Courtroom 302 is the fascinating story of one year inChicago's Cook County Criminal Courthouse, the busiest felonycourthouse in the country. Here we see the system through the eyesof the men and women who experience it, not only in the courtroombut in the lockup, the jury room, the judge's chambers, thespectators' gallery. From the daily grind of the court to thehighest-profile case of the year, Steve Bogira’s masterfulinvestigation raises fundamental issues of race, civil rights, andjustice in America.

This book, based on the Tanner lectures on Human Values thatJustice Stephen Breyer delivered at Harvard University in November2004, defines the term “active liberty” as a sharing of thenation’s sovereign authority with its citizens. Regarding theConstitution as a guide for the application of basic Americanprinciples to a living and changing society rather than as anarsenal of rigid legal means for binding and restricting it,Justice Breyer argues that the genius of the Constitution rests notin any static meaning it might have had in a world that is dead andgone, but in the adaptability of its great principles to cope withcurrent problems. Giving us examples of this approach in the areas of free speech,federalism, privacy, affirmative action, statutory interpretation,and administrative law, Justice Breyer states that courts shouldtake greater account of the Constitution’s democratic nature whenthey interpret constitutional and statutory texts. He also insiststhat the people, through partici

In pursuit of fairness at any cost, we have created a societyparalyzed by legal fear: Doctors are paranoid and principalspowerless. Little league coaches, scared of liability, stopvolunteering. Schools and hospitals start to crumble. The commongood fades, replaced by a cacophony of people claiming their“individual rights.” By turns funny and infuriating, this startling book dissects thedogmas of fairness that allow self-interested individuals to bullythe rest of society. Philip K. Howard explains how, trying to honorindividual rights, we removed the authority needed to maintain afree society. Teachers don’t even have authority to maintain orderin the classroom. With no one in charge, the safe course is toavoid any possible risk. Seesaws and diving boards are removed.Ridiculous warning labels litter the American landscape: “Caution:Contents Are Hot.” Striving to protect “individual rights,” we ended up losing muchof our freedom. When almost any decision that someone disagreeswi

Throughout America’s history, our laws have been a reflectionof who we are, of what we value, of who has control. They embodyour society’s genetic code. In the masterful hands of the subject’sgreatest living historian, the story of the evolution of our lawsserves to lay bare the deciding struggles over power and justicethat have shaped this country from its birth pangs to the present.Law in America is a supreme example of the historian’s art, itsbrevity a testament to the great elegance and wit of itscomposition. From the Hardcover edition.

A brilliant new approach to the Constitution and courts of the United States by Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.For Justice Breyer, the Constitution s primary role is to preserve and encouragewhat he calls active liberty : citizen participation in shaping government and its laws. As this book argues, promoting active liberty requires judicial modesty and deference to Congress; it also means recognizing the changing needs and demands of the populace. Indeed, the Constitution s lasting brilliance is that its principles may be adapted to cope with unanticipated situations, and Breyer makes a powerful case against treating it as a static guide intended for a world that is dead and gone. Using contemporary examples from federalism to privacy to affirmative action, this is a vital contribution to the ongoing debate over the role and power of our courts.

People with disabilities forging the newest and last humanrights movement of the century.

The Supreme Court is one of the most extraordinaryinstitutions in our system of government. Charged with theresponsibility of interpreting the Constitution, the nine unelectedjustices of the Court have the awesome power to strike down lawsenacted by our elected representatives. Why does the public acceptthe Court’s decisions as legitimate and follow them, even whenthose decisions are highly unpopular? What must the Court do tomaintain the public’s faith? How can the Court help make ourdemocracy work? These are the questions that Justice Stephen Breyertackles in this groundbreaking book. Today we assume that when the Court rules, the public will obey.But Breyer declares that we cannot take the public’s confidence inthe Court for granted. He reminds us that at various moments in ourhistory, the Court’s decisions were disobeyed or ignored. Andthrough investigations of past cases, concerning the CherokeeIndians, slavery, and Brown v. Board of Education, he brilliantlycaptures the steps

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Gideon's Trumpet followsthe progress of the 1960 libel suit that pitted The New York Timesagainst a Montgomery, Alabama, city official, and whose settlementin the Supreme Court redefined what newspapers, and ordinarycitizens, can print or say.

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

With profound insight into the complexities of the humanexperience, Harvard psychologist Gordon Allport organized a mass ofresearch to produce a landmark study on the roots and nature ofprejudice. First published in 1954, The Nature of Prejudice remainsthe standard work on discrimination. Now this classic study isoffered in a special unabridged edition with a new introduction byKenneth Clark of Columbia University and a new preface by ThomasPettigrew of Harvard University.Allport’s comprehensive andpenetrating work examines all aspects of this age-old problem: itsroots in individual and social psychology, its varieties ofexpression, its impact on the individuals and communities. Heexplores all kinds of prejudice-racial, religious, ethnic, economicand sexual-and offers suggestions for reducing the devastatingeffects of discrimination.The additional material by Clark andPettigrew updates the social-psychological research in prejudiceand attests to the enduring values of Allport’s original theoriesand

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

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

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

In this updated and expanded edition of The Tyranny of GoodIntentions , Paul Craig Roberts and Lawrence M. Stratton renewtheir valiant campaign to reclaim that which is rightlyours–liberty protected by the rule of law. They show how crusadinglegislators and unfair prosecutors are remaking American law into aweapon wielded by the government and how the erosion of the legalprinciples we hold dear–such as habeas corpus and the prohibitionagainst self-incrimination–is destroying the presumption ofinnocence. A new introduction and new chapters cover recent marqueecases and make this provocative book essential reading for anyonewho cringes at the thought of unbridled state power and sees ourcivil liberties slowly slipping away in the name of the War onDrugs, the War on Crime, and the War on Terror.

The bestselling business classic that Raytheon CEO William Swanson made famous . Every once in awhile, there is a book with a message so timeless,so universal, that it transcends generations. The Unwritten Lawsof Business is such a book. Originally published over 60 yearsago as The Unwritten Laws of Engineering , it has sold over100,000 copies, despite the fact that it has never been availablebefore to general readers. Fully revised for business readerstoday, here are but a few of the gems you’ll find in thislittle-known business classic: If you take care of your present job well, the future will takecare of itself. The individual who says nothing is usually credited with havingnothing to say. Whenever you are performing someone else’s function, you areprobably neglecting your own. Martyrdom only rarely makes heroes, and in the business world, suchheroes and martyrs often find themselves unemployed. Refreshingly free of the latest business fads and jargon, this is abook that is wise and insight

“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

?Over 3,000 legal terms defined ?Revised edition with the most up-to-date terminology

For more than two decades, Vanity Fair has published DominickDunne’s brilliant, revelatory chronicles of the most famous crimes,trials, and punishments of our time. Here, in one volume, areDominick Dunne’s mesmerizing tales of justice denied and justiceaffirmed. Whether writing of Claus von Bülow’s romp through twotrials; the Los Angeles media frenzy surrounding O.J. Simpson; thedeath by fire of multibillionaire banker Edmond Safra; or theGreenwich, Connecticut, murder of Martha Moxley and theindictment—decades later—of Michael Skakel, Dominick Dunne tells ithonestly and tells it from his unique perspective. His search forthe truth is relentless.