The Government Documents Department includes the Federal Depository collection. It is located on the fifth floor of the Library. It contains items published by the various federal government agencies, including Congress. Public patrons wishing to use this collection may be asked to sign-in, if visiting us after hours, at the Circulation Desk. Public patrons from outside the Tulane community may also be asked to present a picture ID. To use these materials during hours of restricted access without an Access Card, please call the Circulation Desk at (504) 865-5952 and ask for admittance. A campus telephone is located in the courtyard at the back entrance to the law school building. During hours of restricted access, public patrons are admitted into the building and the law library with the understanding that the patron will restrict their use of the facilities to the Federal Depository Collection. Patrons wishing to have general access to the building or to all materials and services within the law library must come during regular hours of operation (Monday - Friday 7:30 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.).
Paper federal documents are shelved according to the Superintendent of Documents (SuDocs) number. The classification numbers correspond to the issuing agency. Items are shelved in alphanumerical order according to this system, and the shelves are labeled to indicate the range of classification numbers in each. Materials are selected from all major executive, judicial, and legislative agencies and bodies, with emphasis on topics that support the law school curriculum, faculty and student research, and the needs of our general users. The subject areas represented in the collection include: banking, business, civil rights, communications, crime, energy, the environment, foreign affairs, health, homeland security, immigration, intellectual property, international trade, the judiciary, labor, securities, sports law, taxation, technology, and terrorism.
Many government documents are included in the library's online catalog, but to do a comprehensive search, one must use other bibliographic resources. The following paper indexes to these materials are located in the Government Documents Department and can be used to access documents: Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications, used to identify classification numbers for government documents; Congressional Index Service (CIS), used to locate Congressional hearings, bills, and prints; and CCH Congressional Index, a loose-leaf index used to find up-to-date Congressional action on current legislation. See also the Government Documents web site for information about Federal and State government information and Legislative History instruction.
There are numerous web indexes available through our website that provide access to government publications and information. MARCIVE, an online version of the Monthly Catalog, allows searching for documents by subject, author, title, key word, issuing agency, classification numbers, and report numbers, Congressional hearings, and also to the full text of historical Serial Set volumes containing House and Senate reports and documents.
Computer Workstation
To access government websites, a computer workstation is located at the entrance of the Federal Depository collection on the 5th floor. From this computer, patrons may also access LexisNexis Congressional Universe, a database containing full-text Congressional documents with searching capabilities. Moreover, patrons may wish to consult HeinOnline to search the Federal Register Library, U.S. Presidential Library, U.S. Attorney General Opinions, U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Supreme Court Library, or the U.S. Federal Legislative History Library. A link to MARCIVE is also available for patrons wishing to use this service. Please note: LexisNexis Congressional Universe, HeinOnline, and MARCIVE are databases that the Law Library subscribes to. Therefore, these services may only be accessed from within the Law Library unless you are a law student, or faculty/staff member of the Law School (use email login to access databases remotely).
Please consult the Reference and Government Documents/Microforms Librarian, Carla D. Pritchett, in Room 514 if you need assistance using this collection (504-865-5994).