The law library does not assess fines for general collection materials that are less than 40 days overdue. To keep popular items circulating and available for others, fines are assessed for reserve and course reserve materials, including chargers, power cords and power blocks, that are not returned on time.
All items borrowed either from the law library's collections, through interlibrary loan or through the Consortium Loan Service are subject to recall.
Material | Due Date upon Recall | Overdue Fee |
General Collection |
The borrower has a minimum of 14 days from the date when the item was initially borrowed. Upon recall, a new due date is assigned and the item must be returned on or before the new due date to avoid overdue fees. |
$5.00 per day |
Reserves and Course Reserves | The borrower must return the item immediately upon receipt of the recall notice to avoid overdue fees. | $1.00 per hour |
Consortium Loan Service | The borrower must return the item by the new due date indicated in the recall notice to avoid overdue fees. | $25.00 recall fee per item and $10.00 overdue fine per item, if not returned by the due date |
Interlibrary Loan | The borrower must return the item immediately upon receipt of the recall notice to avoid overdue fees. | $3.00 per item per day if not returned within 24 hours of the date and time stamped on the recall notice, plus any fees and fines assessed by the lending library |
The law library does not charge fines for overdue materials from its general collection, except as noted for recalled or lost or damaged items. After the 40th day past the due date, the material is declared lost and a fee of $120.00 is assessed for each item. Use your "my library account" to manage renewals.
Charges for lost books are assessed as:
Reserve materials and course reserve materials may not be renewed. Once returned, items may be checked out after a 30-minute waiting period.
Reserve and course reserve materials must be returned to the circulation desk within the 2-hour check out period unless the item is checked out no more than two hours before closing. Special items, such as chargers, power cords, cables and bike locks, must be returned to the circulation desk within the 4-hour check out period unless the item is checked out no more than two hours before closing. Items borrowed overnight are due the next business day no later than 9:00am.
Fines for overdue reserve and course reserve materials and special items are: $1.00 per hour per item.
Charges for lost books and lost special items are assessed as:
Overdue fees are $3.00 per day and assessed 24 hours after an overdue notice is sent to the borrower; the borrower is also liable for any overdue fees charged by the lending library. Charges for damaged or lost items borrowed through interlibrary loan are determined by the lending library and are the responsibility of the borrower. GW Law faculty, staff and students must use their interlibrary loan accounts to manage renewal requests.
Borrowers will be assessed fees and charges for books or other items that are damaged upon return to the library. Damage includes, but is not limited to: torn or missing pages, coffee and water stains, ripped or missing covers, pen or pencil markings, or highlighted passages.
Fees for damaged material are: