The Minnesota State Law Library is a
law library
A law library is a special library used by law students, lawyers, judges and their law clerks, historians and other scholars of legal history in order to research the law. Law libraries are also used by people who draft or advocate for new la ...
operated by the judicial branch of the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
. It is currently housed in the ground level of the
Minnesota Judicial Center
The Minnesota Judicial Center, adjacent to the State Capitol, houses the state's Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, as well as the Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals and the state law library. Its address is 25 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, J ...
, which was built in 1915. An expansion of the building was completed in 1990. The Minnesota Judicial Center is adjacent to the
State Capitol in
St. Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
.
As cited in the
Minnesota Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Minnesota was initially approved by the residents of Minnesota Territory in a special election held on October 13, 1857, and was ratified by the United States Senate on May 11, 1858, marking the admittance of Minne ...
, the State Law Librarian is appointed by the
Minnesota Supreme Court
The Minnesota Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court chamber in the Minnesota State Capitol or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center.
History
The court was first assemb ...
.
[Minnesota State Legislature.]
Minnesota State Constitution Article VI. Section 2.
St. Paul, October 13, 1857. Amended November 2, 1982. Retrieved March 15, 2010 In its long history, the library has benefitted from the contributions of 25 State Librarians/State Law Librarians, who have come from many walks of life. Doctors, journalists, teachers, legislators, mayors, and in recent years, attorneys have held the office. Some of the more colorful State Law Librarians have been Gen. Samuel P. Jennison, who later served in the Civil War. Louisa Goodwin, widowed by the Civil War, served as the nation's first female state librarian. Captain DeWitt Smith and Melissa Smith were the first husband and wife to hold the same state office in Minnesota. William Henry Harrison Taylor was a grandson of
William Henry Harrison
William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...
, the 9th President of the United States. Margaret S. Andrews was the last person to be referred to as State Librarian and the first to be called State Law Librarian.
References
External links
Official websiteMinnesota Judicial Branch
{{Authority control
Education in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Law libraries in the United States
Libraries in Minnesota
State libraries of the United States