Dennis S. Sears

274C JRCB

+1 (801) 422-7472
searsd@law.byu.edu

Dennis S. Sears

for Foreign and International Law Senior Law Librarian

Dennis S. Sears is a Senior Librarian at the Howard W. Hunter Law Library. He is currently responsible for foreign, comparative, and international law. His previous assignments included Associate Director for Legal Research Instruction and Reference Services, Project Librarian, Reference Librarian, and Circulation Librarian.

Professor Sears earned a joint juris doctorate/master of business administration from the J. Reuben Law School and the Marriot School of Management. He also received a master of library and information science from Brigham Young University. In addition, Professor Sears has earned a master of strategic studies from the United States Army War College and a master of arts in modern European history from Brigham Young University.

Prior to joining the faculty of the Howard W. Hunter Law Library, Professor Sears was a Senior Hearing Officer for the Salt Lake County Tax Administration. He also clerked for the Honorable Boyd L. Park, Fourth Judicial Clerk of Utah.

Professor Sears teaches courses in Federal Tax Research and International Legal Research.

CV/SSRN

Courses Taught

  • Federal Tax Research
  • First Year Legal Research
  • International Legal Research
  • Law Library Management

Education

  • M.S., United States Army War College
  • M.L.I.S., Brigham Young University
  • J.D., Brigham Young University
  • J.D., Brigham Young University
  • M.A., Brigham Young University
  • B.A., Brigham Young University

