For the first time, a collection of dissents from the mostfamous Supreme Court cases If American history can truly be traced through the majoritydecisions in landmark Supreme Court cases, then what about thedissenting opinions? In issues of race, gender, privacy, workers'rights, and more, would advances have been impeded or failuresrectified if the dissenting opinions were in fact the majorityopinions? In offering thirteen famous dissents-from Marbury v. Madison andBrown v. Board of Education to Griswold v. Connecticut and Lawrencev. Texas, each edited with the judges' eloquence preserved-renownedSupreme Court scholar Mark Tushnet reminds us that court decisionsare not pronouncements issued by the utterly objective, they are infact political statements from highly intelligent but partisanpeople. Tushnet introduces readers to the very concept of dissentin the courts and then provides useful context for each case,filling in gaps in the Court's history and providing an overview ofthe issues at
“Law school applicants should consider this a guide toproducing a competitive, superior essay. . . . These successfulexamples speak louder than any written how-to instructions could.”–The Book Watch Each year, thousands of people apply to the most prestigious lawschools across the country, competing for an ever-smaller number ofspaces. But each applicant gets one chance to distinguish himselfor herself from the pack: the law school application essay. In theessay, you can spotlight the qualities you possess that tran*sand LSAT scores cannot reveal.
Beginning with the story of the forming of the Constitution,this book includes illuminating character sketches of thedelegates, written by their contemporaries. The complete text ofthe Constitution is highlighted, as well as Supreme Courtdecisions, cited because they shed light on Constitutionalproblems.
The Real ACT is the only book with insider test-taking tipsand strategy, practice tests, and insight from the makers of theACT. This comprehensive guide has everything one needs to knowabout the ACT-test content, structure, and format info! The only guide that includes 5 previously administered,full-length ACT tests written by the actual test maker (including 2NEW practice tests) ACT content and procedures you'll follow when actually taking thetest Valuable information about tuition payment plans All the question types you can expect to find on the ACT Suggestions on how you might approach the questions andPeterson's tried-and-true test-taking strategies and tips
Edited by Bryan A. Garner, the world’s leading legal lexicographer, Black’s Law Dictionary, 8th Edition is now better than ever! The new 8th Edition has more than 43,000 definitions, plus almost 3,000 quotations. Alternative spellings or equivalent terms and expressions are provided for more than 5,300 terms and senses, serving a thesaurus-like function. The extensive appendix on legal abbreviations is a major addition. It’s the first time such a comprehensive guide has been included in a modern law dictionary, and is an invaluable aid to the legal researcher. -17,000 more definitions than the 7th Edition -Newly enhanced with West Key Numbers for research reference -Includes changes made since the creation of the department of Homeland Security -Almost 3,000 quotations from authorities drawn from sources over at least five centuries -More than 1,000 law-related abbreviations and acronyms are defined -Extensive appendix on legal abbreviations -Faculty recommended
History comes alive-in this illustrated guide to theConstitution and all 27 Amendments. ? Which state refused to send a delegation to the ConstitutionalConvention? ? Why was the Convention held in secret, with sentries at thedoor? ? What are the 27 Amendments? The U.S. Constitution for Everyone relates how the "traitorous"Founding Fathers wrote the nation's supreme laws and how thethirteen Disunited States became a more perfect Union. A must forstudents of American history and for everyone who'd like to knowmore about the supreme laws of our nation.
Do you have a great idea for the next big thing, an eye-catching new corporate logo, or an exciting new business concept? Understand how to safeguard your ideas and creations with this expert guide to the fundamentals of intellectual property. Walking you step-by-step through the processes involved in protecting your great ideas, this book offers all the advice on need to ensure that you're the only one one cashing in on your creativity and hard work.
