Learn with LiRN 2025 Conference

Learn with LiRN 2025 – Double Tree Hotel, 108 Chestnut St., Toronto –  Oct. 23 – 24, 2025

Programme & Presentations & Recordings

Thinking About Courthouse Libraries as a Service

Sarah Sutherland who has worked as a consultant for LiRN on a couple of recent projects including Key Network Consultations and our new 5 Year Strategic Plan.  She will be presenting our keynote building upon her in-depth knowledge of LiRN’s network and her vast experience with legal technology, CanLII and legal data strategies.

As legal information ecosystems continue to become more complex and distributed, courthouse libraries are uniquely positioned to create value for the legal community through a “library as a service” model. This session will explore how moving from a static, place-based conception of the library to a dynamic, service-oriented perspective can better meet the needs of legal researchers. In this session we will explore strategies for thinking about the traditional work done in libraries in light of ensuring that the necessary functions are carried out to so that researchers have what they need when and where they need it. Participants will be invited to reflect on how libraries can continue to evolve beyond physical collections and spaces to become embedded, responsive services that support the justice system in more agile and sustainable ways.

Sarah A. Sutherland is a writer, speaker, and executive in legal technology, information, and publishing. She is principal consultant at Parallax Information Consulting where she focuses on legal data strategy. Her book “Legal Data and Information in Practice: How Data and the Law Interact” was published by Routledge in 2022. Sarah was named one of the Fastcase 50 in 2022 and received the Dennis Marshal Award for Excellence in Law Librarianship from the Canadian Association of Law Libraries in 2023. She is working on her PhD at the University of Edinburgh with an anticipated completion date of 2027.

Presentation: Thinking about Courthouse Libraries as Service

• Creating value through the “library as service” model
• Discussion about the complex and evolving ecosystem that is a Courthouse Library

Recording Link: Thinking about Courthouse Libraries as Service

Accessibility – beyond the 4 walls

The session will be a practical overview of tips and strategies to make content accessible.    Participants will be introduced to key elements of accessible documents and webpages, the tools which will help them make content more accessible, and how to test content to ensure that content is compliant.

• What is accessibility? (Who are you serving?)
• Key tips for document and web accessibility
  • Structure
  • Fonts
  • Colour
  • Hyperlinking
  • Graphics
  • Testing
• Practical exercise – we will work together to make a short Word document and a sample LibGuide accessible

Wendy Reynolds has worked in a variety of information-related roles, mostly in government. She began her career as a cataloguer at Statistics Canada, writing CIP records for StatCan reports (for which she apologizes). Moving on to the Federal Court, she realized that she really enjoyed reference work, and thrived in law libraries. Seeking to remain in the law library sphere, she moved to Toronto in 2000, and worked for Donahue Ernst and Young. Returning to government after the dissolution of the MDP experiment, the Ontario Securities Commission was her next professional home, followed in time by the Ontario Workplace Tribunals Library, and in 2009, she joined the library staff at the Ontario Legislative Library. In 2014, she was presented with the challenge of helping the Assembly meet its obligations under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). In time, this program grew to include the records management program, and became her permanent responsibility until her retirement in 2022.

• Key elements of accessible documents and webpages
• Tools to help make content more accessible

Presentation: Accessibility Documents & Webpages

Recording Link: Accessibility Documents & Webpages

“So someone asks you a question…”

We all get questions from our members and some are easier than others. This session will cover tips and tricks for planning your research, best resources for particular types of questions, what to do when there doesn’t appear to be anything out there, and how to respond to the person with your results.

Panel:  Cynthia Simpson, from Middlesex,  Lee Holstead from Durham, Brenda Lauritzen from Carleton and Ciara Ward from Northumberland.

• Tips for planning your research
• Best resources for answers
• Avoiding offering legal advice
• Archiving questions and answers

Presentation: So, someone asked you a question…

Recording Link: So, someone asked you a question…

Importance of Mental Health with Beth Beattie, author of The Right Not to Remain Silent

Beth Beattie is a senior counsel at the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney where she have a broad-based health law litigation practice. She has an LLM from Osgoode Hall Law School in Alternative Dispute Resolution.  Beth is a mental health advocate and collaborator. and recently co-edited a book, “The Right Not to Remain Silent: The Truth About Mental Health in The Legal Profession”. Published by LexisNexis in 2024, it is a collection of personal memoirs of judges and lawyers aimed at ending stigma and isolation in the legal community and beyond. The authors offer practical solutions to change the culture of legal practice.  Courthouse libraries were given a copy of this book for your collection at LwL 2024.

Since 2021, Beth has co-chaired the Law Society of Ontario’s annual Mental Health Summits for Legal Professionals. Each year there are over 6,000 registrants (live and on-demand), the most popular CPD program in the history of the LSO.  Beth will be joined by Michael Ferguson with Norman Pickell, Lawyers in Goderich, Ontario and Courtney Wilson with Rachlin & Wolfson LLP in Toronto, Ontario.

