Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 September 2010
Ruth Bird, Bodleian Law Librarian, explains how the original home-grown classification scheme became unfit for purpose, due to the enormous expansion of international legal materials held, and the reasons for implementing the Moys scheme. She outlines the progress and the problems encountered to date in this huge project.
1 The Cutter number, or Cutter, is an alpha-numeric device for representing words or names by using one or more letters followed by one or more arabic numerals treated as decimal numbers. The combination of letters and numbers, called the Cutter, follows the LC classification number and is preceded by a decimal point. It is named for Charles Ammi Cutter, who developed several tables using letters and numbers to achieve an alphabetical arrangement. The Cutter enables alphabetic order to be maintained within a given class. Book numbers and some subdivisions in the classification schedules are types of Cutter numbers. www.itsmarc.com
2 Brett, Rachel: Classification practice in law libraries: a brief survey. Legal information Management, 8 (2008), pp 61–63.Google Scholar