Frequently Asked Questions


What is the University of Michigan Law Scholarship Repository?

The University of Michigan Law School Scholarship Repository is designed to offer global access to the scholarship of the University of Michigan Law School. This repository is a service of the University of Michigan Law Library, which contributes to the mission of the Law School by supporting research, scholarship, and access to legal information.

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What platform does the Repository use?

The Repository uses the Digital Commons platform created by bepress. The vast majority of law school repositories in the United States use Digital Commons as their platform. All of the individual school repositories combine to form the Law Commons (http://network.bepress.com/law/) and can be searched together or browsed together by subject.

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What type of content is included in the repository?

The repository at first included mainly pdf works, but has gradually expanded to include photographs and other materials. We hope to explore the addition of video content, and periodically evaluate new collections and series which could expand the Repository. If you are affiliated with the Law School and have a question about your own content and whether it is a good fit for our repository, please email .

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How do I submit content to the University of Michigan Scholarship Repository?

To add content to the repository, please email .

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How do I revise a submission?

To revise a submitted article, paper, abstract, or make other changes, please email . Please use this same email address for any questions about works or if you wish to remove a deposited item.

Which faculty members are included in the Faculty Scholarship collection?

Members of the faculty governing body who are expected to produce scholarship may have their works included in the Faculty Scholarship collection. As of April 19, 2023 this includes: Professors; Assistant Professors; Professors from Practice; Clinical Professors; L Bates Lea Global Law Professors; Clinical Assistant Professors; and Professors Emeriti.

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What is available in the Faculty Scholarship collection?

Wherever possible, we upload the full-text version of faculty scholarship. When required by publisher agreements, we will upload an author-accepted manuscript, link out to the full-text version openly available in another repository, or apply an embargo to the work which temporarily restricts access. Materials included were published during the time that the faculty member was at the University of Michigan Law School.

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Why are some of my publications not available in the Repository?

The most common reason for works to not yet be available in the Repository is because they have not been cleared for copyright permission. Other works may be in the process of being scanned for the Repository. If you have any questions, please contact .

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How does the Repository navigate publisher permissions processes?

To include a work in the Michigan Law Scholarship Repository you need to either hold the copyright, have reserved your rights to publicly post the work in an institutional repository, or have specific permission from the publisher to post the work. Some publishers allow institutional repository deposit as a matter of course, sometimes with an embargo period. Other publishers have more restrictive permissions licensing, and will only allow deposit of a pre-publication – such as the original submitted version, or an author-accepted manuscript – or will require certain other conditions to be met before the work can be posted in the repository. The library advocates on your behalf to have your works posted in full-text. If you have any questions, or would like more information about addenda to author agreements which will allow you to reserve your rights to publish a work in the repository, please contact or our Scholarly Publishing Librarian, Sarah Woloschuk, at .

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How do I reserve my rights as an author?

In many cases, authors are asked to sign publishing agreements that limit or undermine their ability to use their works in the future. Authors can use the addenda created by the University of Michigan Library Copyright Office to retain rights to use works they have authored.

These addenda are designed to be consistent with University of Michigan copyright policy and with the expectations of many authors in our academic community.

If you have questions about author addenda, contact the University of Michigan Law Library’s Scholarly Publishing Librarian, Sarah Woloschuk, at .

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How is copyright licensing handled for materials in University of Michigan law journals?

If you have any questions as an author of a work published in one of our student law journals, please review the following information or contact our Assistant Director for Scholarly Publishing & Information Services, Jessica Pasquale, at . If you are not the author of a work, and would like to seek reproduction or reprint permissions, please contact the author of the work and the relevant journal’s editorial board.

All student-edited law journals at Michigan use the same author license agreement, which states the following:

An author license agreement shall be exclusive from the date of acceptance of the Article by the Journal through 30 days after publication in the Journal, and shall be nonexclusive for the remaining term of the copyright.

During the editorial and cite checking process after the Article is accepted by the Journal, an author may post the version of the Article submitted to the Journal and/or the version of the Article that has gone through the first round of substantive edits on your web page, in their institution’s open access online repository, and/or in SSRN. The version of the Article so posted must be cited as forthcoming in the Journal.

After the article has been published in the Journal, an author may also, during the period of the Journal’s exclusive license, post the published version of the Article on their web page, in their institution’s open access online repository, and/or in SSRN, provided that the Article is fully cited as published in the Journal. Citations may be formatted, for example, as:
This work (or portions of this work) were originally published as: Ryan M. Scoville, Legislative Diplomacy, 112 Mich. L. Rev. 331 (2013).

In all other cases, you must obtain the Journal’s express written permission to publish the Article anywhere else during the period of the Journal’s exclusive license.

The issue of the Journal in which the Article appears may be reproduced and distributed, in whole or in part, by nonprofit institutions for educational purposes, including distribution to students, provided that the copies are distributed at or below cost and that those copies identify the Author, the Journal, the volume, the number of the first page, and the year of the Article’s publication.

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How do I submit a takedown request?

If you are an author or rightsholder and wish to submit a take-down request or to restrict access to a work, please contact .

Please include the following information in your request:

  • Your name
  • Your relationship to the work (author, copyright holder, etc.)
  • URL for the work you would like to restrict access to or remove
  • Reason for restricting or removing the work

Requests will be reviewed by the repository manager and appropriate library staff. You will then be notified of the decision and any resulting next steps.

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How are disciplines and keywords assigned to Repository works?

University of Michigan Law Library staff assign disciplines (a.k.a. subjects) and keywords to each work as part of the loading process. Disciplines for the works are selected from the bepress discipline list. If you have any questions, please contact .

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What are the web accessibility standards for the Repository?

The Law School Repository uses bepress’s Digital Commons platform, which is partially compliant with WCAG 2.1 at level AA. More information can be found from bepress’s website (last updated 4/19/2023)

We are working to increase the accessibility of content in the repository. If an accessible version of a digital publication is not available, or if you have questions, commons, concerns, and/or suggestions regarding the repository’s accessibility, please contact us at .

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What are the preservation standards for the Repository?

Preservation standards are established by bepress’s Digital Commons repository. Full details can be found at bepress’s website regarding persistent URLs, infrastructure, privacy and security, archiving and long-term preservation, maintenance, and other related preservation topics.

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