Our goal is to make non-law library staff feel at ease with patron legal queries. We will discuss the difference between legal advice and legal information; the Illinois Supreme Courts Access to Justice initiative and what it means to our patrons; available print and online resources for common questions; what a public library core legal collection may look like; and where to refer patrons for further assistance.

Topics:
- Legal advice vs. legal information
- Illinois Supreme Court Access to Justice initiative
- Print and online resources
- Public library core legal collection
- Referrals
- Efiling

Desired Outcomes:
To help public library staff feel more at ease and confident in answering patron legal inquiries

Presenters:
Halle Cox and Ellen Schmid, Kane County Law Library & Self Help Legal Center

The Kane County Law Library & Self Help Legal Center is the proud recipient of the Kane County Bar Association's 2017 Liberty Bell Award. This nationally recognized award is bestowed on a non-attorney individual or community organization who has promoted a better understanding of the law, encouraged a greater respect for the law and the courts, who stimulates a sense of civic responsibility, and who contributes to good government within the community.

Halle Cox has been the Director of the Kane County Law Library & Self Help Legal Center since 1994. She earned her BA from Luther College and her MLIS with specialization in law from the University of Rhode Island. Halle has been active on many boards through the years, including those of the Illinois Library Association, DuPage Library System, and the Kane County Bar Foundation. She currently sits on several of the Illinois Supreme Court Access to Justice Standardized State Court Forms subcommittees and is the Self-Represented Litigant Coordinator representing the 16th Judicial Circuit within the state of Illinois.

Ellen Schmid has been the Law Librarian and Webmaster of the Kane County Law Library & Self Help Legal Center since 2014. She earned her BA from Arizona State University and MLIS from Dominican University. She came to the Kane County Law Library from her prior role of Adult Services Reference Coordinator at the Geneva Public Library District, where she won the American Library Association's 2010 Polaris Innovation in Technology John Iliff award. Ellen currently sits on the Geneva Public Library Board and the Kane County Bar Association Bar Briefs editorial Board, and is Chair of the Juvenile Justice Center Library Committee.

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