By Mark Engsberg
President, International Association of Law Libraries
The 43rd Annual Course on International Law and Legal Information of the International Association of Law Libraries (IALL) was held in Houston, Texas from Sunday, October 19, to Wednesday, October 22, 2025. The venue was the South Texas College of Law, Houston. Drawing on Houston’s rich history with the US space program, this year’s theme was Space City Houston: Legal Gateway to the World and Beyond. Keeping with the theme, there was also an Optional Day at Space Center Houston on Thursday, October 23, 2025.
Taken at Space Center Houston. L: Mark Engsberg; R: Monica Ortale
Photo used with permission by Mark Engsberg
The 2025 Annual Course was organized by staff from the Law Library at South Texas College of Law Houston. Taking the lead of the Local Planning Committee (LPC) were co-chairs Colleen Manning and Monica Ortale. Colleen is Director of the Fred Parks Law Library at the South Texas College of Law, Houston, and Monica is Associate Director for Public Services.
Monica and Colleen and the other members of the LPC team prepared and delivered a truly excellent program of substantive content, local excursions, and other networking events and opportunities, which are the hallmarks of every IALL Annual Course. The Association is extremely grateful to the members of the LPC for everything they did to make this conference so successful. In addition to the co-chairs, the other members of the LPC for Houston were:
- Laura Edstrom
- Felicia Escalera
- Karen Kronenberg
- Heather Kushnerick
- Barbara Szalkowski
- Teresha Ussin
- Yottis Wilson
- Chris Rogers and his IT staff
- Michelle Morris and her Marketing & Communication staff
Additional thanks go to the IALL Board Liaison for the Houston Annual Course, Lyonette (Lyo) Louis-Jacques, Foreign and International Law Librarian and Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law Library in Chicago, Illinois.
On behalf of the entire Association, I also extend my heartfelt thanks to each program speaker for their contributions to this outstanding educational experience. A quick review of the Conference Program reveals the truly exceptional caliber of speakers and the range of topics they covered. One theme that emerged from the many excellent lectures was how law librarians truly do make a difference. By acting as crucial knowledge managers, technology experts, preservers of history, and educators, they help bridge the gap between complex legal information and the diverse people who need it, from lawyers and students to the general public. Their work is vital to a functional justice system and democratic society. While many of us know this already, it is good to see that aspect of our work underscored at events like the IALL Annual Course.
Naturally, the excellent Houston Annual Course would not have been possible without the generous support of IALL’s sponsors. Sponsors for this year’s Annual Course in Houston were:
Gold Sponsors
- Wolters Kluwer Legal & Regulatory
- LLMC
Exhibitors
- Aspen Publishing
- Bloomsbury Academic
- Casalinilibri/Erasmus
- De Gruyter Brill
- Ebsco
- Lefebvre Dalloz
- Nomos
- Softlink
- Stackmap
- Taxnotes
- Thomson Reuters
- TradeLawGuide
- William S. Hein & Co.
A huge thank you again to our sponsor-colleagues! Your generosity helps make IALL Annual Courses possible.
Looking ahead to 2026, the 44th Annual Course of the International Association of Law Libraries will take place in historic Cambridge, UK from 13–16 September 2026. The Squire Law Library, University of Cambridge, will be our host for the conference. IALL Vice President Rebecca Bergstrøm will serve as Board Liaison for the 2026 Annual Course. Watch the IALL website for additional details about the 2026 Annual Course in Cambridge coming soon.
We hope you plan to attend the Cambridge conference. Occurring in September, it is also a pleasant time of year in Cambridge, one of the UK’s most scenic university cities. And with so many interesting and historic places to visit in and around Cambridge, you won’t want to miss the 2026 Annual Course!
This Blog contains entries by members of the International Association of Law Libraries on issues germane to the Association’s areas of focus. Views expressed in an individual entry only represent the views of the author, and not those of the International Association of Law Libraries or the author’s employer.