Library Resources

The Law Library subscribes to a growing number of electronic databases. A full list is available on the Law Library website. View the list of BYU Law Library databases here. Contact Iantha Haight at (801) 422-9023 or haighti@law.byu.edu with questions about access and training. Contact your library liaison if you are unable to find a database that meets your research needs.

Law school faculty have special borrowing privileges at the Law Library. Regular library materials are due in May of each year and may be renewed as needed. Journals may be checked out for one month. Non-circulating and reserve materials may also be checked out by special arrangement. No overdue fines are charged to law faculty for regular Law Library material. However, all items are subject to recall by the Lee Library or other patrons. Be aware that any fines accrued due to the late return of a recalled item are non-waivable.

To request material from the collection, faculty members may contact either their liaison or Melanie Coleman at (801) 422-3656. Faculty may also come to the Circulation Desk on the second floor of the Library for assistance.

What is Interlibrary Loan?

Interlibrary Loan is a FREE service that the Law Library provides through agreements with other libraries to expand the walls and provide access to a variety of materials that we may not have in our own collection.

The Details

ILL pulls materials first from the Law Library. If the material cannot be found here, then the search extends to the Lee Library and to other libraries after. It is rare for materials not to be available through this process. The library may purchase materials that are important to your research. Contact your library liaison about doing so.

How to Make a Request

• Go to https://lib.byu.edu/account/request/
• Click on Login in the upper right corner

• Sign in using your BYU NetID

• Click the icon next to your name in the upper right corner then select Request an Item from the drop down menu.

• Click on the Request an item button.

• Click on the Item Type you would like to request.

• Fill in the required information
• Click “Submit Request” at the bottom of the page

Items Not Available Through ILL 

The Law Library will not request materials that are available from the Law Library or Lee Library. This includes items on course reserve and all other non-circulating items.

• Requests for textbooks, casebooks, or any other required book will be cancelled. 
• Requests for fiction, non-fiction, etc. that are owned by the Lee Library but currently checked out will be cancelled. Please place a hold through your library account for these items.
• The Law Library will only fill one duplicate request per person. 

Have Questions?

Set up an appointment with Melanie, she will be able to help you navigate through the ILL process and help you obtain the materials you need.

ILL Materials

In most cases we are able to obtain the items you need, but occasionally some items cannot be sent physically. The Access Services Librarian will work with you to reach a solution. There are many other specific items that can be scanned and obtained rather than entire publications, textbooks, or print including

• Journal Articles
• Book Chapters
• Dissertations
• Page Requests
• Materials Cited in Footnotes
• Print Publications
• Table of Contents
• Microfilm
• Microfiche
• CD’s, DVD’s, etc.

Contact Information

Melanie Coleman—Access Services Librarian
Email: colemanm@law.byu.edu
Phone: 801-422-3656

Due to past experience, our recommendation for law faculty when materials are needed from the Lee Library is to contact their Liaison, the BYU Law Library Reference Services, or Melanie Coleman; or to submit an online request through InterLibrary Loan (ILL). We have developed procedures to retrieve materials quickly and to automatically reroute requests to other libraries (ILL) if a requested item is not immediately available at the Lee Library.

However, if needed, law faculty may request proxy privileges for a secretary or a research assistant that allows the designated proxy to check out materials from the law library in the faculty member’s name. Research assistants should never be encouraged or required to use their personal accounts to borrow materials for faculty members. 

Law Library proxy privileges should be requested through Melanie Coleman via email. The Harold B. Lee Library also provides proxy privileges according to their established policies.

Proxy privileges are not available for law students.

Faculty members are encouraged to recommend new titles for the Law Library collection. Please send requests to your library liaison. Requests for print purchases can also be sent to Kory Staheli, Collections and Legal Research Instruction Librarian, at stahelik@law.byu.edu. Requests for digital purchases and database licensing can be sent to Iantha Haight, haighti@law.byu.edu. We will route new print materials to your office if you wish.