NCJ Number
131895
Date Published
1991
Length
471 pages
Annotation
Written for undergraduate courses that deal with America's judicial system, this text probes the history, values, traditions, and philosophy underlying the process by which courts apply the law to actual disputes.
Abstract
Part I examines the legal foundations of the American legal system. It traces the origins of the American legal system to England, so that the system is referred to as Anglo-American law. Under the rubric of legal foundations, this book also examines the structure of courts, the history of Federal courts, and the structure of the Federal judiciary. Part II discusses the principal actors in the American judiciary: lawyers and judges. It examines how law schools train lawyers, the political importance of bar associations, and ethics and discipline. The discussion features access to legal services. Part III examines the users of the courts. Topics covered are litigants, interest groups, and court cases. Part IV examines the flow of cases in criminal and civil trials. Procedures discussed include pretrial proceedings, plea negotiations, sentencing, the transformation of civil disputes, dispositions of civil cases, and trial procedures. Part V addresses appellate review. This includes an overview of the appellate process and U.S. Supreme Court processes and decisions. The epilogue focuses on the process of change in the courts. Chapter references, subject index, and case index