Are you ready to meet the future? Special Libraries Association members have been exploring this question on the Future Ready 365 blog, discussing potential and what it takes to make us as individuals, an association, and the profession as a whole ready for the future. SLA President Cindy Romaine explains that being “future ready” for members, the Association and the profession is supported by four pillars:

• Collaboration to accelerate the availability of useful information
• An adaptable skill set that anticipates and responds to the evolving marketplace
• Alignment with the language and values of the community you serve
• Building a

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Collaborative blogs, and inviting guest bloggers, is one of the most effective ways to maintain continuity for professional blogs. But who owns the intellectual property of the posts, especially if the site goes commercial with the intent to gain profit?

Jonathan Tasini started writing for the Huffington Post when the site was just 7 months old, writing 216 pieces, and stopped blogging on February 10, 2011, just 3 days after a purchase of the site by AOL was announced.

He’s launched a class-action lawsuit against AOL Inc., TheHuffintonPost.Com, Inc., Arianna Huffington and Kenneth Lerer for damages and injunctive relief. The . . . [more]

It’s been a month since the Google Books settlement was rejected, as reported to Slaw here, and a number of themes have emerged in the online discussuion.

Some of the most cogent comments come from Robert Danton, Harvard’s University Librarian, an opponent of the settlement: Six Reasons Google Books Failed (New York Review of Books).

Perhaps the most balanced and detailed guide to the decision itself comes from the Association of Research Libraries:

• A Guide For the Perplexed Part IV: The Rejection of the Google Books Settlement

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Alan Borovoy, General Counsel Emeritus of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, is the recipient of the 2011 Award for the Advancement of Intellectual Freedom in Canada. The Award is given by the Canadian Library Association:

Throughout a remarkable career as one of the undisputed leaders in the civil rights movement in Canada, Mr Borovoy has been a tireless advocate for freedom of expression, along with its corollaries freedom of the press and freedom of association; and equally activist for equality and procedural fairness. June Callwood, a recipient in 2006 of the same Award, dubbed him “Mr. Civil Liberties.”

Mr

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The Osgoode Society for Canadian Legal History has been publishing a new blog, Canadian Legal History, for just over a month now. (Shame on us for not finding out faster. Shame on them for not telling us.) With the exception of the first welcoming post by University of Toronto law professor, Jim Phillips, all the posts thus far are by Mary Stokes, the R. Roy McMurtry Fellow in Canadian Legal History at Osgoode Hall Law School. Posts are running at about one or two a week.

Currently on Blogspot, the blog will be moving to the Osgoode Society’s new . . . [more]

In a recent training session I attended, I was surprised to hear how many of the participants indicated that, to control business-related driving hazards, they use global positioning systems, or GPS, to help keep track of their employees, whether using an employer-provided vehicle or personal vehicle.

An information bulletin by Michael Watts, Roger Gillott and Sarah Harrison of Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP from October 22, 2010, Proposed legislation aims to create greater public accountability, has garnished quite a bit of controversy this week.

The article discusses the Broader Public Sector Accountability Act, 2010 (BPSAA), which received Royal Assent on December 8, 2010. The Act creates new rules for transparency and accountability for publicly funded broader public sector organizations, including hospitals and LHINs.

The new rules come into force on January 1, 2012, and amend the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy . . . [more]

In almost all business process outsourcing transactions it is virtually impossible for one service provider to perform all of the services required. So subcontractors become fundamental to the delivery of the services. Here’s our list of some key issues to manage when dealing with subcontractors. 

1. One Throat to Choke.
Or perhaps more politely, one hand to shake. Remember that whether your deal involves one subcontractor or a consortium of them, the customer will insist on the prime contractor remaining liable for performing all of the obligations under the outsourcing contract, regardless of whether some of the obligations have been . . . [more]

As those who read me will know, I’m a big fan of Apple products, the proud user of an iPhone. And I think Dropbox is a cloud with silver on the outside and on the lining. In the last couple of days I’ve learned about vulnerabilities for each that make me realize again how exposed my data are and make me more determined to learn about — and use — encryption.

About a month ago I wrote about a German politician who was alarmed at the detailed nature and the duration of the data kept by his service provider ( . . . [more]

Several of us on Slaw are convinced that tablet computers are game changers.

Apple clearly has the lead with the iPad – with sales of the first version of around 15 million in the first year. While the iPad is the device that is setting the bar, and that all others are compared to, it is not perfect. Critics point, for example, to its lack of flash support and lack of usb connectivity. Others are scrambling trying to get into the market. As an indication of just how competitive the field is, consider the following recent developments.

The Blackberry Playbook . . . [more]

On April 15, 2011, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) released its expert report on catastrophic impairment definition review. The recommendations are considered significant as they reflect a departure from the long-standing position of jurisprudence in Ontario for the definition of catastrophic impairment under the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule, including the approach used in Desbiens v. Mordini.

The panel recommended the creation of an interim catastrophic impairment to ensure access to rehabilitation services while a final determination of catastrophic status is being determined. The panel was split on whether Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of 9 . . . [more]

The most recent issue of the Canadian Law Library Review has a nice article by American attorney Sonia J Buck titled “Movie Therapy for Law Students (and Their Instructors).”

Consistent with my views, the author advocates the use of law-related movies in teaching the law to students. She draws on several movies for specific purposes (e.g., Adam’s Rib and Suspect for ethics, evidence and criminal law), North Country for employment law, and Flash of Genius for IP Law).

In hindsight, I was embarrassed to not have included the obvious choice of Flash of Genius for my law-related movies website, . . . [more]