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Evolution of the Judicial Opinion: Institutional and Individual Styles

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This book analyzes the evolution of "the public face of the judiciary," judicial opinions. The central theme of Popkin's (Indiana University) enterprise is to interpret how judges' present their opinions, focusing upon the importance of political goals, legal culture, and institutional and individual stylistic considerations. Chapter 1 examines the development of judicial opinion in England. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 survey the maturation of judicial opinion writing in the United States from an institutional perspective. The critique of the American tradition's "antecedents," including Montesquieu, Blackstone, early state constitutions, and the Constitutional Convention, is most helpful. Chapters 5 and 6 assess "contemporary [American] judicial practice" regarding opinions. The most troublesome aspect of the work is the author's remedy for the decline of the efficacy of judicial opinions. Popkin encourages judges to adopt a "greater use of the personal voice and exploratory tone" in writing their opinions; however, his suggestion could potentially promote more judicial activism and a departure from traditional sources of the law. This work constitutes a perspicacious guide to recovering the vitality and importance of judicial opinions, and offers recommendations for the proper mission of judges within a changing legal culture.