Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Essays, Cases, and Comparative Notes

Product Description American Constitutional Law: Essays, Cases, and Comparative Notes is a unique casebook that encourages citizens and students of the Constitution to think critically about the fundamental principles and policies of the American constitutional order. In addition to its distinguished authorship, the book has two prominent features that set it apart from other books in the field: an emphasis on the social, political, and moral theory that provides meaning to constitutional law and interpretation, and a comparative perspective that situates the American experience within a world context that serves as an invaluable prism through which to illuminate the special features of our own constitutional order. While the focus of the book is entirely on American constitutional law, the book asks students to consider what, if anything, is unique in American constitutional life and what we share with other constitutional democracies. Each chapter is preceded by an introductory essay that highlights these major themes and also situates the cases in their proper historical and political contexts. This new edition offers updated and expanded treatment of a number of important and timely topics, including gerrymandering and campaign finance, the death penalty, privacy, affirmative action, and school segregation. The new edition offers: * Updated and expanded treatment of key cases on gerrymandering and campaign finance * Expanded discussion of the Court's work federalism and the commerce clause * Discussions of the Court's new cases on the death penalty, including a discussion of the controversy within the Court about the propriety of citing foreign case law * An expanded discussion of the Court's recent work in the area of privacy, including the Court's decisions with regard to partial birth abortions and same sex marriages * An expanded section on the Court's continuing efforts to develop a coherent takings clause jurisprudence * Full coverage of new developments and cases concerning affirmative action an Review Kommers, Finn and Jacobsohn have created an ideal introduction to constitutional law. Every element of this text emphasizes how disagreements among Supreme Court Justices past and present reflect competing visions about the proper scope of judicial power and about the very nature of American constitutionalism. -- Frank J. Colucci, Purdue University Calumet This should quickly become one of the most important major casebooks in constitutional law. The introductory essays place the cases into well-developed contexts of history and political theory. The casebook's major new contribution is its elegant and rigorous use of materials necessary to evaluate the constitution through a comparativist perspective. An outstanding casebook. -- Mariah Zeisberg, University of Michigan At a time when the study and practice of constitutional law has once again become increasingly global, this casebook stands alone among all American constitutional law casebooks for the amount and excellence of its treatment of comparative constitutional issues. -- David Fontana, The George Washington University Law School The third edition of American Constitutional Law is a tour de force in the realm of constitutional law texts. The authors do a remarkable job of placing American constitutional lawmaking in broader normative, interpretive, political, historical, and comparative contexts. They show how constitutional lawmaking is an interesting and contested enterprise that includes much more than the decisions of courts, and they invite the teacher, student, and reader to think critically and for themselves about constitutional law. For instructors who want their students to understand and participate in the compelling and controversial enterprise of constitutional politics and lawmaking, this text is the book for them... -- Donald A. Downs, University of Wisconsin at Madison The third edition of American Constitutional Law is a tour de force in