Reference

Reference librarians are available to assist you in-person from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. until closing on Friday during the fall and spring semesters, and 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Friday during the summer term. The reference team can help you find specific information and library materials and also offers one-on-one consultations and specialized group instruction by request.

The reference desk is on the 7th floor on your left as you walk through the glass doors. The reference desk is also reachable by email (lawref@yu.edu) or at (212) 790-0220.

Beginning March 16, the reference desk will be EMAIL ONLY. Please email your reference questions to lawref@yu.edu.

Reference Instruction

Librarians offer research instruction to law journal staffs and to upper-division classes upon request. Librarians also offer introductory online research training on Bloomberg Law, LexisNexis and Westlaw in the first-year Lawyering Skills Program. Advanced Legal Research is a required one-credit, upper-division course that helps students develop effective research skills in working with federal and New York state statutes, regulations and secondary sources.

Circulation Desk

If the library is open then so is the circulation desk. The circulation desk provides a number of essential services to students and is the place where you can: checkout materials, reserve study rooms, borrow reserve materials (2 hours), borrow a gadget (power chargers, flash drives, etc.), borrow a study aid (Hornbooks, Emanuel, Gilbert's), and make copies of previous exams. It's also where you'll find the lost and found, the hold shelf, and the giant stapler and hole punch.

The circulation desk is on the 7th floor on your right as you walk through the glass doors. The Circulation Desk is also reachable by email (circdesk@law.cardozo.yu.edu) or at (212) 790-0285.

Interlibrary Loan

If material needed for research at Cardozo is not available in the library's collections, the library may attempt to borrow it from another institution through interlibrary loan. Cardozo students should request interlibrary loan service from the reference librarians by submitting a request form in person at the reference desk.

Beginning March 16, our Interlibrary Loan services have been temporarily suspended.

Printing, Scanning, & Copying

The law library is equipped on floors 7 and 8 with multifunction printers that can print, scan, and copy. There is also a dedicated flatbed book scanner on the 7th floor near the public PCs and a microfilm scanner in the PC lab on the 8th floor.

Printing services are only available to Cardozo students.

Computing Services

The law library provides 30+ PCs and access to the fast YUWireless network to students, faculty, and staff.

Electronic Resources

The library provides access for Cardozo students and faculty to major legal research databases including LexisNexis, Westlaw and Bloomberg Law. These databases contain a range of legal materials, including full-text judicial opinions, federal and state statutory materials, and many secondary sources. The library also provides access to specialized legal databases like HeinOnline, CCH Securities and Intellectual Property Network, BNA Premier, and the Making of Modern Law. For a full list of e-resources, consult the "Databases & Indexes" tab on the library homepage.

Links to various e-resources may be found through BEN, the library catalog. BEN serves as the proxy server for remote access to the library’s electronic resources. To access resources, you can click on links labeled “online access” in BEN. You can also use the E-Journal Portal on the library’s homepage to search by journal. To authenticate yourself when off-campus, you will be prompted to enter your first name, last name, and library barcode number, which starts with 25103, and is printed on your YU identification card. If you encounter problems, first contact the Circulation Desk by email (circdesk@law.cardozo.yu.edu) or phone at (212) 790-0285 to verify your name and barcode.

Student IT Help Point

The new Student IT Help Point is the first stop for your IT needs. IT staff along with trained student workers will be available to assist you with YUWireless, Canvas, Luminis, Gmail, Pharos Printers, Examsoft, and much more.

Student IT Help Point is in the library, next to the circulation desk. They are reachable by phone at (212) 790-0460, email (CSL-ITSupport@yu.edu), and in-person: Mon - Thu 8:30 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Fri 8:30 a.m. - closing; Sat - Sun Closed.

Audio/Visual Support

The law library provides audio/visual support. Law school classes are not videotaped, but practice rounds for various competitions or other types of class projects may be videotaped and viewed on the Web.

Video cameras, digital audio recorders, LCD projectors, microphones, laptops, and a document camera are available. The classrooms are equipped with DVD players and LCD projectors. To request that an event be videotaped or that some audio/visual support be provided for a class or special event, contact the reference librarians in person or email avrequest-law. A taping release form must be completed if a speaker or panel is recorded.

Access to Other Local Libraries

With the presentation of a currently validated Yeshiva University student I.D. card, Cardozo students and faculty have access to all libraries of Yeshiva University, to the Fogelman Library of The New School, and to The Cooper Union Library. In addition, the library is a member of METRO, the New York Metropolitan Reference and Research Library Agency. Through this organization, Cardozo students and faculty may use materials in area libraries for short periods. The law library also participates in the Conference of Law School Library Directors of Greater New York. The nine conference libraries permit direct access to their collections when needed.

The reference librarians answer questions about area libraries and issue passes, when deemed necessary, to these METRO and conference libraries. For questions about access, contact the reference librarians in person or via lawref.

During the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, many law schools' access policies have changed. The most currently-available information is available here.