The United States Supreme Court : the pursuit of justice
With its ability to review and interpret all American law, the Supreme Court of the United States is arguably the most influential branch of government. Yet, institutionally, it is the least powerful. Its authority relies entirely on the willing consent of the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. government and of the American people to accept it as law's ultimate arbiter. Perhaps for this very reason the Court has taken great care to shield itself from the public gaze. Offering a sweeping history of this remote and austere institution, The United States Supreme Court pulls back the curtain of mystery to make the Court accessible to all readers. Eighteen essays, written by the nation's top legal historians -- among them Mark Tushnet, Scot Powe, Paul Finkelman, and Katherine Fischer Taylor -- provide incisive interpretation of the Court's activities over the past two centuries, from its first meetings in borrowed space in the U.S. Capitol to the ornate "Marble Palace" of the present day. The United States Supreme Courtshowcases the Court's legal triumphs and disasters, its internal workings, and its impact on American politics, society, and culture. The book also brings to light the uneasy influence of popular culture and electoral politics on the Court. Organized chronologically by the terms of each chief justice, here are fresh insights into the Court's key moments and cases, from the Dred Scot decision to Brown v. Board of Education, from the Lochner era to the Warren Court, from Roe v. Wade to Bush v. Gore. --Publisher
Nonfiction
xiv, 578 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
9780618329694, 0618329692
57594366
The establishment of the federal court system (1787-1791) / Wythe W. Holt, Jr
The earliest years (1790-1801) : laying foundations / Maeva Marcus
The Marshall Court (1801-1835) : law, politics, and the emergence of the federal judiciary / Charles F. Hobson
The Taney Court (1836-1864) : the jurisprudence of slavery and the crisis of the union / Paul Finkelman
The Chase Court (1864-1873) : cautious reconstruction / Michael Vorenberg
The Waite Court (1874-1888) : the collapse of reconstruction and the transition to conservative constitutionalism / Howard Gillman
The Fuller Court (1888-1910) : property and liberty / Linda Przybyszewski
The White Court (1910-1921) : a progressive court? / William E. Forbath
The Taft Court (1921-1930) : groping for modernity / Melvin I. Urofsky
The Hughes Court (1930-1941) : evolution and revolution / William G. Ross
The Stone and Vinson Courts (1941-1953) : transition and transformation / William M. Wiecek
The Warren Court (1954-1968) : procedural liberalism and personal freedom / Mark Tushnet
The Burger Court (1969-1986) : once more in transition / Keith E. Whittington
The Rehnquist Court (1986- ) : radical revision of American constitutional law / Stephen E. Gottlieb
First appearances : the material setting and culture of the early Supreme Court / Katherine Fischer Taylor
Advocacy before the Supreme Court : 1791 to the present / David C. Frederick
The Supreme Court and popular culture : image and projection / Norman L. Rosenberg
The Supreme Court and election returns / Lucas A. (Scot) Powe, Jr
Appendixes. Supreme Court personnel : 1789 to the present
Supreme Court justices, 1789-2004 : biographical information
The Supreme Court's budget : 1790 to the present
Includes index