Interlibrary Loan
About Interlibrary Loan
Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is the process by which a library requests materials from and supplies materials to other libraries. The purpose of interlibrary loan is to obtain, upon request of a library user, materials not available in the user’s local library.
Georgia State University College of Law Library Interlibrary Loan services are available only to our currently enrolled law students, faculty, and staff, as well as qualifying law firms (see below). Library accounts must be in good standing. Other library users should contact their primary academic, public, or corporate library for interlibrary loan services.
Types of Interlibrary Loan
Georgia State University College of Law (COL) Library offers two types of interlibrary services: Interlibrary Loan (ILL) and GIL Express.
- Interlibrary Loan: The Law Library ILL staff requests articles for COL faculty, students, and staff when those items are not available at any GSU library and books that aren’t available from a GSU library or other libraries within the University System of Georgia.
- GIL Express: COL faculty, students, and staff request books (but not articles) directly from other campus libraries within the University System of Georgia.
Law Library patrons should search GIL, GSU libraries’ online catalog, before making an ILL or GIL Express request.
- Search GIL, GSU’s online library catalog.
- Search the University System of Georgia’s Universal Catalog (GIL Express).
For more information on using GIL Express, consult the University Library’s About GIL Express page.
Placing a Interlibrary Loan Request
Obtaining ILL Borrowing Privileges
If a law firm’s library does not subscribe to OCLC, a librarian at that law firm must apply to the Law Library for ILL privileges. Contact us for an application form.
Submitting an ILL Request
Once a law firm has been approved as an ILL borrower from the Law Library, the firm’s librarian or their agent may request materials. If anyone other than the firm's librarian is requesting materials, that person's name will be entered into the firm's borrowing record for tracking purposes.
The loan period is 21 days. Items may be renewed once for an additional 21 days. Law firms may renew books by telephone if both of the following conditions are met:
1. the law firm's account is in good standing, and
2. the book has not previously been renewed (i.e., only one renewal per book allowed).
If an item is not returned by the due date, the Law Library will charge a fee of $0.25 per day until the item is returned.
Non-circulating Items
The following items may not be removed from the Law Library:
- Newspapers
- Looseleafs
- Supplements
- Magazines
- Digests
- Rare books
- Microforms/fiche
- Indexes
- Books marked “library use only”
- Reference books
- Abstracts
- Bound volumes with pocket parts
- Periodicals/journals
- All or part of multi-volume sets (e.g., reporters, state codes)
Suspension of ILL Borrowing Privileges
A law firm will lose borrowing privileges in any of the following situations:
- The librarian or information manager leaves the law firm and is not replaced, or
- The law firm loses a borrowed item, or
- The law firm accrues fines in excess of $30
To reinstate borrowing privileges, the law firm must:
- Provide a new replacement, or
- Pay the cost of the lost item plus a processing fee ($20), or
- Pay the overdue fine
Alternative to ILL
If an attorney who wishes to borrow an item from the Law Library is an alumna/us of Georgia State Univerisity (regardless of course of study there) and makes a donation to the GSU Foundation, he or she is entitled to a borrowing card during the fiscal year in which the donation is made. The borrowing card must be requested at the time of the donation, and can be used at any GSU library. For more information, call 404-413-9026 or see the page on GSU Law Library alumni borrowing.
Questions?
Contact us with questions about interlibrary loan services.
