Reviews (6)

One of the Better Nutshells
The Nutshell Series is great for law students who want a refresher in the days before a final.The Con Law book is no exception.These books sum up all of the main points in an easy read that's broken out by subject so you can easily skip sections you didn't cover in class.However, unlike others in the series, I feel this one actually provides a pretty clear picture of Con Law even if you haven't taken the course yet.Usually I recommend you wait until the end of the semester to plow through these in a day or two, but this one may be worth buying before class starts to give you an understanding of the topic from the get-go.

Great, concise review!
Ok, so I'm a little biased since professor Barron was my con law prof., but this book is great. It's a nutshell, so don't expect a whole lot of depth, but it does a great job of boiling down the basic holdings of cases and tying them together with a narrative. It was almost as handy as my outline during the exam.

Good Summary of Con Law
This book was extremely useful to me, because it boiled down complicated areas of law, such as justiciability, the commerce clause, and state action. It helped me to get a high grade in Con Law. Even though I am done with the class, I am still using the book as a reference for seminar papers that I am writing. I recommend it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Civil Procedure    2. Constitutional    3. Constitutional law    4. Law    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. United States   

Reviews (27)

Keep Reading Books by Sitting Supreme Court Justices
I think that it is good to read widely and get divergent perspectives.Thus, Christians and Jews should read the Quran and Muslims should read the Torah and the New Testament.Conservatives should read the Nation or the New Republic and visit the DailyKos website and liberals should read the Weekly Standard or National Review and visit RealClearPolitics.The same perspective applies with Breyer's book.Regardless of your perspective, you should read this brief and easily understandable statement of judicial philosophy from a sitting Supreme Court justice.(And, it would also be good to read the counterpoint from Justice Breyer for the same reasons.)
Buy it for the appendices, not the text
Even after trying to put to one side whatever opinion one has of Justice Scalia as a judge - something that, for example, the WSJ reviewer plainly couldn't manage, rating or reviewing this book poses (at least) two difficulties:
Exposes the Modus Operendi of Result Oriented Jurists
Great read.Scalia exposes the deceptive means by which activist judges often cloak their misdeeds, relying upon supposed rules of construction or plumbing the legislative record in a feigned effort to discern the "intent" of the legislature, when in reality the courts are often using these interpretive tools to "sanctify" judicial mischief, that is to say, conceal their true purpose of reaching their preferred result.At times providing historical examples, he leaves the activists naked and embarrassed.Come take a peak. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Civil Procedure    2. Conflict of Laws    3. Courts - General    4. Law    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Legal System    7. Politics/International Relations    8. Civil law (general works)    9. Jurisprudence & philosophy of law    10. Law / Constitutional    11. Political Science and International Relations    12. USA   

Reviews (2)

Excellent legal history overthrows common assumptions
Kersch challenges the conventional wisdom and offers a compelling rejoinder to what he terms "the Whiggish New Deal narrative" (p. 5). Such Whiggish accounts, he maintains, treat history as a morality play and "import a particular set of unifying myths into the study of constitutional development concerning civil rights and civil liberties" (p. 11). Instead of the flawed tale of a triumphant concern for civil rights and civil liberties overcoming the judicial solicitude for economic rights that characterized pre-1937 constitutionalism, Kersch presents a more complex and equivocal story. Important claims of right often conflicted, and some traditional liberties were rejected in order to advance newer understanding of which rights deserved protection. As Kersch explains, to picture this messy process involving difficult choices as a seamless march of progress, scholars have ignored inconvenient facts and made "extensive historical erasures" (p. 17). Indeed, he points out that progressives and liberals have not been consistent champions of personal rights and have frequently shifted from one cause to another while couching their essentially political choices in moralistic terms. Progressives and liberals often privileged group rights--on behalf first of organized labor and thereafter of blacks, for example--over individuals' rights claims.
Must read for anyone interested in constitutional history
This book shatters so many myths about the history of "civil rights and civil liberties," it's hard to know where to begin.Suffice to say, that if you were educated about the origins of modern American constitutional rights in law school or history or political science departments, much of what you believe about such things as the right to privacy, separation of church and state, and the origins of the civil rights movement is wrong, ss Kersch documents extremely well. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Civil rights    2. Constitutional    3. General    4. History    5. Judicial review    6. Law    7. Law and politics    8. Political Science    9. Political aspects    10. Politics / Current Events    11. Politics/International Relations    12. United States    13. Constitutional & administrative law    14. POLITICS & GOVERNMENT    15. Political Science / General    16. USA   