There is an undercover war going on in America that impactseveryone's life far more than the legal issues that typically grabthe headlines. The conservative movement has been systematicallyturning back a century's worth of the evolving gains andprotections found in the common law-the areas of law that affectthe everyday activities of ordinary people. Throughout the twentieth century, contract, property, andpersonal injury law evolved to take more account of socialconditions and the needs of consumers, workers, and less powerfulmembers of American society. Contracts were interpreted in light ofcommon sense, property ownership was subjected to reasonable-useprovisions to protect the environment, and consumers were protectedagainst dangerous products. But all that is changing. Conservatives have a clear agenda toturn back the clock on the common law to maximize the profits ofbig business. Some significant inroads have already been made toprotect gun manufacturers from lawsuits, enforce form co
People with disabilities forging the newest and last humanrights movement of the century.
Few books have had as great an impact on intellectual history as Kant's The Moral Law. In its short compass one of the greatest minds in the history of philosophy attempts to identify the fundamental principle 'morality' that governs human action. In strikingly fresh, engaging and idiosyncratic prose Kant carries his readers with him as he seeks 'the supreme principle of morality'. Supported by a clear introduction and detailed summary of the argument, this is not only an essential text for students but also the perfect introduction for any reader who wishes to encounter at first hand the mind of one of the finest and most influential thinkers of all time.
In the second edition of this highly regarded text, the authorsshow how and why traditional legal language has developed thepeculiar characteristics that make legal documents inaccessible tothe end users. Incorporating recent research and case law, the bookprovides a critical examination of case law and the rules ofinterpretation. Detailed case studies illustrate how obtuse oroutdated words, phrases and concepts can be rewritten, reworked orremoved altogether. Particularly useful is the step-by-step guideto drafting in the modern style, using examples from four types ofcommon legal documents: leases, company constitutions, wills andconveyances. Readers will gain an appreciation of the historicalinfluences on drafting practice and the use of legal terminology.They will learn about the current moves to reform legal language,and receive clear instruction on how to make their writing clearerand their legal documents more useful.
A perfect introduction to a vital subject very fewAmericans understand-the constitutional status of AmericanIndians Few American s know that Indian tribes havea legal status unique among America's distinct racial and ethnicgroups: they are sovereign governments who engage in relations withCongress. This peculiar arrangement has led to frequent legal andpolitical disputes-indeed, the history of American Indians andAmerican law has been one of clashing values and sometimes uneasycompromise. In this clear-sighted account, American Indian scholarN. Bruce Duthu explains the landmark cases in Indian law of thepast two centuries. Exploring subjects as diverse as jurisdictionalauthority, control of environmental resources, and the regulationsthat allow the operation of gambling casinos, American Indiansand the Law gives us an accessible entry point into a vitalfacet of Indian history.
In this remarkable book, a national bestseller in hardcover,Sandra Day O’Connor explores the law, her life as a Supreme CourtJustice, and how the Court has evolved and continues to function,grow, and change as an American institution. Tracing some of theorigins of American law through history, people, ideas, andlandmark cases, O’Connor sheds new light on the basics, exploringthrough personal observation the evolution of the Court andAmerican democratic traditions. Straight-talking, clear-eyed,inspiring, The Majesty of the Law is more than a reflection onO’Connor’s own experiences as the first female Justice of theSupreme Court; it also reveals some of the things she has learnedand believes about American law and life—reflections gleaned overher years as one of the most powerful and inspiring women inAmerican history.
Probably written by a student of Aristotle, The AthenianConstitution is both a history and an analysis of Athens' politicalmachinery between the seventh and fourth centuries BC, which standsas a model of democracy at a time when city-states lived underdiffering kinds of government. The writer recounts the majorreforms of Solon, the rule of the tyrant Pisistratus and his sons,the emergence of the democracy in which power was shared by allfree male citizens, and the leadership of Pericles and thedemagogues who followed him. He goes on to examine the city'sadministration in his own time - the council, the officials and thejudicial system. For its information on Athens' development and howthe democracy worked, The Athenian Constitution is an invaluablesource of knowledge about the Athenian city-state.
