Law for Librarians: Privacy Law and Libraries

Description

Preserving the right to privacy in the library - the right to read, consider and develop ideas and beliefs free from any surveillance or unwanted interference by the government or others - relies upon an understanding of the laws that govern individual privacy rights both in the library and in the wider world.

This session will cover the law of privacy related to patrons’ use of the library. Topics will include the legal foundations for patron privacy rights, privacy policy development, dealing with law enforcement requests for patron information, and the rapidly evolving statutory and regulatory environment regarding digital data and online information.

About the Instructor

Sarah Lamdan is a librarian, lawyer, and serves as the Deputy Director at the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom. She is originally from Kansas, where she earned her J.D. from the University of Kansas School of Law and her M.L.I.S. (with a specialty in legal information) from Emporia State University’s School of Librarian and Information Management. She has lived in New York since 2005, where she has worked as a law librarian in several international law firms, as a Help Desk developer at Bloomberg Law, and as a librarian and law professor at CUNY School of Law.

Sarah researches and writes about information access, privacy, and other legal issues related to librarianship. Her book, Environmental Information: Research, Access & Environmental Decisionmaking (Environmental Law Institute) is a resource for journalists, scientists, and researchers who rely on government science. Her most recent work has focused on privacy and access issues related to data analytics companies and platforms. Her book on the topic, Data Cartels (Stanford University Press), was published in 2022.

Sarah has served as a Senior Fellow at SPARC, a fellow at the Engelberg Center on Innovation Law & Policy at NYU School of Law, an IOI council member, and a member of the Environmental Data & Governance Initiative. She also works with Library Freedom Project and Library Futures on issues related to privacy. She enjoys an array of hobbies including running, knitting, and creative writing.

This event will be hosted in Zoom. Automatic captions will be enabled for this event. If you have questions or requests regarding accessibility, contact us at ce@ala.org or at 312-280-5100.