The Oxford companion to the Supreme Court of the United States /

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Bibliographic Details
Edition:2nd ed.
Imprint:New York : Oxford University Press, 2005.
Description:1 online resource (1239 pages).
Language:English
Subject:United States. -- Supreme Court -- Encyclopedias.
United States. -- Supreme Court.
Electronic books.
Encyclopedias.
Electronic books.
Format: E-Resource Book
URL for this record:http://pi.lib.uchicago.edu/1001/cat/bib/12357419
Hidden Bibliographic Details
Other authors / contributors:Hall, Kermit.
ISBN:0195176618
9780195176612
Notes:Includes bibliographical references and browse index.
Summary:Includes entries on key cases and full treatment of crucial areas of constitutional law, such as abortion, freedom of religion, school desegregation, freedom of speech, voting rights, military tribunals, and the rights of the accused. Essential for judges, lawyers, academics, journalists.
Review by Choice Review

Thirteen years of Supreme Court history are incorporated in this second edition, reflecting many changes since the first (CH, Mar'93, 30-4085): two new justices and major new cases, e.g., President Clinton's impeachment trial, Bush v. Gore, and the University of Michigan affirmative action lawsuits. This edition includes 200 additional articles, for a total of more than 1,200, on all aspects of the court's history, justices, operations, and cases. Over 300 experts contributed the entries, which vary in length; some have bibliographic references. The organization is similar to that of the first edition, with alphabetical entries, portraits of the justices, cross-references, and indexes by both case name and topic. Similarly, appendixes include the Constitution; justice nominations with votes and years of service, 1789-1994 (but labeled 1789-1991); appointments; succession; and trivia and traditions of the Court. Competitors for this work are CQ's The Supreme Court A to Z (3rd ed., 2003), by Kenneth Jost, a book that is half the length and more oriented to the layperson; and the three-volume Encyclopedia of the U.S. Supreme Court, ed. by Thomas Lewis and Richard Wilson (CH, Feb'01, 38-3098). This work is more detailed than the CQ volume; it is up-to-date and a bargain. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. L. Treff-Gangler University of Colorado at Denver

Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review

This convenient and authoritative guide to the Supreme Court succeeds well in accomplishing its goal of providing a political, economic, cultural, and legal history of the Court and, by extension, of the very country itself. In more than 1,000 entries, about 300 contributors interpret the Court to the layperson, providing historical context, evaluation, and explanation of its decisions and procedures. The contributors explain the Court's influence on American life and vice versa. While the editors are all professors of law, browsing through the list of contributors reveals professors of history, political science, and government as well as librarians, justices, attorneys, and archivists. Entries are of several types. Biographies treat every justice, every nominee, and many prominent lawyers who argued before the Court. Sheldon Novick's entry on Oliver Wendell Holmes is a masterpiece of interpretation, pointing out Holmes' chief theories and influences on the Court. Conceptual entries define ideas. The entry Double Jeopardy, for example, provides historical context, relevant cases, and the importance of the idea to the court. Institutional entries treat such matters as the clerks of the justices and the office of chief justice. Entries on the physical surroundings of the Court highlight its location. Longer entries end with brief bibliographies of nontechnical literature. The more than 400 entries on Court decisions include a U.S. Reports citation, date argued, date decided, and chief spokesman; each entry discusses the impact of the case on American life. Interpretive entries treat substantive topics such as abortion and procedural topics such as the insanity defense. History of the Court is a four-part chronological essay. Other historical entries treat such broad subjects as slavery and race and racism--again, always with the interpretive approach that explains the effect of the issue on the Court as well as the Court's effect on the issue. Vocabulary entries provide definitions for basic terms like writ of mandamus and such famous phrases as separate but equal. The companion is thoroughly cross-referenced. Any topic that has its own entry is marked by an asterisk in the text. See and see also references are plentiful; for example, the entry Flag Burning leads to several important cases and to the entry Symbolic Speech. In a project of this scope, there is always room to quibble. For example, McCulloch v. Maryland is fundamental to the discussion in State Regulation of Commerce, but the entry for the case itself does not refer to the broader entry. The companion concludes with case-name and topical indexes as well as extensive appendixes, including the succession of justices, vacancies, appointing presidents, Senate votes of confirmation and rejection, length of service of each justice, and trivia and traditions of the Court. About 100 black-and-white photographs add interest. The companion is a unique work. It covers landmark cases and biographies--as do Congressional Quarterly's Guide to the U.S. Supreme Court, second edition [RBB My 1 90], and Facts On File's Reference Guide to the United States Supreme Court (1986)--but is in a handy A-Z arrangement and lacks the long essays of those two books. It complements but does not replace them. The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States belongs in every library, high school and up, and on the shelf of the practitioner and the teacher. It will prove to be the standard reference work on the Supreme Court. (Reviewed Dec. 1, 1992)

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review

This obviously impressive and highly needed collection of over 1000 entries on the Supreme Court is sure to become the standard in the field. Succeeding in their appointed task ``to humanize the high court,'' the editors have assembled an excellent cast of contributors--scholars and legal professionals--who have covered virtually every aspect of the Court's work and its all-important, often controversial role in American law and politics. Entries feature biographies of all the justices and other figures connected with the Court's histories. Other entries discuss the Court's most significant decisions, and chronological essays explore the Court's history and related topics like slavery and the civil rights movement. This fine volume is essential for any serious student of the Court; it belongs in every academic library in the country. Its organization is first-rate and its scope is all-encompassing. Highly recommended.-- Stephen K. Shaw, Northwest Nazarene Coll., Nampa, Id. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 10 Up-- An extremely thorough treatment of the subject, composed of brief defining entries and lengthy essays by almost 300 contributors, including lawyers, judges, scholars, and journalists, who were charged with the responsibility of making their presentations accessible to a general readership. Entries, arranged alphabetically, cover the internal operations and history of the Court; biographical information on all of the justices plus other relevant historical figures; definitions of basic legal and constitutional terminology; and the process of selecting, nominating, and confirming justices. More than 400 entries examine the Court's most significant decisions. All are signed; those of any length are followed by selective bibliographies of further reading. Every effort has been made to provide adequate cross referencing within the text and at the end of entries. Cases (with proper citation), persons, places, and institutions are indexed. This work will be of value not only to students of the Court and constitutional law, but also to those needing information (interpretive and/or historical) about the major socioeconomic issues of our day. Illustrations, primarily portraits and photographs of the justices, are of good quality and appropriately placed. This is a landmark publication, representing the highest standard of American scholarship. It is strongly recommended for reference collections serving high school students.-- Tess McKellen, Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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