IS OPEN ACCESS AN ANSWER FOR ACCESS TO JUSTICE?

"The University of North Texas Libraries and the UNT Dallas College of Law invite proposals for presentations for the 10th annual UNT Open Access Symposium, to be held May 17, 2019, at the UNT Dallas College of Law. This year’s theme is “Is Open Access an Answer for Access to Justice?”.

The legal profession seeks to ensure equitable access to justice for low-income people and an increasing number of members of the middle class. Similarly, the open data, open government, open development, and open access movements seek to ensure that resources created by information professionals are as widely available as possible, without barriers to reuse of data, documents, and other resources.

We invite brief proposals for presentations and interactive sessions to address questions such as:

• Is open access to primary legal sources necessary for access to justice? If so, what is required?
• Is open access to legal analysis and guidance necessary for access to justice?
• What is the role of information professionals as mediators of resources to best serve their communities?
• What are best practices for courts, the bar, and legal aid providers to use open access to legal information to promote access to justice?..."