Legal issues have increasingly come to the forefront in academic libraries in recent years. Most of these issues involve The Rehabilitation Act, Section 504 (1973) or Americans with Disabilities Act (1990), complaints related to discriminatory practices with regard to accommodations or assistive technologies. This article provides a brief synopsis…

The aim of this paper is to review the relevant research on the educational impact of school closures on student learning, provide information on criteria frequently used when closing a school, examine the characteristics of what constitutes a "better school" (i.e., receiving school), and identify strategies that can be used to help…

Selective archiving of Web sites in Australia has been under way since 1996. This approach has seen carefully selected sites preserved after site owners granted permission. The labor-intensive nature of this process means only a small number of sites can ever be acquired in this manner. An alternate approach is an automated…

Although single-sex education was once the norm in the U.S., the practice has largely been confined to private schools for more than a century. However, with the introduction of the final version of the U.S. Department of Education's so-called single-sex regulations in 2006, public schools were allowed greater flexibility to offer single-sex…

The number of lawsuits pertaining to educationally related issues is on the rise in the US (Mounts, 1999). Garner (2000) reports that teachers consider legal issues the third most important area of teacher preparation. However, few universities offer undergraduate courses in educational law and few programs offer comprehensive training concerning…

The adoption of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and the Education for All Handicapped Children's Act, now the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), have had a major impact on the delivery of services for children with special needs. In light of the legal issues surrounding the delivery of special education…

Since the turn of the century, U.S. education policies have focused on accountability and student progress. Two major pieces of federal legislation--No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004)--pose several legal issues that educators must contemplate as they strive to be…

Changes to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (Public Law 108-446) (now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004: IDEA) mandated new requirements for providing discipline to students with disabilities. These changes led to simplified procedures when students with disabilities commit infractions of…

Many public and private colleges give out substantial amounts of financial aid in excess of students' demonstrated financial need to attract the most talented students in a competitive marketplace. These colleges see merit aid as an investment in institutional quality. Since top students are in high demand, colleges may have to bid against each…

Briefly defines the concept of copyright, discusses the role of the National Commission on New Technological Uses of Copyrighted Works (CONTU) in studying the problems associated with copyrights and computer software, reviews the work undertaken by CONTU, and summarizes the changes in the Copyright Act of 1976 recommended by CONTU. (JL)

Title 17 of the United States Code of Copyright Law (1947) is printed in this bulletin, along with a parallel reference table showing the disposition of sections of the 1909 copyright law as amended by the 1947 law. Other laws which have a bearing on the question of copyrights are also presented. The existing state of international copyright…

The provision of the new law that confers a right to terminate transfers and licenses of copyright is discussed, ways in which these rights are exercised and in which the reversionary rights are recaptured and regranted are outlined, and practical and interpretative problems are considered. (LBH)

This paper offers a discussion of the rulings of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) related to Section 315 (a) of the Communications Act of 1934--the section concerning equal access to broadcast media by all political candidates. Following a general discussion of Section 315 (a) and the exemptions that are part of the act, the paper then…

Explains how the new federal copyright law seriously jeopardizes the important author/creator rights embodied in the doctrine of moral rights, shortens the duration of protection for unpublished works, and poses the threat of greatly expanding "legal infringement" under the fair use rule. (GW)

The recognition of divisible copyright in the new law is discussed with focus on the effects of the statutory recognition of divisibility on the provisions dealing with the problems of registration, recordation, notice, and standing to sue for infringement. (LBH)