Reviews (22)

Terrific Historical Narrative
I first read this book several years ago for my high school American History class, and I just recently read it again. This book is excellent no matter what your age or understanding of U.S. History. One of its greatest advantages is that its narrative style makes the story of the Constitution so accessible. It is clear and easy to read; however, it does give a complete and thorough treatment of why the document was needed; the ideas and compromises that went into the document, and the debates that shaped the Constitution. Finally, the book is clearly, excellently based upon James Madison's notes from the Convention itself. All in all, an outstanding book for high school and college students, and anyone else interested.

Fabulous!
A breathtaking account! Includes countless historical facts told in an easy-to-read manner. One of my top five favorite books!

Useful But Not Comprehensive
They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover but in this case you can tell a lot about the book just from its title. You can't expect any kind of objective commentary from something with the gushing title of "Miracle at Philadelphia". Ms Bowen's work is another in the long tradition of encouraging worship of rather than understanding of the Founding Fathers.
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Subjects:  1. (1787)    2. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    3. Constitutional    4. Constitutional Convention    5. Constitutional history    6. General    7. History - General History    8. History: World    9. Juvenile Nonfiction    10. United States    11. United States - Colonial Period    12. United States.    13. American history: c 1500 to c 1800    14. Constitution: government & the state    15. History / General    16. Pennsylvania    17. c 1700 to c 1800   

Subjects:  1. Constitutional    2. Firearms and crime    3. Gun control    4. Political Freedom & Security - General    5. Political Freedom & Security - Law Enforcement    6. Political Science    7. Politics / Current Events    8. Politics/International Relations    9. Prevention    10. Public Policy - General    11. United States    12. Violence in Society    13. Violent crimes    14. Law    15. Political Science / Political Freedom & Security / General    16. Political Science and International Relations    17. Political structure & processes    18. Sociology    19. USA   

Reviews (1)

Lebaron Charts New Waters
This is an extraordinary book. For those of us involved in cross-cultural training and negotiations work, this book brings together a progressive practioner's life experience and emotional intelligence to create new ways of framing our work. I used up a "highlighter" through the first two chapters. If your work is in mediation, cross-cultural communication, conflict resolution, negotiation, or facilitation, this book is a great investment. If you just want to know more about interactions between people and yourself, and come to better understand the internal dialogues you have when you are conflicted, this is a great, entertaining, and enlightening read. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Alternative Dispute Resolution    2. Conflict management    3. Constitutional    4. Culture conflict    5. Law    6. Legal Reference / Law Profession    7. Business & Economics / Decision-Making & Problem Solving    8. Conflict resolution    9. Multicultural studies   

Subjects:  1. Cases    2. Constitutional    3. Constitutional law    4. General    5. Law    6. Politics / Current Events    7. United States    8. Constitutional & administrative law    9. Political Science / General    10. Politics & government    11. USA   

Subjects:  1. Civil Rights    2. Constitutional    3. Courts - General    4. Government - U.S. Government    5. Law    6. Legal History    7. Legal Reference / Law Profession    8. Political Freedom & Security - Civil Rights    9. Supreme Court    10. United States    11. United States.    12. Citizenship & nationality law    13. Civil rights & citizenship    14. Courts & procedure    15. USA   

Subjects:  1. Constitutional    2. Legal Reference / Law Profession   

Editorial Review

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Reviews (17)

