Customer Reviews

Constitutional Law, Individual Rights (Examples & Explanations)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is the best study guide for Constitutional Law that I have read. It is written in narrative form, as opposed to outline form. The explanations of cases are clear and concise and reflect the nuances of the lenthy cases in this area where single-paragraph statements in outlines cannot. More importantly, the authors are well regarded constitutional law professors whose evaluations of the cases can be trusted to be accurate as well as even-handed.

Normally, I recommend Examples & Explanation series over any of the other commerical outlines out there. I was very disappointed with both Constitutional Law books however. The examples are unhelpful, especially when a lot of the answers depend on material you won't learn for several chapters! Some of the text is useful but much of it is the authors biased view of what cases mean or should mean. This isn't helpful if you are not taking the class from them!

Overall, I was extremely disappointed in these two books. Not worth the money.

I have used E&E throughout my law studies and have found them incredibly helpful. However, this book and its companion E&E National Power and Federalism, are not nearly as helpful as many other subjects you'll find in the E&E series. For example, almost every example and explanation is based on the most well known/read cases. At first glance, this sounds great. However, if you've read your textbook, this does very little to stretch your understanding of the law. In fact, it is just a recitation of the things you already know.

With that said, I am clearly not a constitutional law scholar and have found this subject to be more difficult than others. However, these books were of limited help. Don't waste your money.

The Redlich hornbook is a lot shorter and easier to read, but unfortunately is last updated in 1999. Until it is current, these are the best.