1L Resource Guide: Navigating our Collections

Our Treatise Collection is located on the third floor of the law school (accessible from the fourth floor unless elevator accommodations are made - you must go down the back stairwell and the collection is primarily on the right). A legal treatise is a comprehensive publication on a single topic, usually written by a law professor, judge, or expert practitioner in the field. A treatise can serve as an extremely useful secondary source for research because of it contains detailed information on a particular legal topic. Treatises contain an abundance of references and citations to related primary authorities (cases, statutes, and administrative rules and regulations), as well as containing analysis and commentary on the law in that area. 

The International Collection is located on the third floor of the law building (accessible from the fourth floor unless elevator accommodations are made - you must go down the back stairwell and the collection is on the left). Our collection is next to the Center for International Legal Education and often holds relevant material for LLM and SJD students.

Reference resources cannot be checked out for more than 2 hours at a time, but really, you'd rarely want to do so. Our reference resources provide quick information on a legal topic. In most cases, you may only be interested in a paragraph or chapter; which can be easily photocopied at our many scanners located on the fourth floor. We also try to keep things updated, so expect to find current editions of things like nutshells, Bluebooks, and legal dictionaries here.

TIP: Nutshells are books that provide a quick comprehensive overview of the law in over a hundred different legal areas. Often we have older editions in our Treatise Collection to be borrowed for longer.

Our study aids encompass a range of materials such as books, flashcards, and various supplementary tools specifically crafted to enhance your understanding of classroom content. These resources assist in effectively summarizing cases, preparing for examinations, and bar review. Study aids vary in formats and content and are available from multiple publishers. Notable series in this category include Acing law school series, Aspen student treatise series, Blond's Law guides, BARBRI Series, Casenote Legal Briefs, Crunch Time Series, Emanuel bar review series and law outlines, Exam Pro series, Friendman's practice series, Gilbert Law Summaries, Jumpstart series, Law in a flash, Law school legends series, Legalines, LexisNexis Questions & answers series, Rigos bar review series, Siegel's series, Spark Law Series, Strategies & tactics series, Sum & Substance quick review, and Themis Bar Review Series. Explore our Study Aids Guide to familiarize yourself with our resources, both in-house and online. 

These aids are located on the fourth floor near the window seating behind the circulation desk. Ask the circ staff if you need any help locating these materials.

Our Commons collection located behind the circulation desk on the fourth floor of the law building provides various fiction and non-fiction books.

Similarly to our Reference Collection, our reserve material cannot be checked out for more than 2 hours at a time. Our reserve collection offer two important resources: highly circulated texts and course reserves. Highly circulated texts are kept at the desk so students have access to  the books they need. Course Reserves are offered to instructors to make materials available to their students at the library circulation desk. This may include books, past exams, and sometimes movies.

The fourth floor has a microfiche room holding a significant collection of primary source material reproduced on microfilm or microfiche. To utilize microfiche, talk to the circulation staff.

The Barco Law Library Archives and Special Collections (henceforth ASC) is a digital and physical repository housed within the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. It is responsible for the acquisition, preservation, storage, exhibition, and access of published and unpublished materials. The ASC maintains a valuable repository that preserves the unique heritage of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, dating back to 1843 when the first law courses were offered at the University of Pittsburgh (formerly Western University of Pennsylvania). These collections have been amassed through gifts, transfers from the general collection, and selective purchases. They include photographic material providing insights into the rich history of the law school, showcasing its physical evolution, events, and depictions of faculty, students, and staff; historical publications such as newspapers, yearbooks, bulletins, and event ephemera; artwork depicting key figures of the law school, and rare materials already owned by the School of Law or acquired over time. Some records pertaining to the operations of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law are maintained by the University Archives.

If you are interested in specific holdings in Barco Law Library Archives and Special Collections, please search collection finding aids here, visit Pitt Law Digital Collections, or contact our professional staff at barcoref@pitt.edu or (412) 648-1325.

Our Derrick Bell Collection is available on the fifth floor of the law building (accessible from the fourth floor unless accommodations are made via the elevator - you must go up the back stairwell and the collection is to the right).  The collection holds legal resources representing critical race theory and works by Derrick Bell.

Our Pennsylvania collection consists of journals, periodicals, bank reports and statistic bulletins relating to PA law.