Barely an hour after arriving, coach loads of conferencees were immersed in the strange and unusual by being taken off to the Welsh Assembly buildings in Cardiff’s rejuvenated bay area. A quiet sense of disappointment emanating from our group soon dispersed with the explanation that the less-than-impressive building had previously been home to NHS computers, and the Assembly would soon be moving into rather grander purpose-built premises over the road. I hope the new building retains the current sense of informality, with the public area and entrance to the Chamber feeling like a cross between a coffee shop and a strangely well-funded public library. For anyone more used to the Houses of Parliament, the Assembly has an altogether different atmosphere, less confrontational and divided, and far more like the European Commission or the US Senate – in essence, quite ‘foreign’. This feeling was only amplified by the school trip passing through at the same time, with their representative member conducting his question and answer session entirely in Welsh.

This was the first reminder of many issues that are developing, in the UK and elsewhere, which I had never focused on before, and which this conference succeeded in bringing to the attention of many of us. In Saturday’s keynote address, Winston Roddick, Counsel General for the Welsh Assembly, discussed the problems of developing a bilingual legislature, with Acts drafted in both Welsh and English at the same time. We can only guess what problems may arise in the future through differences in the meaning and construction of clauses between these two versions of every Act.

Fascinating though I found this, matters more pressing to my work were then raised. As the Welsh and Northern Irish Assemblies and Scottish Parliament develop further powers and take on more responsibilities, it will become necessary to ascertain exactly what powers they had at any one point in order to be able to research the law at that time. Professor John Morison’s lecture on devolution in Northern Ireland showed how complicated these issues can become when devolved powers are granted and suspended so often, resulting in limited law-making powers and an extensive but selective body of legislation.

With so many speakers and attendees from beyond the UK, we had the opportunity to learn much about other countries’ legal systems. At last I grasped a basic understanding of federal government thanks to John Eaton and James Heller, from Canada and the US respectively, whose discussions of conflicts between federal and state government showed us what our future might be with increased devolution in the regions.

Yet the most inspirational session I attended was the opportunity to meet overseas delegates to hear ‘Tales from Across the Frontier’. Peter Murgatroyd from the University of the South Pacific put our usual problems and complaints as law librarians into perspective as he related his experiences in an area where it is difficult even to obtain primary legal resources from the numerous small countries and islands his University caters for. While Fiji and Vanuatu can provide printed legislation, to get hold of similar material from other, less stable, countries you might need to go and photocopy the originals yourself. While we may have to deal with students and trainee lawyers of varying abilities, many of Peter’s students have an enormous gap in their knowledge on arrival, coming from isolated villages lacking running water, electricity and telephones, to suddenly having access to online resources through a computer. It was obvious that the services the University provides are essential in such a volatile area of the world, to enable education which may help to solve the common land disputes and end a cycle of violence.

We also heard tales from Nigeria of trying to provide services in a country where libraries, including those in courts of law, are regularly looted, so that librarians are obliged to turn to the richer lawyers to ask for access to their legal resources. It seems in a way fortunate that, as a country only four years out of its military rule, few Acts have as yet been passed, and so legislation is manageable. However, like that of our devolved assemblies, without the proper organisation and funding very soon, legislatures may get out of control.

Hearing so many people speak of both familiar and more fundamental problems in access to information brought home the fact that what we in essence deal with, as legal information professionals, is the enabling of systems to provide access to justice for all. Whether we are fighting for basic access to our own country’s legislation, or trying to work out the state of health legislation in Wales, we are playing a role in the legal system. I came away from this conference with a renewed sense of purpose and an awareness that all information professionals around the world are ultimately working towards a common goal – enabling knowledge and understanding. Many thanks to CLIG for enabling me to attend and increase my own.