Margaret Leary was director of the University of Michigan Law Library from September 1984 until retiring in 2011. She previously served as the Law Library's associate director, and joined the Law School staff as assistant director of the Law Library in 1973.
From 1968 to 1970, when she began law school, Leary was chief cataloger at the University of Minnesota Law Library. She holds a B.A. from Cornell University, an M.A. degree in library science from the University of Minnesota, and a J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul. While serving as director of the Law Library, she also was a lecturer in the U-M School of Library Science.
Leary also serves as a trustee on the Ann Arbor District Library board. She has held a seat on the board since 2004, including stints as the board president. Most recently she was re-elected to a four-year term in 2012, which runs through 2016.
Leary is the author of "Giving It All Away: The Story of William W. Cook and His Michigan Law Quadrangle," published by the University of Michigan Press in 2011.
Link to .pdf of Leary's 2009 speech, given at the U-M Law School's Sesquicentennial Lunch.
Ann Arbor District Library video of Leary discussing her book (October 2011): http://www.aadl.org/video/view/11714
Video by Michigan Law interviewing Leary about her book (May 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp8PFa4uAZs