UNC School of Government and its Resources: Part II

This post is Part II of a three part series that describes the various resources available from the School of Government (“SOG”), and why the SOG can provide invaluable guidance for those researching North Carolina law.

An important feature of the SOG’s mission is to train state and local government officials. Many government employees must enforce North Carolina laws and do so without formal legal training. The SOG provides guidance and counsel to these public servants through schools (i.e. multi-day classes), direct and responsive legal advice, and timely updates and interpretations of new laws. Because attorneys in a number of practice areas must interact with government units, the SOG publications relevant to such units and its employees can be very informative to attorneys and legal scholars. Many SOG publications compile into one source the scattered laws that apply to a certain department in or function of government. In essence, the SOG often has done the work for the rest of us!

If you are looking to get a general overview of a function of local government a good place to start is County and Municipal Government in North Carolina . This reference book provides a description of the legal foundations, organization, and administration of all units and services of NC local governments with citations to additional, more detailed, SOG materials. Some examples of local government functions are in the areas of public health, budgeting and capital improvement planning, solid waste management, election administration, and eminent domain.

Other publications authored by subject matter experts can offer insight for private attorneys who use local government systems in carrying out duties of private practice. For instance, real estate lawyers should be familiar with the North Carolina Guidebook for Registers of Deeds as this book compiles the legal requirements of the office of register of deeds. Included in the book is an exhaustive description of the conditions when registers accept or reject real property instruments, which is not available elsewhere.

Individuals outside the practice of law can benefit from SOG guidance as well. An individual making a public records request of a government unit could understand the process better by taking a look at Public Records Law for North Carolina Local Governments . Since local government employees are taught public records law by SOG attorney experts, these employees’ justification for fulfilling or denying public records requests most likely will be derived from this publication and other relevant SOG resources. Understanding why government officials take certain actions or make certain decisions can be very useful to “outside” individuals.

Finally, don’t forget that along with exhaustive, treatise-type publications the SOG provides timely guidance on emerging issues. You can subscribe to Coates’ Canons , a NC local government law blog (FYI: the posts are often based on real issues in NC). Also be aware of the bulletin system at the SOG that includes many local government related series (e.g. Local Finance Bulletin ).

So, if you are working on a legal problem in school or in practice take a look at what the SOG offers. You may find exactly what you need. Our upcoming and final post in this series will cover judicial administration materials.