Law Student Orientation

Noise and Cell Phone Use:

The Law Library is a quiet area for study and research. Please be respectful and courteous of others in your use of the Law Library.  There are four group study rooms where groups of students may talk and study together. 

As a courtesy to library users, cell phones must be turned off, or have the ringer set to "vibrate" while in the Law Library.

Cell phone use is restricted to the 4^th floor library lobby, and the areas near the restrooms on the 2nd, 4th and 5th floors,

Please take care when bringing drinks and snacks into the Law Library: keep food contained, use spill resistant drink containers, clean up any crumbs and spills, and place trash in the appropriate garbage or recycling receptacle. If you should accidentally spill food or drink, please notify a member of the library staff so cleaning staff can be called.

Lost and Found personal items are stored at the Circulation Desk for a limited period of time. The circulation desk attendant or any member of the library staff can assist you. You can also check http://police.wustl.edu/policeservices/Pages/Lost-and-Found.aspx.

Personal Belongings should never be left unattended. REMINDER: While theft is rare, it does occur.

Safety and Security. For all emergencies (safety, fire, health) call WashU Police at 314-935-5555. There are also emergency telephones that connect directly to the Campus Police Office located in the Law Library at the Circulation Desk and by the elevators on the second and fourth floors.

Use of carrels and tables is on a first-come first-served basis.  Students are not assigned permanent carrels, and carrels and tables must be cleared at the end of the day.  Carrels and tables that are not cleared will receive one warning notice. After that, remaining personal items will be removed to the Circulation Desk and placed in Lost & Found.

Four group study rooms are located on the 2nd, 4th and 5th floors of the law library and are available for groups of two or more law students.

A group may reserve a room for one two-hour period per day.  Reservations require the names of all group members and a valid Washington University ID.  Rooms may be reserved one week in advance, except during the exam period when they may be reserved 24 hours in advance.  Reservations must be made at the Circulation Desk.  All patrons are subject to the room reservation rules, which are found in the reservation binder at the Circulation Desk.

Your WashU ID card allows you to gain 24/7 access as a Washington University School of Law student. It also allows you to borrow items. Please present it every time you want to check out an item.

Reserve materials circulate for two hours. If no one has requested a reserve item, it may be renewed. 

The loan period for non-reserve Law Library items that circulate is four weeks. Renewals may be made online through (Click "My Catalog"). If someone has placed a hold, your renewal will be rejected.

Overdues.  Although the Law Library does not charge fines for overdue books, you will be billed for materials if you fail to return them after two overdue email notices.  An invoice is automatically generated by the Office of Student Financial Services and added to your tuition.  Bills are for the cost of the book (or $75 when unknown) plus a $50 per book processing fee.  If the book is returned after the notice is generated, a credit (less a $15 administrative fee) will be issued. Please note that Olin Library and other WashU Libraries charge fines for overdue books.  For Olin's overdue policies, see: https://library.wustl.edu/services/billing-fines-replacement-charges/ Books borrowed through the MOBIUS system circulate for three weeks and can only be renewed twice.   MOBIUS books not returned after two overdue email notices will be billed at the rate of $100 per book plus a $20 processing fee.  If the book is returned after it has been billed, the $100 book replacement charge will be waived; the $20 processing fee is non-refundable.

Missing items. If an item is missing, please report it to the Circulation Desk.

Library Security System. All materials are “tagged” to trigger an alarm if the item is removed from the library without being checked out. When the alarm sounds, patrons are asked to return to the Circulation desk.

Confidentiality. Library circulation records are confidential information.