From the 48th floor library at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy‘s New York headquarters, the view is revealing. But it’s not just the outside world — the bridges and buildings of Manhattan — that catches the eye. Within, there is a world that’s changing, too. On first glance, it wouldn’t seem for the better. As part of a renovation last year, Milbank’s library space was cut from 10,000 square feet to 3,200. Many, many books are gone — enough, perhaps, to start a small law school. Even now, on what is otherwise a bustling summer morning, the silence seems a bit eerie. There is no one looking at the books that remain; just a few people standing around computer terminals.
But Alirio Gomez, the librarian-technologist with an MBA, who oversees research at Milbank, couldn’t be happier. “I could get rid of all the books, but a couple of attorneys here still like them,” says Gomez, his shrug an unspoken go figure. “Clients are looking for more efficiencies and more value — added service, and this,” he says, pointing to the giant flat-panel display that has essentially become the new “walking tour” of the library, “is how we provide it.”