Summary: Please reference the book (a copy is available at each courthouse library)

Presentation: None

Recording Link: Not recorded

CALL’ s new AI Working Group Report 

Although the target audience of the report is really librarians who are involved in procurement of AI products in legal tech, it raises lots of great questions that we should be asking when we are using AI.  CALL Report ready in October.    

Presenter: Annette Demers (Law Reference Librarian, University of Windsor; LiRN Board Member)

• Overview of CALL’s AI Assessment Guide (Oct. 2025)
• How to use the guide

Presentation: CALL’s new AI Working Group Report

Recording Link: CALL’s new AI Working Group Report

AI – How law firms are using it and what should you know to assist your lawyers

Presented by Katie Sharp.   She’s a product manager at Alexi as an early team member whose been instrumental in implementing real AI that works in firms.  Katie will be developing a customized session for the LiRN network, building upon her former colleague Hor’s valuable presentation to Learn with LiRN 2023.

• Primer on generative, extractive and agentic AI
• How context and tokenization affect AI performance
• Tips on how to formulate prompts to improve AI results

Presentation: AI – How law firms are using AI

Recording Link: AI – How law firms are using AI

Great Library:  Library System Update: What’s New and What’s Coming

Join the Great Library team for an engaging session where they’ll showcase the new library catalogue and offer a preview of exciting features currently in development.  You’ll explore real world examples of customized catalogue views from various libraries, showcasing how the system can be tailored to highlight each library’s unique collection.  The team will also provide a walkthrough of key functionalities such as circulation and interlibrary loan demonstrating how these tools can enhance your library’s services and user experience.  We’ll wrap up with a Q&A session, giving you the chance to ask questions and discover how these updates can benefit your library.

The new platform also features a Circulation Module that you can also use for free in your library.  Set-up requires a tablet device bar code reader, bar code labels and a secure stand.  Learn more from some of your colleagues that may this set-up in their library to make it as easy as possible for your users to borrow books.

Sheri Proulx from Renfrew District Law Association will moderate the session and can speak about the benefits from setting up the new customized & branded library catalogue in her library with assistance from the Great Library team.

Presenter: Olcay Atacan (Director, Legal Information & Great Library)

• Overview of Alma
• Discussion about circulation models
• Libraries that have asked the GL to create customized pages for their lawyers to easily search their collections.

Presentation: Great Library System Update

Recording Link: Great Library System Update

LiRN Update

Presenters: Theresa Leitch (Managing Director, LiRN), Vicki Whitmell (LiRN Board Chair)

• LiRN’s 2026-2030 Strategic Plan
• Innovation of Equity of Access to Legal Information funded by the Law Foundation of Ontario
• Grant software management
• Draft Library Operations Policy
• 2026 and 2027 Budgets
• Newsletter Communications

Presentation: LiRN Update

 

Registration

Registration Form (expired September 23, 2025)

Why you should attend!

• Great networking opportunities to meet/reconnect with your library colleagues across the province.
• Customized professional development sessions for courthouse libraries.
• Empowering courthouse library staff for tomorrow.
• Explore new tools and strategies in legal librarianship today
• Networking, learning and growth await you!

Group Dinner – Thursday evening

You’ve been asking for a dinner together, and LiRN has partnered with our e-LiRN Vendors Lexis+, vLex and Westlaw Canada to sponsor a group dinner on Thursday evening!

 LiRN would like to thank:

• Lexis+ for the Appetizer and Dessert
• Westlaw Canada for the Entrée
• vlex for the Alcohol/Drinks
• Location: St. Louis Bar and Grill, 595 Bay Street (accessible and 400m from the hotel)
• Time: Thursday, October 23,  6:30 PM to 9:00 PM (you may stay later if you like)
• Dress: Casual

The instructions for the form link below:

• You’ll choose one each of an Appetizer, Entree, and Dessert. You can opt out of items you do not want and indicate special preferences or allergies.
• The form includes food choice descriptions and vegetarian options. You can complete the form on your computer or mobile.
• Your name tag will include your dinner ticket and the restaurant address.

For library staff:

• If you CANNOT come, still complete the form to indicate that. You will still be entitled to the $45.00 dinner allowance for that evening (receipt required).

• If you do not SUBMIT BY THE DEADLINE of October 15 at 5 PM we will assume you are still coming and your dinner will be the default choice of a House Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette , Classic Pepperoni Pizza, and Bangin’ Brownie dessert. You will not be entitled to the $45.00 dinner allowance for Thursday evening even if you later indicate that you cannot come since we will have committed to the restaurant your meal choice.

Complete the order form (whether you are coming or not) by Wednesday, October 15 at 5 PM: https://forms.office.com/r/Qa3LuMZnVC

Conference FAQs

Learn all the information you will need with our FAQs 2025 (1) for information about attending the conference including suggested attire.

Hotel

Expense Form / Travel

LiRN will cover the hotel and travel expenses for 1 person from each Association if travelling from outside Toronto (50 km radius). Refer to the link Expense Report Instructions for the LwL Conference for more information.

Map of Area