Good for history, bad for legal analysis
I give the author credit for explicitly revealing his biases in the book's opening pages.The author is a war protesting, left-leaning, liberal, and is a proponent of a "living Constitution" that conforms to his own ideas of a perfect society, rather than a view that treats the Constitution as a legal text.I strongly disagree with his views, but because he does not present his biases as fact, but instead openly warns the reader, I was able to continue reading.
We live by symbols
This is the book that provides an immense and readable amount of historical and political background informationon the evolution of the interpretation of the US Constitution from its very beginning until the end of the XX century. Constitutional law is seen through its cases throughout history and its main protagonists: the judges of the Supreme Court and those who brought their cases. It also shows that legalist interpretation of the Constitution has not followed the pedant use of syllogistic reasoning from the precedential principles set forth in previous similar cases, like Christopher Columbus Langdell, instead, had taught at Harvard Law School in the XIX century. When the Constitution was interpreted as if it were a pure and independent science, leaving nothing to the political context or the common sense, it created monsters that today look embarrassing. However, since the law was interpreted according to the sensitivities of the ruling class at the time, too, the output still remains curious today. Both ways, the Constitution was read for the benefit of the privileged. The book does not deal only with famous cases such as "Dred Scott v. Sandford", "Plessy v. Ferguson", "Brown v. Board of Education", "Miranda v. Arizona", "Roe v. Wade", but it deals with many more that cover many controversial political subjects of the last 200 years. Here an anecdote in the book that look funny in itself. Lawyers from the Dept. of Justice brought two thousand prosecutions under the Espionage Act. The most ironic is United States v. Spirit of '76, against the producer of a movie about the American Revolution, Robert Goldstein, because his depiction of British atrocities against the colonists tended "to question the good faith of our ally, Great Britain", according to the judge, who imposed a ten-year sentence on the producer. It is a highly recommended book for historians, political scientists, and, why not, lawyers and filmmakers.

Stimulating interpretation of the history of the Court
In this book, Peter Irons offers a refreshingly stimulating interpretation of the history of the Supreme Court.His approach, which focuses on understanding the personalities on the bench and behind the cases, serves as an invaluable reminder that laws and created and interpreted by people who bring their views and experiences into this process. Irons begins this process with himself; in the introduction he expresses his belief that "the Constitution's basic command is that every person must be accorded the dignity he or she deserves as a human being."(xv)This view serves as the basis for his analysis in the book.Read more

Subjects:  1. Constitutional Law    2. Courts - Supreme Court    3. History    4. History: American    5. Law    6. Law and politics    7. Legal History    8. Legal Reference / Law Profession    9. Political aspects    10. Supreme Court    11. U.S. Supreme Court    12. United States    13. United States.    14. Political Science / General   

Subjects:  1. Commonwealth countries    2. Constitutional    3. Constitutional Law    4. International    5. Law    6. Legal Reference / Law Profession    7. British Commonwealth    8. Comparative law    9. Constitutional & administrative law    10. Constitutional law--Commonwealth countries    11. Law / International   

Subjects:  1. Cases    2. Constitutional    3. Election law    4. Government - State, Provincial & Municipal    5. Law    6. Legal Reference / Law Profession    7. United States   

Subjects:  1. Child Advocacy    2. Children    3. Children's rights    4. Domestic Relations - Children    5. Family Law - Children    6. Law    7. Legal Reference / Law Profession    8. Legal status, laws, etc    9. Legal status, laws, etc.    10. Parent and child (Law)    11. United States    12. Constitutional & administrative law    13. Human rights    14. Law / Domestic Relations / Children   

Reviews (13)

"the capstone of a fine career"
This book is actually the third of a sort of trilogy, begun with "We the People..." in 1958.It should be no surprise that Mc Donald thinks little of Charles Beard.In his earlier work (mentioned above) he did a great deal to discredit Beard's thesis that the founders created the Constitution in order to increase the values of the gov't securities that they held.He followed this in 1965 with "E Pluribus Unum", a work about the political wheeling and dealing that was behind the creation of, and opposition to, the Constitution.He turned his attention to the ideas that were important to the framers in "Novus Ordo Seclorum" in order to finish his career-spanning look at the basis of our government.I my view, the best thing about this book is the way that it is systematically put together.McDonald states the problem clearly early on, and then proceeds to analyze it step-by-step.His placing of the framing of the Constitution in its broader English context is outstanding, as is his discussion of the political and economic theory that the founders had available.But McDonald also makes it abundantly clear that the framers were no ivory tower theoreticians. They were pragmatic, hardnosed political realists who had a good grounding in the best available theory of their day.That combination of theoretical grounding and practical experience has always seemed to me to be the reason that the Constitution was so well crafted and enduring, and McDonald brings that out quite clearly.On another note, McDonald was characterized above as a "conservative historian".It is true that he has supported conservative causes and taken conservative stances throughout his career, but that seems to be beside the point here.McDonald was writing in an attempt to gain understanding about the framing of the Constitution, not to influence current political debate.To often today we look to the founders to resolve our current controversies.As a result people on both sides of the political spectrum have politicized our history in a way that I think leads to an impoverishment of understanding.I admire McDonald for trying to keep the scholarly ideal of detatchment in view, and doing the best he could to live up to it.