Publications

  • Awards
  • The Teaching of First-Year Legal Research Revisited: A Review and Synthesis of Methodologies, 19 Legal Reference Services Q. 1 (2001). Legal Reference Services Quarterly’s “Most Popular Articles”, The Haworth Press, 2006.
  • The Teaching of First-Year Legal Research Revisited: A Review and Synthesis of Methodologies, 19 Legal Reference Services Q. 1 (2001). Co-published simultaneously in Teaching Legal Research and Providing Access to Electronic Resources (Gary L. Hill, Lovisa Lyman, & Dennis S. Sears, eds., The Haworth Information Press 2001).
  • Books
  • Teaching Legal Research and Providing Access to Electronic Resources, Vol 19, No 3/4, (2001) (Gary L. Hill, Lovisa Lyman, & Dennis S. Sears, eds., The Haworth Information Press 2001). Co-published simultaneously in Legal Reference Services Quarterly (The Haworth Information Press, an imprint of the Haworth Press, Inc.).
  • Legal Research Manual for Law Students: A Self-Help Program, Howard W. Hunter Law Library, Brigham Young University. (Co-edited.).
  • Articles
  • The Pedagogical Value of an Integrated Approach to Legal Research Instruction: Overcoming Student Resistance to the Use of Print Sources and Striking a Balance that Instills and Appreciation of the Strengths and Weaknesses of Both Print and Online Sources, 33 Legal Reference Services Q. 38 (2014).
  • Education Committee Report, 28 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 14 (Oct. 2013).
  • SIS Council Chair Report, American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Executive Board Book (Summer 2010).
  • SIS Council Chair Report, American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Executive Board Book (Spring 2010).
  • SIS Council Chair Report, American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Executive Board Book (Fall 2009).
  • All Citators Are Not Created Equal, 29 RIPS [Research Instruction and Patron Services] Law Librarian 10 (Spring 2007).
  • Vision: The Essence of Professionalism and Key to the Future of Law Librarianship as a Profession, 98 L. Libr. J. 81 (2006).
  • Federated Searching: The Hidden Costs–Translators, 31 WestPac News 4 (Fall 2006).
  • The Future of FCIL-SIS Programming in the Context of the Annual Meeting, 20 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 3 (Feb. 2006).
  • The Educational Summit: The Future of Professional Development Programming at the AALL Annual Meeting, 30 WestPac News 4 (Fall 2005).
  • Federated Searching and its Role in the Law Library, 29 WestPac News 3 (Summer 2005).
  • Electronic Balloting: Proposed Amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws of WestPac, 29 WestPac News 8 (Winter/Spring 2005).
  • Introduction: Reference Services, to Teaching Legal Research and Providing Access to Electronic Resources 1-3 (The Haworth Information Press 2001). (Co-authored with Gary L. Hill and Lovisa Lyman, Howard W. Hunter Law Library.) Co-published simultaneously in Legal Reference Services Quarterly (The Haworth Information Press, an imprint of the Haworth Press, Inc.) Vol 19, No 3/4, (2001).
  • WestPac Members Guide, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), (2000).
  • The Benefits and Challenges of Developing a Training Affiliation with an Active Duty Unit, Minuteman 29 (Fall 1999).
  • President’s Column: Law Library Concerns: The Perspective of a State Supreme Court Justice, 24 WestPac News 1 (Fall 1999).
  • President’s Column: WestPac: Approaching the New Millennium, 23 WestPac News 1 (Spring 1999).
  • The Staff Study: An Integrative Management Tool for Law Libraries, 90 L. Libr. J. 51 (1998).
  • WestPac Annual Meeting Final Conference Program, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) (1998).
  • Marketing: A Survival Tool for the Nineties and Beyond, 3 AALL Spectrum 2 (Dec. 1998).
  • Business and the Law Library: Educational Programing for the 31st Annual Meeting, 23 WestPac News 3 (Fall 1998).
  • Email: Property and Privacy Issues: Implications for the Law Firm and the Law School, 21 RIPS [Research Instruction and Patron Services] Law Librarian 10 (Fall 1998).
  • President’s Column: The WestPac 31st Annual Meeting, 23 WestPac News 1 (Winter 1998).
  • Our Question–Your Answer: What Tips Can You Offer the Inexperienced Researcher for Determining When to End a Research Project, 5 Perspectives: Teaching Legal Research and Writing 76 (Winter 1997).
  • Legal Research Essentials for Library Staff, Howard W. Hunter Law Library, Brigham Young University (1996).
  • Our Question–Your Answer: What Is the Technique, Not the Tool, That Works the Best for You in Teaching Legal Research and/or Writing?, 5 Perspectives: Teaching Legal Research and Writing 24 (Fall 1996).
  • Has the Time Arrived for a Name Change?, 18 RSLL [Reader Services Law Librarian] Newsletter 4 (Dec. 1995).
  • Computer Assisted Practice System (CAPS) and Its Application in Support of the Reference Function Within the Law Library, 13 Legal References Services Q. 5 (1994).
  • Environmental Law Reference Guide, (1994).
  • Nevada Electronic Resources, in Paul A. Arrigo, State Electronic Resources http://lawlib.wuacc.edu/state.survey/nevada.html (Accepted).
  • Utah Electronic Resources, in Paul A. Arrigo, State Electronic Resources .
  • The Reception of English law Abroad, 37 Int’l Leg. Info. 256 (2009), Book Review.
  • Minutes of the Foreign, Comparative, and International Law Business Meeting, 21 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 4 (Oct. 2006).
  • Education Committee Update: Riveting Program Proposals for AALL’s 2001 Annual Meeting!, 15 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law]Newsletter 8 (Oct. 2000). (Co-authored with Jean Davis, Brooklyn Law School Library.).
  • Education Committee Update on Accepted Programs, 14 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 6 (Feb. 2000). (Co-authored with Jean Davis, Brooklyn Law School Library.).
  • Annual Report: Western Pacific Chapter, 91 L. Libr. J. 815 (1999).
  • WestPac, 4 AALL Spectrum 16 (Nov. 1999). (Chapter News, ed. and comp. Marilyn K. Harhai.).
  • Education Committee Report, 14 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 8 (Oct. 1999). (Co-authored with Jean Davis, Brooklyn Law School Library.).
  • WestPac, 4 AALL Spectrum 24 (Oct. 1999). (Chapter News, ed. and comp. Marilyn K. Harhai.).
  • Report of the Education Subcommittee, 13 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 11 (Oct. 1998). (Co-authored with Katherine Topulos, Duke University).
  • WestPac, 3 AALL Spectrum 24 (Oct. 1998). (Chapter News, ed. and comp. Susan L Trask.).
  • Report of the Latin American Law Working Group, 12 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 8 (Oct. 1997).
  • Annual Report (Draft), Bylaws Committee, American Association of Law Libraries (AALL). See Sarah K. Wiant, “Bylaws,” 88 L. Libr. J. 599 (1996).
  • African Law Working Group, 11 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 7 (Oct. 1996).
  • Latin American Law Working Group, 11 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 9 (Oct. 1996).
  • Teaching Foreign and International Legal Research Working Group, 11 FCIL [Foreign, Comparative, and International Law] Newsletter 10 (Oct. 1996).
  • Mid-Year Report (Draft), Bylaws Committee, American Association of Law Libraries (AALL). See Gayle E. Webb, “Fall Board Actions Review,” 27 AALL Newsletter 226 (Feb. 1996).
  • Presentations
  • Approaching the New Horizon: Foreign and International Research Instruction in the Law School and Law Firm, Coordinator/Moderator, American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), 91st Annual Meeting, Anaheim, CA, July 13, 1998. (Jean J. Davis and Roberta I. Shaffer, Speakers.).
  • Marketing: A Survival Tool for the Nineties and Beyond, Coordinator/Facilitator, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), 31st Annual Meeting, Missoula, MT, October, 8-10, 1998. (Patricia M. Cavill, Speaker.).
  • Federal Taxation, Coordinator/Facilitator, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), 31st Annual Meeting, Missoula, MT, October, 8-10, 1998. (J. Martin Burke, Speaker.).
  • Employment Discrimination, Coordinator/Facilitator, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), 31st Annual Meeting, Missoula, MT, October, 8-10, 1998. (William L. Corbett, Speaker.).
  • Hoyt & Blewett Electronic Moot Courtroom, Coordinator/Facilitator, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), 31st Annual Meeting, Missoula, MT, October, 8-10, 1998. (Fran Wells, Speaker.).
  • From ISP’s to Applets: What You May Not Know About Computers, Software, and the INTERNET, Coordinator/Facilitator, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL), 31st Annual Meeting, Missoula, MT, October, 8-10, 1998. (Suzanne Miner and Randy Goddard, Speakers.).
  • Expert Systems and Library Services, Western-Pacific (WestPac) Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) 24th Annual Meeting, Snowbird, UT, October, 1991. Described and demonstrated the application of the Computer Assisted Practice System (CAPS) in the law library to the reference function.