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Finding and Retrieving Materials on Campus: U-M Libraries Overview

Purpose

This guide is intended to help Michigan Law students locate and obtain various physical and digital materials using the Law Library and the University of Michigan Libraries.

COVID-19 Note: Due to the current public health crisis, building access, book delivery, and loan rules are all subject to changes. Please see the Law Library website and the University Library website for current information.

University of Michigan Libraries

The first step to using the library is knowing which library to use! The University of Michigan is home to over two dozen libraries and departments, listed on page below. Multiple "libraries" may be located in the same building.

The main three buildings that house physical library collections on campus are Smith, Shapiro, and Hatcher.

  • Smith (Law)
    • The Smith Underground Library, along with the Legal Research Annex, contains the Law Library collection.
    • Access to Smith is limited to members of the MLaw community and patrons with a legal research need.
    • Search the Law Library Collection using the MLaw Catalog.
  • Shapiro (Undergraduate)
    • The Shapiro Library contains the Askwith Media Library, the Shapiro Undergraduate Library, and the Shapiro Science Library, as well as other administrative offices.
    • Search the collections in Shapiro using U-M Library Search.
  • Hatcher, or The Grad (Graduate) 
    • The Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library contains Clark government documents library, the Asia Library, the Special Collections Library, the International Studies collection, and other administrative offices.
    • Search the collections in the Grad using U-M Library Search.

Other physical libraries on the Ann Arbor campus include the Bentley Historical Library, the Duderstadt Center, and the Buhr Remote Shelving Facility. The collections of these and other Ann Arbor campus libraries can also be searched using ​U-M Library Search.

U-M Libraries: Special Situations

Kresge Library Services (Business)

The Ross School of Business maintains Kresge Library Services. Physical materials in Kresge can be searched using U-M Library Search, but there is an independent catalog for Kresge's databases and other electronic resources, found at the link below.

Note that only Ross students and faculty have remote access to Kresge database material. Contact a Kresge librarian with questions regarding Kresge material.

Thompson Library (Flint)

The University of Michigan-Flint campus maintains the Frances Willson Thompson Library. The Thompson Library's collections are searchable in U-M Library Search with the location "UM-Flint." Visit the Thompson Library website for more information.

Mardigian Library (Dearborn)

The University of Michigan-Dearborn campus is home to the Mardigian Library. Unlike the UM-Flint campus, materials in Mardigian are not accessible through U-M Library Search. Visit the Mardigian Library website for more information and to search their catalog.

Need Help?

  Call us at 734-764-9324

text message icon Text us at 734-329-5606

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  Email us at askalawlibrarian@umich.edu. Emails are answered by Librarians during standard business hours, Monday-Friday. Patrons may expect a response within 1-2 business days for most emails.

  Consult with us. Schedule an appointment to meet with a Reference Librarian.

  Visit us at the Information Desk on Sub-1 for immediate in-person assistance. Open 8 am - midnight, Sunday-Thursday, and 8am - 10pm, Friday-Saturday*

 

The chat service is available to all of our patrons but is designed to meet the legal research needs of U-M students, staff, and faculty.

Chat is monitored from 1-7 pm Monday-Wednesday and 1-5 pm Thursday-Friday on days when class is in session.

*Excluding University holidays and semester breaks--check library hours for more information. The Building and library are available to law school community ONLY after 6 pm, and are closed to all but law school community on home football Saturdays.