Brian Dickson Law Library: Facilities

The Brian Dickson Law Library is located in Fauteux Hall and covers a large section of the 4th and 5th floors. Help us keep the library a great place to study by respecting our Noise, Food and Drink Policy.

A range of facilities and equipment is available on each floor:

4th floor

• Front lobby
  Circulation Desk - Self-checkout - Photocopier/printer room - Reference Service are all located in the front lobby.
• Optelec Print Magnifier
  This magnification system can be used to enlarge text and pictures, and even change the colour of the text and/or background to make it easier to read (i.e. change the black on white to white on black).
• Collections
  The following collections are located on the 4th floor: reference, legislation, general law reports, and parliamentary documents.
• Reserved areas for law students
  • Some tables are reserved for Faculty of Law students.
  • Seminar room 421 is made available to Faculty of Law students when not used for legal research seminars.
  • Rooms located at 600 King Edward are reserved only for students of the Faculty of Law. Please contact your student association for more information (aeedco@uottawa.ca ; clawpres@uottawa.ca). 
  • Room 403 is reserved only for students of the Faculty of Law. To reserve the room, please visit the staff at the service desk at the Brian Dickson Library.
    • The following room booking policy applies:
      • Number of persons required: minimum of 2 students of the Faculty of Law.
      • Group study rooms may be booked once per day for up to 2 hours.
      • Maximum of two bookings allowed per week and five per month.
      • Bookings can be made up to 2 weeks in advance.
      • The room will be held for 30 minutes after the start of your booking time after which it will be cancelled.
      • As a courtesy to others, if you no longer require the booked room please notify the staff at the service desk either in person or by calling 613-562-5800 ext 5812.
      • Use the room for collaborative, academic purposes only.
      • Use only the tables and chairs provided within the room in order to respect the maximum capacity (8 people) allowed by fire code regulations.
      • Respect the Noise, Food and Drink Policy.
      • Keep an eye at all times on your belongings and take them with you when leaving.
      • Please clean the room before you leave. Put all garbage in the bins provided throughout the library.
• Facilities
  • Public washrooms are located on the south side (left from the front entrance).
  • A water fountain is located next to room 421.

5th floor

Access 5th floor via stairwells C and D from within the library.

For those with accessibility needs, elevator is available. Obtain an access card from the Library Service Desk, 4th floor. 

• Collections
  Two large collections are located on the 5th floor: books (FTX General), and periodicals (FTX Periodicals).
• Study carrels
  16 study carrels equipped with lockable cabinets, power outlets, data ports and task lighting are available for graduate law students. Each carrel must be shared by two students. Graduate study carrels are assigned by the law library. Other study carrels are available to all library users.

Computers and technology

• Computer lab

The Brian Dickson Law Library houses a 40 seat computer lab (room FTX 430) with an Extron HSA podium with two large projection screens. The computer lab is also used for electronic documentation training. The course schedule is posted outside the lab.

• Computer Workstations

Several public computers are available in the Brian Dickson Law Library. Most are located at the back of the 4th floor adjacent to room 430. All of our computer workstations come with Internet access, Microsoft Office 2013 software, USB ports and CD-reader drives.

• Charger Loans

The Law Library is equipped with a charging station in room 419A. This station can be used to charge all Apple and Android devices. The Law Library also loans MacBook chargers (both Magsafe 1 and Magsafe 2). Students, faculty and staff can check out a MacBook charger from the Law Library circulation desk during regular operating hours. The loan period is 4 hours without renewal.

Seminar Room and Study Room for Law Students

• Seminar Room 421.

This seminar room comes equipped with three large screen LCD flat panel display televisions and an Extron HSA podium. This is an accessible space with accessible doors and adjustable desks.

• Study Room 403.

This seminar room comes equipped with a large screen LCD flat panel display television with 4 HDMI cables and 6 power outlets. There is also a high end Macintosh computer for video production and graphic design, including Adobe software and devices for recording and transferring data. Various adapters for your laptops comes with access to this room: digital AV adapter/ AV lightning adapter and multi-port USB C AV adapter as well as a writable wall. This is an accessible space with accessible doors and adjustable desks.

Group study rooms

Group study rooms located on the 5th floor are available on a first come, first served basis to University of Ottawa students. Each can accommodate up to 7 persons and can be booked for up to two hours. The rooms are for use by groups of two or more and can be reserved online.