We begin this Spring issue of Legal Information Management (LIM) with some sadness following the death of Donald Raistrick on 11 September 2017. Personally, I did not know Don well although I did meet him on at least one occasion, maybe two, at a BIALL Conference. To me he was a giant in the law library world. The third edition (published in 1997) of the Lawyers’ Law Books: a Practical Index to Legal Literature continues to sit on the bookshelf next to my desk. However, it is the Index to Legal Citations and Abbreviations (which reached its fourth edition in 2013) that I always turn to as the essential and authoritative reference tool of its kind with some 37,000 entries contained within. Like many of us, I have relied on its contents on countless occasions, and I still refer students and researchers to it today. Not only has the work been comprehensive since its first edition in 1981, but it also has the occasional piece of humour gently tucked away, eg. G.& T. does not only reference Gould & Tucker's Notes on Revised Statutes of the United States, but it also mentions Gin & Tonic! Amongst his many professional and personal achievements, Don was also BIALL Hon. Editor of this journal (from 1977 to 1984) in the days when it was called The Law Librarian. This issue of LIM starts appropriately with a tribute to Don written by Stuart Cole, with help from Sally Phillips.
FEATURE ARTICLE and OCCASIONAL SERIES
This LIM then moves on to two articles relating to legal history. In the first article, Alison Million investigates the Charter of the Forest 1217, which remains relatively unknown compared to its illustrious companion, the Magna Carta. Alison looks at the history, impact and legacy of the Charter. The second article, under the Occasional Series heading sees Lesley Dingle continue with her work with the Eminent Legal Scholars Archive and, on this occasion, she details her conversations with one of the greatest legal historians, Professor Sir John Baker, the Downing Professor Emeritus of the Laws of England at the University of Cambridge.
FOCUS ON GDPR
There follows two articles on data protection and the topical subject of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which will apply automatically across the EU from 25 May 2018. Sahar Bhaimia presents an overview of the GDPR and provides practical tips and suggestions for knowledge managers. In a second article on the subject, Josephine Bailey aims to find out how libraries and information services are preparing for the arrival of the GDPR.
IALS@70
There are two articles in this section relating to the 70th anniversary of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS). Firstly, David Gee, the Deputy Librarian and Academic Services Manager at IALS, looks back at the history of the Institute and remarks on the many achievements of the library service, before drawing attention to some of the successful digital initiatives promoted by IALS over the past 30 years. Steven Whittle, IALS Digital Manager, then turns to the future and the launch of ‘IALS Digital’ which took place in November 2017.
CURRENT INTERESTS
Under Current Interests we have two articles. Firstly, Stuart Stone, Librarian at the Radzinowicz Library at the Institute of Criminology in Cambridge, writes on resources for criminological research, an area of interest to those professionals working in the criminology and criminal justice fields. Turning to something completely different, Jackie Fishleigh takes a look at the art of negotiation and draws on her experience in the information and library business and her dealings with publishers and suppliers. At the end of her article, she provides her own checklist of ten top tips on negotiation.
BOOK REVIEW and CURRENT AWARENESS
We finish this issue of LIM with a book review written by Paul Banks and, as usual, there is the current awareness section provided by Katherine Read and Laura Griffiths.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I wish to thank all our contributors for their submissions. Special thanks go to our colleagues at Cambridge University Press, our publisher, and to the members of the LIM Editorial Board including the chair of the committee, Loyita Worley, and the team of proof-readers for their continuing support and dedication.