MJD
For those who are interested in US history and the origins of the US Constitution, this is a must read.McDonald is an excellent writer and has woven an wonderful outline of the philosophical underpinnings of our Constitution.The last section is particularly interesting.He goes through the debates during the summer of 1787.Many of the founders discussions are topical today, especially regarding the authority given to the executive and legislative branch.The book takes a bit to get into but is well worth it.For readers just into this exciting topic a good read before tackling this work might be Katherine Bowen's, "Miracle at Philadelphia."

The men and ideas behind the American Constitution
I picked up this book to read for several reasons.The American founding era is one of my favorite periods of history to study.I am in awe of our founding father's abilities to cobble a government together despite their socio-economic differences.Don't we all wish that our political leaders today had the same capability to compromise and act on important issues of the day?I am also a great student of finding out the kinds of books our founders read so that I can read them myself.As a student of philosophy, I enjoy studying the philosophical influences on the founders.Aristotle's "good life", Locke's principles of life, liberty, and property in his "Second Treatise", and the influence of the Scottish Enlightenment philosophers like Hume, Reid, and Kames.I can say unequivocally that Forrest McDonald's book does not disappoint.
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Subjects:  1. (1787)    2. 18th century    3. Constitutional    4. Constitutional Convention    5. History    6. History & Theory - General    7. History - General History    8. History: American    9. Law    10. Political science    11. United States    12. United States - Colonial Period    13. United States.    14. American history    15. USA   

Reviews (3)

Interesting thesis but ultimately unfulfilling
The author presents a fairly unique thesis that the Lochner Court was actually more progressive than is commonly assumed. To support this he classifies all substantive due process cases and boils them down to numbers from which he spins off statistical analysises. Excellent Revisionist Work
Professor Phillips punctures several myths regarding the Lochner era, and does so through a surprisingly underused methodology: he actually read every case purportedly involving substantive due process during the Lochner era. Among the myths shattered by Phillips: "The Lochner era Court was practically out of control; it struck down approximately two hundred economic regulations on substantive due process grounds." "Economic substantive due process was a radical innovation supported only by reactionary Justices." "The Lochner era Court's substantive due process decisions overturned `social legislation' that would have aided the poor and necessitous at the expense of the wealthy and powerful." "The Lochner era Court's reactionary nature is demonstrated by the fact that it limited its concern for `liberty' to `liberty of contract.'" "Most, perhaps all, of the regulations invalidated by the Lochner era Court served the public interest." Excellent Revionist Work
Professor Phillips punctures several myths regarding the Lochner era, and does so through a surprisingly underused methodology: he actually read every case purportedly involving substantive due process during the Lochner era.Among the myths shattered by Phillips:Read more

Subjects:  1. Civil Procedure    2. Constitutional    3. Constitutional Law    4. Due process of law    5. History    6. Law    7. Legal History    8. Legal Reference / Law Profession    9. U.S. Supreme Court    10. United States    11. Law / Legal History   

Subjects:  1. Constitutional    2. Law   

Reviews (13)

