the page and if there is a real need for the information contained, then do your discovery correctly. As Tamara says, “Like with any other investigative action keep in mind: Is this legal and ethical? How would it be perceived by a jury?” Social networking information is being accepted in court now, but you want to be sure that you yourself haven’t violated any rules finding this information.

In this episode of KCLL’s SideBar we talk about social networking information and how to find this information. We also speak briefly about keeping this information private. In Craig’s “The Reel Verdict” segment, he reviews the movie “You’ve Got Mail.”

Listen to Episode #24

Links for Episode #24

The Associated Press recently published an article that is all over the Internet. The story speaks to the fact that many people cannot afford attorneys and are representing themselves in court, even people who might have previously tried to hire an attorney. The story was written by Margery Gibbs. She explains that this is leading to clogged court systems. But it has also encouraged more states to authorize a “practice known as “unbundling,” in which a lawyer handles just part of a contract, lawsuit, divorce or other litigation for a small fee, rather than taking on the entire case.”
This is also leading to the growth of self-help web sites such as LawHelp and groups who are promoting “innovations in services to the self-represented” such as the Self-Represented Litigant Network.

LLRX posted a new article by Peggy Garvin on tracking information from various sources about what is going on in the new Barack Obama administration. These include the change.gov site, plus sites from news organizations such as the Washington Post and the New York Times. Check out her full article for more information and follow the transition as it takes place.

The Office of the Federal Register announced that it now has free electronic access to public documents. These are documents that have been filed with the Public Inspection Desk. While this may not be exciting news to most of you, I was thrilled when I saw the news release. In the “old days” the only way to see these documents was to physically visit the Office of the Federal Register in Washington, DC. I used to send messengers over to copy the files when a new regulation was about to be issued as we wanted to see it first and be prepared to advise our clients. So for me, this is terrific news!

I came across this new search site directory while preparing my Social Networking Investigation class. It has been in beta in Europe for months, but expanded to the United States in October. It claims to search Internet-based information in real time, but is also a social site where you can add information to every search result.
The site includes results from social networking information posted on the Internet, telephone and email directories and more. It works best with unusual names rather than common names. If you do not already have some information on the person you are investigating, it is sometimes difficult to eliminate results. But it does include some data I have not seen elsewhere.  
I have added it to the Public Sleuthing links on our web site.

I have been teaching classes on investigating social networking information for a number of organizations outside the Library. I wrote a basic guide to Investigating Social Networks and decided that it might be useful for our Library patrons. I have posted the publication to our Research Guides on the web page. In addition, I am bringing a version of the class, called Public Sleuthing on Social Networks, to the Library Training schedule on November 17th. Call to register and come join us to learn how to search social sites such as Myspace, Facebook, Twitter and more.

Next week I will be doing a training update for the Seattle Public Librarians. In preparation I decided to post a glossary I have used in the past to explain legal terms. The glossary uses a When you hear - think approach and links to the appropriate research guide from our web site and to other resources that may help. It does not include direct definitions, but is a good place to start. The WashingtonLawHelp web site also has a great glossary that lists legal terms used on its web site, plus the definitions, but no links. You may find an additional Guide to Terms Used in Washington Courts at the State Court web site. If you do not know what a legal term may mean, how to start a legal procedure such as eviction or deal with that traffic ticket you just received, check out the glossary for links that may help.   

The Superior Court Clerk’s homepage has finally moved over to the kingcounty.gov domain. One of the changes they made is terrific! The first thing you see on the  Homepage is a number of questions. These questions start with “How do I?” and finish with examples like “file for divorce?” or “find a case number?” and include links to do-it- yourself pages with good basic information. The left side navigation menu is easy to use and leads to the most accessed court information. While they neglected to include a link to our web page, these other changes make the new page worth a visit.