The Illinois Supreme Court building in Springfield has been home to the Supreme Court Library since 1908. In honor of National Library Week, we’re recognizing Supreme Court Librarian, Geoff Pelzek.

Name: Geoff Pelzek

Job Title: Supreme Court Librarian

How long have you worked at the Supreme Court Library?

I started as the Branch Librarian in Chicago in 1994 and transferred to Springfield upon being appointed as Supreme Court Librarian in 2010.

What do you enjoy most about working in the library?  

Meeting our patrons’ legal research needs will always be the top priority and the greatest source of our satisfaction. Many people contact the library not knowing how to approach what they need and the tools available to them. We enjoy exceeding all expectations.      

What kind of resources are available to the public at the library?

Our print collection is well over 200,000 volumes of legal treatises, case reporters, statutes and law reviews. We specialize in maintaining access to older materials which are not easily accessible electronically. Specifically, we fill a significant need for historical versions of Illinois statutes and older editions of current treatises.

What would you like people to know about the library?

There are an enormous amount of resources available in every area of legal research beyond what can be found on electronic legal databases. Despite assumptions, everything isn’t online and if you ask us we’ll be happy to incorporate those items into your research.