So you think you know your rights?
If you've ever been surprised by the ruling of a court or a judge in regards to matters whose resolution would seem obvious to the casual legal observer, then perhaps you should read this book.Kennedy and Alderman walk through each of the "rights" we are guaranteed by the Constitution and give examples of court cases and decisions that often might seem counter-intuitive.
Entertaining and Informative
I was assigned this book as supplementary reading for my AP government class, and while some of my friends didn't like it, I loved and am now re-reading it. Review of In Our Defense
This book gave a good illustration of the Bill of Rights in Action. It gave a court case to outline each of the principles in each amendment. For example the first amendment has a case for freedom of speech, press, religion, and assembly. These cases demonstrate how our laws are interpreted, how they have changed since the framers wrote the constitution, and exactly how our rights are limited. Each case also helps to define parts of each amendment that are in question. In other words, the cases are good examples of judicial decisions that help to defne our laws. I think that this book is amazing if you are in school, because it gives a very nice alternative to a textbook approach. Rather than just another boring textbook, this can be a helpful tool to teach the Bill of Rights with examples of the judicial process. Though this is a good book, I think that the Authors left out an important part of the book. It is lacking a historical background of the Bill of Rights. This book never illustrates what the framers intent was, nor does it try and communicate legal concepts. Though it may have been a good decision to leave out the legal concepts so the book would appeal to those without any legal experience, it would have been nice to at least get some information. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Cases    2. Civil rights    3. Constitutional    4. History: American    5. Human Rights    6. Political Freedom & Security - Civil Rights    7. Political Freedom & Security - Human Rights    8. Politics / Current Events    9. Popular works    10. United States    11. International human rights law    12. Law / General    13. USA   

Subjects:  1. Cases    2. Constitutional    3. Constitutional law    4. Law    5. United States    6. Constitutional & administrative law   

Subjects:  1. Constitutional    2. Constitutional law    3. Law    4. Legal History    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Political questions and judici    7. Political questions and judicial power    8. Constitution: government & the state    9. Law / Legal History    10. Political science & theory   

Reviews (5)

As Danger Invites Rescue, Posner Stimulates Intellect
If I recall his New Yorker profile accurately, Posner gets up at 4 a.m. every morning to maintain his extraordinary and excellent output as a public intellectual and judge of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. At 145 pages, this volume is perhaps Posner's shortest and--both because it is aimed at a general audience and resulted from a lecture series--one of his most readable.My sense, however, is that it would only appeal to those already steeped in the profession.Not even a law student would find instructive comparisons with Stone, Hand, Friendly, Prosser, or Schaeffer.For those in the profession, however, I recommend this book most highly.It is less valuable for its purported study in reputation than for its profound, if succinct, understanding of Cardozo the man and the insight it provides into the style and logic of some of his best known decisions, Palsgraf and MacPherson chief among them.Posner's original attempt at a quantitative understanding of reputation relies on Cardozo's relative frequency of citation in some Westlaw data bases over the years.It is pseudo-scientific, redolent of Posner's application of economics to an understanding of the law and, while interesting, not very meaningful.The book as a whole, however, is most gratifying.

Deconstructing Justice Palsgraf
Judge Posner examines the reasons for Cardozo's reputation and, more important, analyzes the rhetorical methods the judge used in creating some of the most renowned and cited decisions in American law.How and why he crafted the statement of the facts a certain way for one decision, a different way for another; how Cardozo used a lawyer's persuasive skills in reaching results he believed were warranted.Posner also examines the inconsistencies in Cardozo's thinking and opinion-writing.The book presents a portrait of a brilliant, prudent jurist and illuminates his professional shortcomings as well.May have little appeal for the non-lawyer, but for anyone interested in legal writing, the judicial process, and opinion-making, this is a terrific book.

Compound Authority; a many-layered onion
This may be the classic book by Posner. Shorter than most his books--and less encyclopaedic--but also less maiandering. Cardozo: A Study in Reputation stays on track, while revealing a complex sensibility of jurisprudence by Posner and an astounding intuition by Cardozo. In this book we see two great legal minds at work: Cardozo's providing the interpretations that further social welfare and Posner's explaining why these interpretations are so desirable.Read more

Subjects:  1. Civil Procedure    2. Constitutional Law    3. Legal System    4. Politics / Current Events    5. Reference    6. Biography: general    7. Civil law (general works)    8. Law / Civil Procedure    9. Legal profession    10. USA