Grants
Grant offers are sent out annually, generally in late Spring. Grantees are asked to review the terms of acceptance before confirming, after which funds are sent out along with the collection guides below. LawMatters staff are available to provide any assistance required.
Recommended books
Law Books for Libraries - LBL 2023 (April 2023)
This downloadable list is curated using our selection criteria (included below) with the goal of making the selection process easier for public librarians. The titles on it have been vetted for currency, accuracy, and relevance to BC residents. Whenever possible, plain language and practical materials are chosen over complex lawyerly titles.
Law Books for Kids - (April 2023)
We've selected these titles created for kids to promote greater understanding of legal topics and the many ways these concepts and problems affect our daily lives. We've also selected titles we hope will help them learn more about the history and evolution of law, activism, and social justice, and to increase their understanding of the relationship between law and society. This is just a small set of approved titles. If you have others, you think would match our criteria, please get in touch!
Selection criteria
LawMatters Selection Guidelines (April 2022)
These are the guidelines used by LawMatters to select materials for the Law Books for Libraries list of recommended titles. If you wish to purchase materials not on the list, please use the guidelines in making your selection and forward your list to the LawMatters Program Coordinator for review before purchasing.
Retention & weeding
Retention and Weeding List (June 2023)
Retention and Weeding Guidelines (July 2023)
Legal information needs regular updating to ensure current and accurate information is available in your library. Need hands-on weeding advice? Please contact us to make an appointment with a Courthouse librarian from your region.
Free, plain-language legal materials
Public legal information and education organizations such as Legal Aid BC and People’s Law School offer online and print booklets and pamphlets containing legal information. These publications cover a large range of legal information topics, including Family, Criminal, Immigration, Housing, and Aboriginal Law. Online versions of these booklets can be found through Legal Aid BC and People’s Law School’s respective publications pages.
Print copies of these booklets can also be ordered for free directly through Crown Publications. To order through Crown Publications, you will need a Crown Account number (Customer ID) and a Postal Code. If you do not have an account already, Legal Aid BC can set one up for you (see Online ordering with Crown Publications).
If you have forgotten your Customer ID and have ordered through LawMatters before, contact lawmatters@courthouselibrary.ca.
2022 Freebie List
Like our Law Books for Libraries resource, this downloadable list includes recommended titles for BC public libraries. All titles listed are created by governmental or BC organizations who create legal information targeted at the public. All titles are available for free in multiple print and online formats, and in some cases, multiple languages. Please contact us you have questions about accessing any of the sources listed within.