About the Book
Constitutional Law for a Changing America
Lee Epstein, Northwestern University
Thomas G. Walker, Emory University
So much more than a traditional casebook, this innovative text gets students to realize—quite powerfully—that Supreme Court cases are more than just legal names and citations. The landmark cases analyzed and excerpted in this highly successful two-volume set involve real people embroiled in real disputes whose cases have real political consequences. Blending the best of legal and political science approaches to constitutional law, Epstein and Walker explain the political factors that influence judicial decisions. Their emphasis on political context—arguments and input from lawyers and interest groups, justices' ideological and behavioral inclinations, elected officials' partisan positions, as well as public opinion—allows students to see the development of constitutional doctrine within a decidedly political environment.
Authored commentary, wrapped around the cases, helps students understand a particular case, as well as place it within the larger picture of an evolving and dynamic body of law. To help students see alternative points of view, the authors have included excerpts of important concurring and dissenting opinions for virtually all cases in the book. Curious students will appreciate both the Aftermath boxes which describe what happened to litigants after a ruling, and the Global Perspective boxes, which compare U.S. case law to similar rulings and tenets in foreign judicial systems. Epstein and Walker also include profiles of influential groups and justices, photographs of litigants, exhibits from cases, and lively descriptions of the events that led to the suits. Website addresses are included throughout, giving students easy access to the full text of opinions as well as to an audio recording of oral arguments when available.
For more information on each title, please follow the links below.
Rights, Liberties, and Justice
Institutional Powers and Constraints
