ABSTRACT
Readers ofthisjournal don't need to be reminded ofthe tenuous state of the acquisitions and operating budgets of most law libraries. Law libraries, like other academic and professional libraries today, are struggling to keep up with a rapidly increasing mass of electronic information and printed material, and like other librarians, law librarians are having to make the difficult choices of what they can afford to buy and what level of service they can continue to provide. Relatively few law libraries are blessed with endowed acquisitions budgets or generous donors, and while some libraries are known for their important collections of rare legal books and manuscripts and their commitment to their continuation, many law librarians and administrators question the necessity or importance of committing even a small fraction of their strained budgets to the establishment or maintenance of such collections.
