Description
Book SynopsisRenowned legal historian Lawrence Friedman presents an accessible and authoritative history of American law from the colonial era to the present day. This fully revised fourth edition incorporates the latest research to bring this classic work into the twenty-first century. In addition to looking closely at timely issues like race relations, the book covers the changing configurations of commercial law, criminal law, family law, and the law of property. Friedman furthermore interrogates the vicissitudes of the legal profession and legal education. The underlying theory of this eminently readable book is that the law is the product of society. In this way, we can view the history of the legal system through a sociological prism as it has evolved over the years.
Table of ContentsPrologue Part I: The Beginnings: American Law in the Colonial Period Part II: From the Revolution to the Middle of the Nineteenth Century:1776-1850 Chapter 1 The Republic of Bees Chapter 2 Outposts of the Law: The Frontier and the Civil Law Fringe Chapter 3 Law and the Economy: 1776-1850 Chapter 4 The Law of Personal Status: Wives, Paupers, and Slaves Chapter 5 An American Law of Property Chapter 6 The Law of Commerce and Trade Chapter 7 Crime and Punishment: And a Footnote on Tort Chapter 8 The Bar and Its Works Part III: American Law to the Close of the Nineteenth Century Chapter 1 Blood and Gold: Some Main Themes in the Law in the Last Half of the Nineteenth Century Chapter 2 Judges and Courts: 1850-1900 Chapter 3 Procedure and Practice: An Age of Reform Chapter 4 The Land and Other Property Chapter 5 Administrative Law and Regulation of Business Chapter 6 Torts Chapter 7 The Underdogs: 1850-1900 Chapter 8 The Law of Corporations Chapter 9 Commerce, Labor, and Taxation Chapter 10 Crime and Punishment Chapter 11 The Legal Profession: The Training and Literature of Law Chapter 12 The Legal Profession: At Work Part IV: The Twentieth Century Chapter 1 Leviathan Comes of Age Chapter 2 The Growth of the Law Chapter 3 Internal Legal Culture in the Twentieth Century: Lawyers, Judges, and Law Books Chapter 4 Regulation, Welfare, and the Rise of Environmental Law Chapter 5 Crime and Punishment in the Twentieth Century Chapter 6 Family Law in the Twentieth Century Epilogue A Final Word Bibliographical Essay Index
