CALL at AALL 2026

If you’re attending the AALL Conference in Cleveland this summer, why not choose a session or two featuring fellow CALL members? This year, CALL will be represented in discussions, presentations, and showcases on a wide variety of topics, so there’s sure to be one that fits your interests and availability. For more information about these and other fascinating sessions, be sure to peruse the AALL Conference Full Schedule.

Discussion Den: ABA Standard 604: What If We Really Bought No More Physical Books?

Sunday, July 19, 2026 at 12:45pm – 1:30pm EDT in HCC Room 22

Discussion Leader(s)

Elizabeth Outler (CALL Member)

NOTE: Informal Discussion Den chats will be held throughout the conference in addition to regular programs. Designed to be conversational rather than presentational, these 45-minute dialogues are an opportunity to brainstorm, sound off, and share challenges, experiences, and ideas in a smaller, informal setting.

Various factors have come together in 2026 to create a profound funding crisis for many colleges and universities. If confronted with truly substantial budget cuts (or even if not?) would you entertain the idea of canceling all physical print subscriptions? If you were only considering the needs of the law school, i.e., students and faculty, what is actually necessary to have in your physical collection? If you have done this, what were the effects?

Exhibitor Showcase: Setting the Soundtrack for AI: What’s New in Lexis+ with Protégé & Librarian-Led Adoption Stories

Sunday, July 19, 2026 at 2:00pm – 3:00pm EDT in HCC Room 26A

Exhibitor Speaker(s)

Lindsey R. Watson
Senior Manager, Knowledge and Research Consultants
LexisNexis

Speaker(s)

Megan Butman (CALL Member)
Senior Manager of Research Services
Ogletree Deakins

Jillian Eaton
Director of Knowledge Management and Research
Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz, Tennessee

Hunter Whaley
Director, Hofstra Law Library
Hofstra University Law School Library

Joan Shear (she/her/hers)
Legal Information Librarian and Lecturer in Law
Boston College Law Library
Newton Center, Massachusetts

Get up to speed on the latest innovations in Lexis+ with Protégé™, including key updates designed to support your work across law firms and law schools. Then hear directly from your peers as law librarians share how they’re integrating Protégé into teaching, training, and adoption strategies. Walk away with practical ideas, real-world perspectives, and new ways to help your organization confidently navigate the next era of AI.

Hot Topic: AI Tools and the Future of Public Law Libraries

Sunday, July 19, 2026 at 3:15pm – 4:15pm EDT in HCC Room 26BC

Coordinator(s)

Joanne Kiley (CALL Member)
Executive Law Librarian
Cook County Law Library, Illinois

Speaker(s)

Amy Small (she/her/hers)
Executive Director
Texas State Law Library
Austin, Texas

Susan Choe (she/her/hers)
Executive Director
Ohio Legal Help, Ohio

Moderator(s)

Sara Pixon (she/her/hers)
Head of Public Services
Law Library of Louisiana, Louisiana Supreme Court
New Orleans, Louisiana

Public law library professionals.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to describe how AI tools are being incorporated into operations at public law libraries.
Participants will be able to describe successful examples of training on AI tools provided to self-represented litigants.
Participants will increase their network of librarians implementing AI tools and AI training to call upon when ready to implement these programs in their public law libraries……..

Diversity Symposium & Reception: From DEI to UD: How Universal Design Can Create a Diverse, Equitable, and Inclusive Environment

Sunday, July 19, 2026 at 3:15pm – 5:15pm EDT in HCC Room 25A-C

Coordinator(s)

Matthew L. Timko (he/him/his) (CALL Member)
Interim Deputy Director and Associate Professor
Northern Illinois University College of Law
DeKalb, Illinois

Speaker(s)

Malikah Hall-Retteen (she/her/hers)
Associate Law Library Professor
CUNY School of Law
Long Island City, New York

Jingwei Zhang
Reference Librarian
Rutgers Law School

Shannon Kemen (she/her/hers)
Legal Technology & Research Instructional Services Librarian
University of Cincinnati Donald P. Klekamp College of Law
Cincinnati, Ohio

Target Audience:

Government and academic libraries. The law firms audience is more fixed, but the program will provide practices that will be beneficial to firm librarians.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will learn how Universal Design and DEI objectives align.
Participants will learn how to adapt DEI practices under the Universal Design framework.
Participants will learn how to institute Universal Design Principles into the law library to improve patron experiences and outcomes.

Exhibitor Showcase: Innovation in Regulatory Compliance Research: Insight into Evolving roles, Workflows, and Collaborations

Monday, July 20, 2026 at 11:00am – 12:00pm EDT in HCC Room 26A

Exhibitor Speaker(s)

Jill Weinstein
VP and GM – Law Markets
Wolters Kluwer

Nicole Stone
Director of Content Strategy for New Product Development
Wolters Kluwer

Speaker(s)

Courtney Toiaivao (she/her/hers)
Managing Director & Founder
Grey Letter Advisory
Brooklyn, New York

Meg Ebersole (CALL Member)
Global Director of Research, Information & Intelligence
Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

G. Patrick Flanagan
Legal Research Services Senior Manager
BakerHostetler
Denver, Colorado

Andrea Guldalian (she/her/hers)
Director of Library & Research Services
Duane Morris LLP, Pennsylvania

As AI reshapes legal research and regulatory complexity continues to grow, organizations are moving from reactive research to proactive, intelligence-driven workflows.

