The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an agency order at the beginning of September that halts residential evictions for tenants in certain situations through the end of December 2020. We've provided an overview of this order on the Eviction page of our COVID-19 research guide, including information on who it protects and how it can be used to stop an eviction along with forms and other resources.

Today is Election Day! Many Texans who have not participated in early voting will head to the polls today to cast their ballot in federal, state, and local elections. Let's take a look at several Texas statutes that protect employees' right to vote.

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Take advantage of temporary remote access to Lexis Advance! Procedures for accessing Lexis Advance have changed, so please review these changes and let us know if you have any questions.

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Happy Halloween! Legal research doesn't have to be scary — unless you're pulling up one of the Halloween-themed law review articles we've listed below! All of the articles listed can be accessed through HeinOnline, an incredibly thorough collection of legal periodicals that is part of the State Law Library's Digital Collection.

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Our last Spotlight post for National Estate Planning Awareness Week will take a brief look at powers of attorney. In general, a power of attorney is a document that allows a person to make decisions or take actions on another person's behalf. Read on for more information and resources at the SLL on this topic.

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Earlier this week, we discussed library resources for creating a simple will. In the second post for our series on National Estate Planning Awareness Week, we’ll look at resources that will help you understand and create a directive to physicians, which is commonly referred to as a “living will”. A living will is a legal document that outlines a person’s wishes for medical care.

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October 19th through the 25th is National Estate Planning Awareness Week! Do you have a plan in place to take care of your estate and your loved ones at the end of your life? If not, the library has a lot of resources that can help you create a will, learn how guardianship works, create powers of attorney, and research other aspects of estate planning. Today we will look at several resources for creating a simple will.

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Today is the final day of the Supreme Court confirmation hearings in the United States Senate for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, and much of the hearings have touched on Barrett's judicial opinions on the U.S. Court of the 7th Circuit as well as her academic writing in law journals. Read on to find out how to access many of these opinions and articles through the State Law Library.

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Today, October 5th is the last day to register in time for the November 3rd election, so don't forget to register to vote! Please see our previous Spotlight post on National Voter Registration Day for more information on voting in Texas.

Interest in voting by mail has increased in 2020 due to concerns about safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the practice actually dates back to the American Revolution. This Spotlight post takes a look at the history of absentee voting and voting by mail as well as modern efforts to increase access to vote-by-mail procedures.

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It's National Voter Registration Day! Are you registered to vote? Voters must be registered by October 5th in order to vote in the November 3rd election, so read on for information on how to check your voter registration status, register to vote, finding polling places, and other resources for voting in Texas. 

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The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) issued an agency order at the beginning of September that halts residential evictions for tenants in certain situations through the end of December 2020. We've provided an overview of this order on the Eviction page of our COVID-19 research guide, including information on who it protects and how it can be used to stop an eviction along with forms and other resources.

We've received a lot of marriage-related questions from Texans looking for information during the COVID-19 pandemic, so we thought we'd cover some of the basics in one spot. Read on for answers to questions about Zoom wedding ceremonies, name changes, registering as an officiant, and more!

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Take advantage of temporary remote access to Lexis Advance! Procedures for accessing Lexis Advance have changed, so please review these changes and let us know if you have any questions.

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We're announcing the addition of Race & the Law, a new list of newly purchased titles within the Constitutional Law and Civil Rights category of the library's Digital Collection! This list features e-book titles that focus on a variety of aspects of race in the United States: strategies for racial justice, a look at racial bias and prejudice within the legal system, the history of racial inequity in the United States, and more. Here are a few highlights from our new list:

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Last week we celebrated the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which extended the right to vote to women in America. This week we'll take a closer look at Texas's role in the ratification process. Follow Texas’s journey to the ratification of the 19th Amendment with this selection of resources available online and in SLL’s collection.

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Today we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the journey of voters’ rights activists in the campaign for women’s suffrage. Here’s a selection of commemorative resources available online and in SLL’s collection that offer a closer look at the fight for women’s suffrage.

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We are happy to announce the arrival of COVID-19 in America: Response, Issues, and Law, a new database available to our patrons through HeinOnline. This database is incredibly helpful for anyone seeking credible research and information on new developments related to COVID-19's impact. 

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On July 26th, 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) [PDF] was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush. 30 years later, we celebrate the passage of this historic law and take a look at some of the resources on disability law included in the SLL's collection.

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When state and local governments began to require face masks to slow the spread of COVID-19, we received a flood of questions on what the law says about wearing a mask in various situations. From carrying a gun to reporting a mask violation, here's a look at some of the more common questions about masks we've gotten from library patrons.

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We are happy to announce that our library website has been fully restored! You can now access the Digital Collection, CLE Materials, Recommended Titles & Treatises, and Restrictions After a Felony Conviction pages.

We've received a *lot* of questions recently on whether or not a person can legally carry a handgun while wearing a mask, and we've added a legal FAQ to address this question directly.

Emancipation Day (commonly referred to as Juneteenth) is generally celebrated as the end of slavery in Texas and the rest of the United States. Juneteenth can also be considered as the legal end of slavery, according to several Texas Supreme Court cases.

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The State Law Library stands firmly against racism and violence toward communities of color, and we are committed to doing our part to increase equity and access to justice in Texas.

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