Preliminary Results of Canadian Association of Law Libraries Survey on Publication Formats

This is a follow-up to the Library Boy post of December 5, 2011 entitled Canadian Association of Law Libraries Survey on Publication Formats.

The Vendor Liaison Committee of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) has made available some preliminary results of its survey of publication formats for law-related materials.

There were 127 respondents from all sizes and types of libraries.

Some of the highlights:

• An overwhelming majority finds that the most valuable content is commentary.
• Many commented that bound is the preferred format for commentary (with a new edition offered every two or three years).
• Looseleaf format is seen as no longer delivering value for money in terms of frequency, cost and content.
• Main issues raised about online publications are related to ownership, preservation and accessibility. Licensing models are also a concern for a majority.
  

Full results will be presented at the upcoming CALL annual conference in Toronto in early May.

You can find publications of the Vendor Liaison Committee on the CALL website.