Library News

You can find all the Inner Temple Library’s news here, updated regularly so you never miss out on the latest developments.

Library & Archives Newsletter Issue 79 – December 2025

A new issue of the newsletter is now available. This issue contains Christmas opening hours; details of Saturday opening; a retrospect on our History Society lecture exhibition on Milton’s Paradise Lost, History Day at Senate House, and Grand Day; a look ahead to the Ashes; tours for clerks; Mooting Society legal research session; a look at our lending collection for Black History Month, and a much-needed book about how to do nothing; new law books and editions recently added to the Library; our Senior Library Assistant reports on running in Rome, and an Inner Temple member discusses writing the laws of other jurisdictions, aided by our own Commonwealth collection.

Inner Temple Library & Archives Newsletter – Issue 79

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New Books List September – November 2025

A list of New Law Titles and Editions recently received by the Library between September to November 2025 has recently been published.

Christmas Vacation 2025

The Library will close for Christmas at 2.00pm on Friday 19 December and reopen at 9.00am on Monday 5 January 2026. This calendar gives the opening hours of all four Inn Libraries over the Christmas vacation.

Grand Day 2025

The Library will close at 3pm on Wednesday 5 November for Grand Day. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience.

History Day 2025

The Library and Archives will be attending History Day at Senate House on Tuesday 4 November. “History Day is a day for students, researchers & history enthusiasts to explore library, museum, archive and history collections across the UK & beyond.”

Man sat behind a table with a white table cloth and on it a tablet, a laptop, books, bookmarks and postcards.
Rob Hodgson, Librarian, at History Day 2025

 

Saturday Opening

The Inner Temple Library will be open this Saturday, 11 October, from 10am to 5pm. Entry will be via Inner Temple Lane on Fleet Street and the Church Court door to the building. We look forward to seeing you.

Library & Archives Newsletter Issue 78 – September 2025

A new issue of the newsletter is now available. This issue contains Saturday opening; what we did during our closure in August with the Summer Book Moves; a word from our new Graduate Trainee; unusual book covers in The Red Barn Murder and Anthropodermic Bookbinding; a review of the BIALL Conference; a visit to The National Archives; New Acquisitions to our collections; and a write-up on the South Asian Dinner from the Archives Team.

Inner Temple Library & Archives Newsletter – Issue 78 

Summer Book Moves

Members returning to the Library after our summer closure will notice that some of the core collection has been moved to make more space for growth, and to consolidate some of the collections. These changes involved moving over half a kilometre of books – more than enough to cover the entire length of Fleet Street – during the two weeks when the Library was closed.

We no longer have separate collections for European Union, International Law, Human Rights and Medical Law.  The materials from these collections have been integrated into the main textbooks, journals and law reports collections.

Legislation is now on the North side of Room C, and Law Reports are now shelved on the East and South sides of Room C as well as in Room D.  Textbooks remain in Room A, and Journals can still be found in Room B and the Lift Lobby.

Library room of oak book cases and tables in the middle of the room covered in books

 

Library room of oak panelled bookshelves that are empty with books on the tables in the middle of the room

Summer Opening Hours

Summer opening hours begin on Friday 1 August. We will be open from 9am to 5.30pm.

The Library will be closed from Monday 18 – Friday 29 August inclusive so that general maintenance work and book moves may be carried out. See this calendar for more information. During the closed period the document supply service will be available.

Inner Temple’s Big Picnic

Last weekend, the annual Inner Temple Big Picnic brought families and sunshine to the gardens, and we joined the fun by creating colouring sheets for our younger visitors. The designs were adapted from Buffon’s Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux (1770–1786), a stunning work from our printed books collection.

One of our absolute favourites (pictured below) was created by Matthew, age 10. The intensity of the colour work is arresting and the attention to detail would surely be admired by Buffon himself.

Two birds standing on two branches, one is coloured with dark brown winds, lighter brown stomach and a light orange face. The other has brown and orange wings, light brown stomach and brown face. The leaves are coloured green. An original of the drawing is alongside.