This panel brings together leaders from Wolters Kluwer, an AI workspace provider, and large law firm KM teams to explore how regulatory compliance research is evolving. The discussion will focus on shifting roles, emerging workflows, and new collaboration models across content providers, technology platforms, and law firms.

Panelists will share practical insights on integrating AI into research processes while maintaining accuracy, trust, defensibility and ROI. Attendees will leave with actionable ideas to better leverage AI, streamline workflows, and position themselves as strategic partners in an increasingly complex regulatory landscape.

Beyond Anecdotes for Beginners: Getting Started with Empirical Research

Monday, July 20, 2026 at 1:15pm – 2:15pm EDT in HCC Grand Ballroom A

Coordinator/Speaker(s)

Aimee Self-Pittman (she/her/hers)
Assoc. Director of Instruction, Research, & Reference
University of Maryland School of Law
Baltimore, Maryland

Speaker(s)

Amy Taylor
Clinical Services and Research Librarian
University of Georgia School of Law
Athens, Georgia

Rob Willey
Faculty Services Librarian & Assistant Director of Communications
George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
Arlington, Virginia

Moderator(s)

Todd Venie (CALL Member)
Research Library Manager
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
Chicago, Illinois

NOTE: The opinions shared during this program represent the views of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect those of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL). Recording, capturing, or using AI tools to duplicate, transcribe, or otherwise reproduce an AALL program in any form is strictly prohibited without prior written consent from AALL. This includes, but is not limited to audio, video, or any other content shared. By attending an AALL program or accessing an AALL recording, you agree to adhere to this policy.

Many law librarians are curious about research questions in their own work places: How do students really use the library? What makes some reference interactions more successful than others? What outreach strategies actually work?

Too often, we stop at anecdotes because”“real research” feels out of reach since we’re not trained in empirical research. This program is designed for librarians without formal empirical research training and will demonstrate that empirical research is not only possible but deeply rewarding, especially since law librarians already have the skills to make meaningful contributions.

Three panelists will give short “elevator pitch” presentations on their librarian-led empirical projects, ranging from citation analysis, comparative studies of search methods, scholarship impact metrics, and pedagogical assessments of first-generation law students’ study habits. None had extensive training before starting, they just started asking questions and found themselves in the middle of a study. They’ll share what worked, what didn’t, and how they learned by doing.

Together, we’ll compare two core approaches—collecting your own data vs. using existing datasets—and unpack the tradeoffs, tools, and decision points in each. A quick “IRB for Dummies” segment will demystify human-subjects review (and show when you might not need it).

Panelists will also share what they learned the hard way—so you don’t have to. Attendees will leave with realistic strategies, examples, and resources for turning workplace questions into empirical projects, without needing to go back to school.

This program will include live polling (Mentimeter or PollEverywhere). At the start, participants vote on the research questions they are most curious about (e.g., ‘Which part of empirical research feels most daunting? When you hear “research ethics” what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Privacy? Permission? Bias? Paperwork?; Which sounds easier to do? Collect your own data about your students/users or use existing data?’).

Mini-Exercise (5 minutes): Attendees jot down a researchable question from their own work (individually or in pairs). Panelists then share quick tips on turning those questions into manageable projects.
Guided Q&A: The moderator organizes questions to ensure focus and broad participation. Example prompts:
Resource Toolkit: Attendees receive a QR-linked handout with sample methodologies, survey templates, and published librarian-led studies.

This program is sponsored by the Academic Law Libraries SIS (ALL-SIS).

Target Audience:

Academic, firm, and government law librarians; anyone curious about exploring empirical research in law libraries.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will discover practical tools, examples, and lessons from panelists to jump-start their own research ideas with confidence.
Participants will explore how to turn everyday workplace curiosities into researchable questions, including when (and when not) to worry about IRB review.
Participants will understand the basics of common empirical research approaches—such as surveys, citation analysis, or studies using existing datasets—and see the tradeoffs between collecting new data and reusing what’s already out there.

Discussion Den: Library Book Groups

Tuesday, July 21, 2026 at 7:30am – 8:15am EDT in HCC Room 22

Discussion Leader(s)

Matthew L. Timko (he/him/his) (CALL Member)

Interim Deputy Director and Associate Professor
Northern Illinois University College of Law
DeKalb, Illinois

NOTE: Informal Discussion Den chats will be held throughout the conference in addition to regular programs. Designed to be conversational rather than presentational, these 45-minute dialogues are an opportunity to brainstorm, sound off, and share challenges, experiences, and ideas in a smaller, informal setting.

Does your chapter, SIS, or Library have a regular book discussion group? If so, please join the discussion on how your programs work, what are some books you have read, and other success (or horror) stories. Are you interested in starting or joining a discussion group? Please also come to share ideas and get inspired.

About the author

Rachel Ford is Resources Management Librarian at Northern Illinois University Law Library and a Bulletin co-editor.