Notices of Judgment Help

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Navigating the NJs

Each NJ case summary contains a metadata record generated from the document text. The fields chosen are a combination basic bibliograhic-type information, such as Title, and other information the Curator felt users would find valuable, such as Court Jurisdiction, for colocation of fielded search results, and that were necessary to build the Browse function.

We decided to scan only at the page level, not the individual case level. Printing styles evolved throughout the publications' lifetime so there are multiple scenarios the user will encounter.

• Scenario 1: each NJ is a distinct unit whether it is one page or many pages long; we provide the full text just for that single NJ in this scenario.
• Scenario 2: multiple NJs per page; we provide the same page image for each separate case record. For workflow reasons we deemed it more expedient to NOT crop pages for each NJ, hence the user may need to scroll down a page to reach the desired NJ case.
• Scenario 3: NJ case text carries across two or more pages within the multi-NJs-per-page scenario; we provide two or more pages for a single case.

Reconstituting editions and issuances

The NJs were published in a variety of physical manifestations. The earliest cases were printed on a daily basis then bound together in sets of several thousand. Later, they were published monthly in batches ranging from roughly 50 to 100 cases in a pamphlet form.

• Scenario 1: daily issuances; there are no formal title page or other standard bibliographic conventions. Reconstituting the bound item is not possible.
• Scenario 2: title page also contains the first case text; we provide the titlepage. Users can reconstitute an issuance by BROWSING on ISSUE DATE.
• Scenario 3: title page contains no real bibliographic data except for the publication date, so we do not provide those title page images. Users can reconstitute an issuance by BROWSING on ISSUE DATE.

Indexes

We did not scan any of the indexes. However, there are no printed cumulative indexes for the entire collection. One cummulative index exists for Food and Drug Cases 1-10,000 and another for cases 10,0001-20,000, but afterwards indexes only exist for each bound set or each monthly issuance. The metadata records provide the same access and enhanced access as do the NJ indexes. While examining the corpus structure, we realized FDA's indexers used specific data points within the NJ text. This enabled us to perform the automated metadata extraction for the PRODUCT KEYWORD and DEFENDANTS just as they appear in the printed indexes. Hence by browsing on PRODUCT KEYWORD and DEFENDANT, the digital archive now serves as a cummulative index for the entire collection.

Searching and Browsing the Collection

The search functions within DSpace take some getting used to. There are four important concepts to remember:

• Using the SEARCH BOX on the main home page searches ALL sub-collections--Drugs and Devices, Foods, Food and Drugs, Cosmetics
• Using the BROWSE MENU on the home page browses ALL sub-collections--Drugs and Devices, Foods, Food and Drugs, Cosmetics

• Using the SEARCH BOX WITHIN a sub-collection only searches that specific sub-collection
• Using the BROWSE MENU WITHIN a sub-collection only browses that specific sub-collection

Archival Collection

The Evidence Files are controlled by various Sample, S., or IS numbers found in the Numbers metadata field and just below the NJ title in the hard copies. These numbers ARE NOT the F.D.C. numbers that are also located in the same place. Please contact the Curator about accessing the archival collection or obtaining copies of the box lists.

While the digital library will eventually contain over 45,000 page images of the FDA's published Notices of Judgment, the collection also serves as a guide to the 2,000 boxes of case jackets that formed part of the evidence files prosecutors used in these cases. This archival collection was rescued from destruction by NARA in a joint project between the FDA Historian's Office and HMD.

Users can access these evidence files via the several accessions lists originally drafted when transferring the materials to NARA--we intend to eventually offer them in digital form as well. Using the evidence control numbers found just below the title on almost every NJ, we can locate the box containing that case file. Many NJs have several evidence numbers and usually they will all be found filed with the first number. In all cases users should contact the Curator before attempting to visit NLM to use the evidence files.

Last updated: 11 February 2009
First published: 11 February 2009
Metadata| Permanence level: Permanence Not Guaranteed