Known for shedding light on the link between the courts, public policy, and the political environment, Judicial Process in America offers students a clear but comprehensive overview of today’s American judiciary. Considering the courts from every level, the authors thoroughly cover judges, lawyers, litigants, and the variables at play in judicial decision-making. The highly anticipated Eleventh Edition offers updated coverage of recent Supreme Court rulings, including same-sex marriage and health care subsidies; the effect of three women justices on the Court′s patterns of decision; and the policy-making role of state tribunals as they consider an increasing number of state programs and policies. New to this Edition Discussions of recent judicial appointments take a critical look at how President Trump’s victory has set the stage for moving the ideological direction of the Supreme Court and of the lower federal judiciary in a distinctly more conservative direction. An analysis of recent controversial Supreme Court decisions help students to identify with the content by exploring issues such as, citizenship rights for immigrants, gay and lesbian rights, and freedom of speech and religion. Additional tables and graphs illustrate the patterns and trends that are occurring in today’s judicial process. New coverage of current topics help students see how the judicial process is applied. These topics include: the legality of Congress’ feeble attempts to "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act that affects millions of people; how to address the issues of immigration and deportations, including what to do about so-called Dreamers (children brought illegally to the United States by their parents without the children’s knowledge and who have spent much or all of their lives here); the status of abortion rights in America as more and more conservative states have sought to further restrict a woman’s right to such a procedure; the legal status of transgender persons in the armed forces; the degree to which severely gerrymandered legislative districts pass constitutional muster; and the great changes in the issue of same-sex marriage, both among average Americans and within the state and federal court systems (including all the ancillary issues such as whether same-sex couples can adopt children and obtain government fringe benefits).

Known for shedding light on the link between the courts, public policy, and the political environment, the new ninth edition of Judicial Process in America provides a comprehensive overview of the American judiciary. Considering the courts from every level, the authors thoroughly cover judges, lawyers, litigants, and the variables at play in judicial decision making. This remarkably current revision will only solidify the bookÆs position as the standard-bearer in the field.

There have long been a number of “introduction to law” textbooks (primarily aimed at non-American lawyers) and, more recently, textbooks dealing with legislation and regulation. American Legal Process is perhaps the only work since the creation of Henry M. Hart, Jr. & Albert M. Sacks’ iconic legal process materials to include extended discussions not only of those topics, but also of the judicial process. The Second Edition represents a continuation of and improvement on the first edition. There is no other law textbook quite like it. New to the 2nd Edition: Reorganization along the lines of the three branches of the U.S. government (legislative, executive, and judicial) and Articles I, II, and III of the U.S. Constitution An increase in the number of chapters from four to 13 (including an introductory chapter) to enhance readability and comprehension New/expanded discussions of current topics in Legal Process, including amicus curiae practice; the use of cameras in the courtroom; corpus linguistics; decisional methodology; sua sponte decision making; and the use of foreign law Professors and students will benefit from: Increases in content through an expanded use of notes Plain, readable text; very straightforward presentation Fascinating subject matter

The intellectual development of American legal thought has progressed remarkably quickly form the nation's founding through today. Stephen Feldman traces this development through the lens of broader intellectual movements and in this work applies the concepts of premodernism, modernism, and postmodernism to legal thought, using examples or significant cases from Supreme Court history. Comprehensive and accessible, this single volume provides an overview of the evolution of American legal thought up to the present.

This book examines the notion that while states may differ in terms of ideology, economic system, and institutional architecture, their role as an organizing framework for system-wide political action and international relations is contingent on a series of competing and oftentimes mutually exclusive factors. This work clarifies factors that contribute to our understanding of the critical roles of systemic and sub-systemic elements of society and how they reinforce the reciprocal problems of human and social organizations, and the institutionalization processes that help to constrain them.

"The book provides a very short, but complete introduction to the institutions and people, the rules and processes, that make up the American judicial system. Jargon free and aimed at a general reader, it explains the where, when, and who of American courts. It also makes clear the how and why behind the law as it affects everyday people. It is, in a word, a starting place to understanding the third branch of American government at both the state and the federal levels, a guide to those wishing to know the basics of the American judicial system, and a cogent synthesis of how the various elements that make up the law and legal institutions fit together"--

This book is a tight and fresh analysis of the American legal profession and its significance to society and its citizens. The book’s primary objective is to expose, and correct, the principal misconceptions— myths— surrounding prelaw study, law school admission, law school, and the American legal profession itself. These issues are vitally important to prelaw advisors and instructors in light of the difficult problems caused by the Great Recessions of 2008 and 2020– 2021 and the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Aimed equally at prelaw advisors and potential law students, this book can be used as a supplement in the interdisciplinary undergraduate law-related instructional market, including courses that cater to majors/minors in political science and criminal justice in particular. It can also be used in career counselling, internships, and the extensive paralegal program market. New to the Second Edition • Expanded coverage to include paralegal and legal assistant training. • New material on women and minority law students who are transforming law schools and the profession. • Explores challenges to the legal profession posed by economic recession, COVID-19, high tuition rates, exploding student loan debt, internet technological advances, and global competitive pressures, including legal outsourcing and DIY legal services. • Updated data and tables along with all underlying research.

In this revised third edition of a classic in American jurisprudence, G. Edward White updates his series of portraits of the most famous appellate judges in American history from John Marshall to Oliver W. Holmes to Warren E. Burger, with a new chapter on the Rehnquist Court. White traces the development of the American judicial tradition through biographical sketches of the careers and contributions of these renowned judges. In this updated edition, he argues that the Rehnquist Court's approach to constitutional interpretation may have ushered in a new stage in the American judicial tradition. The update also includes a new preface and revised bibliographic note.

A Companion to American Legal History presents a compilation of the most recent writings from leading scholars on American legal history from the colonial era through the late twentieth century. Presents up-to-date research describing the key debates in American legal history Reflects the current state of American legal history research and points readers in the direction of future research Represents an ideal companion for graduate and law students seeking an introduction to the field, the key questions, and future research ideas

This anthology presents, for the first time, full texts of the twenty most important works of American legal thought since 1890. Drawing on a course the editors teach at Harvard Law School, the book traces the rise and evolution of a distinctly American form of legal reasoning. These are the articles that have made these authors--from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., to Ronald Coase, from Ronald Dworkin to Catherine MacKinnon--among the most recognized names in American legal history. These authors proposed answers to the classic question: "What does it mean to think like a lawyer--an American lawyer?" Their answers differed, but taken together they form a powerful brief for the existence of a distinct and powerful style of reasoning--and of rulership. The legal mind is as often critical as constructive, however, and these texts form a canon of critical thinking, a toolbox for resisting and unravelling the arguments of the best legal minds. Each article is preceded by a short introduction highlighting the article's main ideas and situating it in the context of its author's broader intellectual projects, the scholarly debates of his or her time, and the reception the article received. Law students and their teachers will benefit from seeing these classic writings, in full, in the context of their original development. For lawyers, the collection will take them back to their best days in law school. All readers will be struck by the richness, the subtlety, and the sophistication with which so many of what have become the clichés of everyday legal argument were originally formulated.