Sacramento County Public Law Library
The Sacramento County Public Law Library (SCPLL) is a “public” law library in the capital city of the State of California. In 1891 the state of California enacted statutes mandating an independent law library in every county. Since its inception SCPLL has provided free public access to legal information. Today, SCPLL is the sixth largest of California's 58 member libraries of the Council of California County Law Libraries (CCCLL), a statewide networking and advocacy organization. The organization has an active role in state legislative efforts in support of county law library funding. History. SCPLL  was established on March 31, 1891 in the county courthouse with 6,237 volumes. Mission. Since its founding days, the mission of the law library is to provide free access to legal information to the judiciary, to state and county officials, to members of the State Bar of California, and to all residents of the county. Today, the Law Library's primary patrons are members of the Sacramento County legal community and county residents representing themselves in legal matters. The Library provides access to justice through resources to address civil legal issues. Organization and Governance. According to California Statutes, California county  law libraries operate independently from the County government where they reside. The SCPLL is governed by a seven-member Board of Trustees made up of 5 Superior Court judges, a County Counsel Board of Supervisors delegate, and a local attorney appointed by the County Board of Supervisors. The law library, like other California county law libraries, is funded by a fixed percentage of the local county superior court civil filing fees, though the amount varies by county (dictated by statutes). Thus, County Law libraries are supported by civil litigants, their primary users, and are not funded by state and local  taxes. Collection. The SCPLL is a practice library, focusing on practical materials for attorneys and the public. The law library acquires and maintains major California primary and secondary legal resources, in addition to certain U.S. federal and general legal publications and self-help legal materials written for lay people. The American Association of Law Libraries, County Public Law Library Standards is useful in the selection of resources. The Law Library provides an online catalog that includes books, periodicals, audio recordings for attorney MCLE credit, CD-ROMS with forms, websites and has electronic access to thousands of additional titles including law  journals, legal treatises, restatements, treaties and much more. Onsite access is free at the law library to a select group of legal databases including: Thomson Reuters Westlaw, Lexis Advance (includes Shepards), HeinOnline, Ebsco's Legal Information Reference Center (Nolo self-help ebooks), CEB's OnLAW, and other e-subscriptions. Civil Self Help Center (CSHC). In 2008 the Sacramento County Superior Court received a grant to help fund a civil self-help center to assist self-represented litigants with general civil matters. The CSHC began as a joint project between the Sacramento Superior Court, the VLSP of Northern California, and the  Sacramento County Bar Association. When the Superior Court was faced with budget cuts and space constraints in 2009, the Law Library Director and Board of Trustees agreed to bring the CSHC into the Law Library as both provided assistance to self-represented litigants. Today the CSHC is staffed with an attorney and a paralegal. The purpose of the CSHC is to provide general information and basic assistance to individual self-represented litigants with qualifying civil cases. Help is provided either through workshops, quick assistance, referrals, or through a limited number of individual appointments. The legal staff provides assistance with a  narrow list of issues, including simple complaints and answers for breach of contract, personal injury, and property damage; fee waivers; requests for, and motions to set aside, default judgments; name changes; oppositions to civil forfeiture; guardianship, and discovery. Celebrating 125 Years of Service. In 2016, the SCPLL joined the Council of California County Law Libraries in a celebration of 125 years providing services to individuals in the state. External links. Sacramento County Public Law Library website: https://saclaw.org/ The SCPLL online catalog: https://scllhip.saclaw.org/ipac20/ipac.jsp?profile= California's Ask Now Law Librarian Chat Service: http://www.publiclawlibrary.org/ask-now/ California Council of County Law Libraries: http://www.publiclawlibrary.org/ Sacramento County