From prosecuting (and defending) murderers in the Bronx tohandling the public and private problems of Manhattan’s elite, Mouthpiece recounts the colorful adventures of New YorkCity’s ultimate legal operator. “In the pages before us, the Counselor tells a saga’s worth oftales of the city. As the saying goes, he’s got a million ofthem.” — Tom Wolfe, from his Introduction Edward Hayes is that unusual combination: the likable lawyer, onewho could have stepped off the stages of Guys and Dolls or Chicago . Mouthpiece is his story—an irreverent,entertaining, and revealing look at the practice of law in moderntimes and a social and political anatomy of New York City. Itrecounts Hayes’s childhood in the tough Irish sections of Queensand his eventual escape to the University of Virginia and then toColumbia Law School. Not at all white-shoe-firm material, Hayesheaded to the hair-raising, crime-ridden South Bronx of themidseventies—first as a homicide prosecutor and then as a defenseattor
“The best legal read . . . in decades. A brilliantlyentertaining work, both for the lawyer and the layman.” Washington Times Robert S. Bennett has been a lawyer for more than forty years. Inthat time, he’s taken on dozens of high-pro?le and groundbreakingcases and emerged as the go-to guy for the nation’s elite. BobBennett gained international recognition as one of America’s bestlawyers for leading the defense of President Bill Clinton in thePaula Jones case. He has always fought for justice. This is hisstory. Born in Brooklyn and an amateur boxer in his youth, Bennett hasoften brought his street-?ghter’s mentality to the courtroom. Hiscase history is a who’s who of ?gures who have dominated legalheadlines: superlobbyist Tommy Corcoran, former secretaries ofdefense Clark Clifford and Caspar Weinberger, Marge Schott, and,most recently, New York Times reporter Judith Miller and formerWorld Bank president Paul Wolfowitz. Throughout the telling of his life in court, Be
Located at the intersection of law, political science,philosophy, and literary theory, this is a work of constitutionaltheory that explores the nature of American constitutionalinterpretation through a reconsideration of the long-standingdebate between the interpretive theories of originalism andnonoriginalism. It traces that debate to a particular set ofpremises about the nature of language, interpretation, andobjectivity, premises that raise the specter of unconstrained,unstructured constitutional interpretation that has hauntedcontemporary constitutional theory. It presents the novel argumentthat a critique of the underlying premises of originalism dissolvesnot just originalism but nonoriginalism as well, which leads to therecognition that constitutional interpretation is already andalways structured. It makes this argument in terms of the firstprinciple of the American political system: by their fidelity tothe Constitution, Americans are a textual people in that they livein and through the terms of a fun
Internationally renowned facilitator and public participation consultant James L. Creighton offers a practical guide to designing and facilitating public participation of the public in environmental and public policy decision making. Written for government officials, public and community leaders, and professional facilitators, The Public Participation Handbook is a toolkit for designing a participation process, selecting techniques to encourage participation, facilitating successful public meetings, working with the media, and evaluating the program. The book is also filled with practical advice, checklists, worksheets, and illustrative examples.
In this amazing story of high stakes competition between twotitans, Richard Moran shows how the electric chair developed notout of the desire to be more humane but through an effort by onenineteenth-century electric company to discredit the other. In 1882, Thomas Edison ushered in the “age of electricity” whenhe illuminated Manhattan’s Pearl Street with his direct current(DC) system. Six years later, George Westinghouse lit up Buffalowith his less expensive alternating current (AC). The two menquickly became locked in a fierce rivalry, made all the morecomplicated by a novel new application for their product: theelectric chair. When Edison set out to persuade the state of NewYork to use Westinghouse’s current to execute condemned criminals,Westinghouse fought back in court, attempting to stop the firstelectrocution and keep AC from becoming the “executioner’scurrent.” In this meticulously researched account of the ensuinglegal battle and the horribly botched first execution, Moran r
On June 28, 1972 in a South Bronx subway station, John Skagen,a white off-duty policeman on his way home, suddenly and withoutapparent provocation, ordered James Richardson, a black man on hisway to work, to get against the wall and put his hands up.Richardson had a gun, and the two exchanged shots. In the meleethat followed, Skagen was fatally wounded by a cop who rushed tothe scene. In the ensuing trial, William Kunstler handledRichardson's defense and the author of this book, then assistantdistrict attorney, prosecuted the case. Here is a first-hand,behind-the-scenes account of every step of the proceedings.