Lycoming Reporter Opinion Publication Policy

The Lycoming Law Association Executive Committee voted to discontinue the periodic publication of the full text of Lycoming County Court Opinions in the Lycoming Reporter, effective in 2004. Likewise, the Lycoming Law Association will discontinue the publication of bound volumes of the Lycoming Reporter, after the current volume is closed.

In place of the occasional publication of the full text of a small number of opinions, the Lycoming Reporter will publish, on a weekly basis, summaries of all opinions issued by the Lycoming County Court of Common Pleas, along with references to their location on the LLA Web site (www.lycolaw.org). It is anticipated that the listing will be informative and current.

Over the past several years, the number of decisions published in the Lycoming Reporter has averaged 22 per year. Last year, the court issued 304 opinions. The cost of publishing a larger number of opinions would be prohibitive.

On the other hand, the Web site maintains copies of nearly all decisions issued by the Court. Last year, for example, the full text of 300 opinions was posted to the Web site. The new approach will provide a timely summary of recent decisions to the bar and provide a greater availability of information concerning the Court’s decisions.

In general, there has been a shift from bound materials to digital materials over the last several years, particularly with respect to legal publications. The Lycoming Law Association has observed a dramatic reduction in sales of bound volumes to the degree that only a very small percentage of the most recently bound volumes have been sold. This, combined with the high cost of publishing these volumes is a significant factor in the decision to discontinue publication of the volumes.