An Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution


Book Description

A starting point for the study of the English Constitution and comparative constitutional law, The Law of the Constitution elucidates the guiding principles of the modern constitution of England: the legislative sovereignty of Parliament, the rule of law, and the binding force of unwritten conventions.




Invitation to Law & Society


Book Description

Research and real-life examples that “lucidly connect some of the divisive social issues confronting us today to that thing we call ‘the law’” (Law and Politics Book Review). Law and society is a rapidly growing field that turns the conventional view of law as mythical abstraction on its head. Kitty Calavita brilliantly brings to life the ways in which law is found not only in statutes and courtrooms but in our institutions and interactions, while inviting readers into conversations that introduce the field’s dominant themes and most lively disagreements. Deftly interweaving scholarship with familiar examples, Calavita shows how scholars in the discipline are collectively engaged in a subversive exposé of law’s public mythology. While surveying prominent issues and distinctive approaches to both law as it is written and actual legal practices, as well as the law’s potential as a tool for social change, this volume provides a view of law that is more real but just as compelling as its mythic counterpart. With this second edition of Invitation to Law and Society, Calavita brings up to date what is arguably the leading introduction to this exciting, evolving field of inquiry and adds a new chapter on the growing law and cultural studies movement. “Entertaining and conversational.” —Law and Social Inquiry




Introduction to the Study of U.S. Law


Book Description

This book is designed to introduce students to the highlights of the first-year curriculum at a U.S. law school. The first chapter provides an overview of the U.S. legal system. The seven chapters that follow focus on basic foundational subjects: constitutional law, civil procedure, contracts, torts, property, criminal procedure, and criminal law, each in a separate chapter. Although the first chapter consists entirely of articles and other commentary, the other seven chapters consist mainly of edited court decisions. All of the chapters contain notes and questions, highlighting important issues for discussion and providing citations to cases, articles, and other materials for more in-depth study. The book is intended for several types of students: First, it is designed for international students who are attending a U.S. law school to pursue an LL.M degree or an S.J.D. degree. This book gives such students the opportunity to take an intensive course on U.S. law, thus enabling them to learn the fundamental concepts before taking upper-division courses. Second, this book is designed for international students who want to learn about U.S. law but who are not planning to attend a U.S. law school. U.S. law professors can teach the course in foreign law schools using this text. Also, foreign professors who have been trained at a U.S. law school can teach U.S. law at their home institutions. Third, the book is designed for an undergraduate pre-law course at a U.S. college or university. Fourth, the book can be used at U.S. schools that train and certify paralegals. All four types of students share a common desire to learn the basics of U.S. law in one course. And all four types will benefit not only from the substantive materials but also from the experience of learning core subject areas.




Legal Scholar’s Guidebook


Book Description

The Legal Scholar’s Guidebookdemystifies academic legal writing by providing concrete advice on topic selection, research strategies, and analytical frameworks. It is an essential resource for any serious legal scholar. Nascent scholars will find it a reassuring guide through a demanding process and experienced scholars will find it a source of encouragement. Wherever you are on your scholarly journey, the Guidebook is your compass. Scholars will benefit from: Chapter Brainstormsthat contain Questions guiding entry into stages of the research and writing process. Squelch the Impostor tips that include advice to manage stress inherent at each stage of the research and writing process. Specific assignments to methodically guide the scholar through each stage. Examples, Guides, and Checklists that provide samples to help the scholar understand expectations at each stage.




An Introduction to the Comparative Study of Private Law


Book Description

Original sources illustrate and compare the principal doctrines of private law in the United States, England, France, Germany and China.




Law and Humanities


Book Description

This edited collection provides the first accessible introduction to Law and Humanities. Each chapter explores the nature, development and possible further trajectory of a disciplinary ‘law and’ field. Each chapter is written by an expert in the respective field and addresses how the two disciplines of law and the other respective field operate. This edited work, therefore, fulfils a real and pressing need to provide an accessible, introductory but critical guide to law and humanities as a whole by exploring how each disciplinary ‘law and’ field has developed, contributes to further scrutinizing the content and role of law, and how it can contribute and be enriched by being understood within the law and humanities tradition as a whole.




What Every Law Student Really Needs to Know


Book Description

This brief book is designed to prepare students for their first year of law school, thereby decreasing their anxiety and increasing their chances of achieving academic success. Also appropriate for non-J.D. students, including LLM students from foreign countries and graduate students outside law school. Features: Gives student basic grounding in discrete non-legal topics that are important to the contemporary study of law Includes and“Test Your Understandingand” boxes to allow students to use what they are learning Friendly writing style Images and graphics help students remember material




Justice for Some


Book Description

“A brilliant and bracing analysis of the Palestine question and settler colonialism . . . a vital lens into movement lawyering on the international plane.” —Vasuki Nesiah, New York University, founding member of Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL) Justice in the Question of Palestine is often framed as a question of law. Yet none of the Israel-Palestinian conflict’s most vexing challenges have been resolved by judicial intervention. Occupation law has failed to stem Israel’s settlement enterprise. Laws of war have permitted killing and destruction during Israel’s military offensives in the Gaza Strip. The Oslo Accord’s two-state solution is now dead letter. Justice for Some offers a new approach to understanding the Palestinian struggle for freedom, told through the power and control of international law. Focusing on key junctures—from the Balfour Declaration in 1917 to present-day wars in Gaza—Noura Erakat shows how the strategic deployment of law has shaped current conditions. Over the past century, the law has done more to advance Israel’s interests than the Palestinians’. But, Erakat argues, this outcome was never inevitable. Law is politics, and its meaning and application depend on the political intervention of states and people alike. Within the law, change is possible. International law can serve the cause of freedom when it is mobilized in support of a political movement. Presenting the promise and risk of international law, Justice for Some calls for renewed action and attention to the Question of Palestine. “Careful and captivating . . . This book asks that the Palestinian liberation struggle and Jewish-Israeli society each reckon with the impossibility of a two-state future, reimagining what their interests are—and what they could become.” —Amanda McCaffrey, Jewish Currents




Uncertainty in International Law


Book Description

Re-engaging with the Pure Theory of Law developed by Hans Kelsen and the other members of the Viennese School of Jurisprudence, this book looks at the causes and manifestations of uncertainty in international law. It considers both epistemological uncertainty as to whether we can accurately perceive norms in international law, and ontological problems which occur inter alia where two or more norms conflict. The book looks at these issues of uncertainty in relation to the foundational doctrines of public international law, including the law of self-defence under the United Nations Charter, customary international law, and the interpretation of treaties. In viewing international law through the lens of Kelsen’s theory Jörg Kammerhofer demonstrates the importance of the theoretical dimension for the study of international law and offers a critique of the recent trend towards pragmatism and eclecticism in international legal scholarship. The unique aspect of the monograph is that it is the only book to apply the Pure Theory of Law as theoretical approach to international law, rather than simply being a piece of intellectual history describing it. This book will of great interest to students and scholars of public international law, legal theory and jurisprudence.




Empirical Legal Research in Action


Book Description

Empirical legal research is a growing field of academic expertise, yet lawyers are not always familiar with the possibilities and limitations of the available methods. Empirical Legal Research in Action presents readers with first-hand experiences of empirical research on law and legal issues.