Lanterns On The Levee


Book Description

Born and raised in Greenville, Mississippi, within the shelter of old traditions, aristocratic in the best sense, William Alexander Percy in his lifetime (1885–1942) was brought face to face with the convulsions of a changing world. Lanterns on the Levee is his memorial to the South of his youth and young manhood. In describing life in the Mississippi Delta, Percy bridges the interval between the semifeudal South of the 1800s and the anxious South of the early 1940s. The rare qualities of this classic memoir lie not in what Will Percy did in his life—although his life was exciting and varied—but rather in the intimate, honest, and soul-probing record of how he brought himself to contemplate unflinchingly a new and unstable era. The 1973 introduction by Walker Percy—Will's nephew and adopted son—recalls the strong character and easy grace of "the most extraordinary man I have ever known."







A Federal Right to Education


Book Description

How the United States can provide equal educational opportunity to every child The United States Supreme Court closed the courthouse door to federal litigation to narrow educational funding and opportunity gaps in schools when it ruled in San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez in 1973 that the Constitution does not guarantee a right to education. Rodriguez pushed reformers back to the state courts where they have had some success in securing reforms to school funding systems through education and equal protection clauses in state constitutions, but far less success in changing the basic structure of school funding in ways that would ensure access to equitable and adequate funding for schools. Given the limitations of state school funding litigation, education reformers continue to seek new avenues to remedy inequitable disparities in educational opportunity and achievement, including recently returning to federal court. This book is the first comprehensive examination of three issues regarding a federal right to education: why federal intervention is needed to close educational opportunity and achievement gaps; the constitutional and statutory legal avenues that could be employed to guarantee a federal right to education; and, the scope of what a federal right to education should guarantee. A Federal Right to Education provides a timely and thoughtful analysis of how the United States could fulfill its unmet promise to provide equal educational opportunity and the American Dream to every child, regardless of race, class, language proficiency, or neighborhood.




Representing Yourself in Federal Court


Book Description

This Handbook is designed to help people dealing with civil lawsuits in federal court without legal representation. Proceeding without a lawyer is called proceeding "pro se1," a Latin phrase meaning "for oneself," or sometimes "in propria persona," meaning "in his or her own person." Representing yourself in a lawsuit can be complicated, time consuming, and costly. Failing to follow court procedures can mean losing your case. For these reasons, you are urged to work with a lawyer if possible. Chapter 2 gives suggestions on finding a lawyer. Do not rely entirely on this Handbook. This Handbook provides a summary of civil lawsuit procedures, but it may not cover all procedures that may apply in your case. It also does not teach you about the laws that will control your case. Make sure you read the applicable federal and local court rules and do your own research at a law library or online to understand your case. The United States District Court for the Northern District of California has Clerk's Offices in the San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland courthouses. Clerk's Office staff can answer general questions, but they cannot give you any legal advice. For example, they cannot help you decide what to do in your lawsuit, tell you what the law means, or even advise you when documents are due. There are Legal Help Centers in the San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose courthouses where you can get free help with your lawsuit from an attorney who can help you prepare documents and give limited legal advice. This attorney will not be your lawyer and you will still be representing yourself. See Chapter 2 for more details.




The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission


Book Description

A history of the Magnolia State's notorious watchdog agency established for maintaining racial segregation




Mississippi’s Federal Courts


Book Description

This resource produces the first comprehensive history of the state’s federal courts from the inception of the Mississippi Territory to the late twentieth century. Using archival material and legal documents, David M. Hargrove untangles the state’s complex legal history, which includes slavery and secession, the Civil War and Reconstruction, Jim Crow and civil rights. In this important overview of the United States courts in Mississippi, Hargrove surveys the state’s federal judiciary as it rules on key issues in Mississippi’s past. He examines the court as it mediates conflict between regional and national agendas as well as protects constitutional rights of the state’s African American citizens during the Reconstruction and civil rights eras. Hargrove traces how political activities of the state’s federal judges affected public perceptions of an independent judiciary. Growing demands for federal judicial and law enforcement infrastructure, he notes, called for courthouses that remain iconic presences in the state’s largest cities. Hargrove presents detailed judicial biographies of judges who shaped Mississippi’s federal bench. Commissioned by the state’s federal judiciary to write the book, he offers balanced perspectives on jurists whose reputations have suffered in hindsight, while illuminating the achievements of those who have received little public recognition.




Court Interpreters Act


Book Description




Federal Courts Standards of Review


Book Description

This sophisticated but easy to understand exposition of the standards of review offers an invaluable resource for law students, law clerks, and practitioners. Decisions of the U.S. Courts of Appeals invariably are shaped by the applicable standards of review. Filling a huge gap in the literature, Standards of Review masterfully explains the standards controlling appellate review of district court decisions and agency actions. Leading academics have described the text as a superb treatment, clear and comprehensive, of a crucial aspect of every appellate case, that makes accessible even the most complex doctrines of review.




Becoming Justice Blackmun


Book Description

"A fascinating book. In clear and forceful prose, Becoming Justice Blackmun tells a judicial Horatio Alger story and a tale of a remarkable transformation . . . A page-turner."—The New York Times Book Review In this acclaimed biography, Linda Greenhouse of The New York Times draws back the curtain on America's most private branch of government, the Supreme Court. Greenhouse was the first print reporter to have access to the extensive archives of Justice Harry A. Blackmun (1908–99), the man behind numerous landmark Supreme Court decisions, including Roe v. Wade. Through the lens of Blackmun's private and public papers, Greenhouse crafts a compelling portrait of a man who, from 1970 to 1994, ruled on such controversial issues as abortion, the death penalty, and sex discrimination yet never lost sight of the human beings behind the legal cases. Greenhouse also paints the arc of Blackmun's lifelong friendship with Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, revealing how political differences became personal, even for two of the country's most respected jurists. From America's preeminent Supreme Court reporter, this is a must-read for everyone who cares about the Court and its impact on our lives.




Law at War, Vietnam, 1964-1973


Book Description

One of the first studies to examine exclusively the legal activities of judge advocates in Vietnam, focusing primarily on the U.S. Military Assistance Command (MACV).