Customer Reviews

The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States

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The _Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States_ is a reference book. The topics are arranged alphabetically, like entries in an encyclopedia. They include biographies of all justices to sit in the Supreme Court up to Clarence Thomas' confirmation, and other nominees or people associated to the Court, important decisions (with dates argued, dates decided, what the vote was, who wrote the opinions, etc), basic terms associated with the Court (such as 'writ of certiorari'), constitutional doctrines (such as 'substantive due process') and other topics, such as a very complete History of the Court. The appendices include the U.S. Constitution, two lists of Justices, one simply arranged chronologically, and one more graphical noting who the President who nominated each justice was, who the Chief Justice was, etc. There is also a short appendix with a number of firsts, trivia, and traditions associated to the Court.

I should say that I am not a lawyer and not a Law Student. I am an interested lay observer only. Yet the book is written at a level which is accessible (even if you sometimes have to go check the cross-references), and very, very informative. Just reading a couple of entries a day will greatly enhance your understanding of the Supreme Court and its role, or how the Justices work.

As a reference, I doubt it has a match. The justices' biogrphies are very interesting, including major decisions or philosophical contributions. The summaries of cases include not only information on the case and the decision, but also any lasting constitutional effects, and whether or not they were later overturned (whether by other decisions, or by constitutional amendments). The historical essays alone would be worth the price of admission, as would the thorough coverage of Constitutional Schools (constructivism, First Amendment absolutism, etc), or important precedents and tests. Just what is the "clear and present danger" test, where did it originate, and how has it been modified since then? Turn to 'clear and present danger' and read the entry. You'll learn all that and more.

I've read the book cover to cover, and emerged with a much greater, clearer understanding of the Supreme Court and the Constitution than I could have obtained from reading any other single book. It is not easy reading (imagine trying to read your way through an encyclopedia...) but even if you pick and choose the entries you read, you'll come out wiser than you came in.

I recommend the book heartily to those interested in the Supreme Court, whether professionally or not. It is well worth the price.

_The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States_ ranks among the top five reference works I have perused. Actually, I read this one all the way through, from A to Z. It is the ultimate one-volume guide to American jurisprudence. There are multi-paragraph summaries of just about every High Court case of lasting significance, excellent and detailed biographies and photographs/illustrations of all the Justices through Clarence Thomas, detailed explanations of all the legal, political and historical principles and terms needed to understand the Court and its workings, and, as an added bonus, excellent biographies of figures (such as Judge Learned Hand and defeated nominees such as Haynsworth and Bork) who never served on the Court but had an influence on it in one way or another.

In short, this is the only book on the Supreme Court that a layman should ever need. I can't recommend it enough - it should be in every home.

The Oxford Companion To The Supreme Court of the United States is an excellent reference, not only for it's information on the various Justices that have served over the years, but also for it's concise reviews of legal and government terms and concepts. This work provides informative reviews of the U.S. Constitution, the Amendments, the major cases in constitutional development, and political philosophies. For student's of history, law, or constitutional development, this book is a must. Throw away your casebook, your history book, your copy of the constitution, and all the biographies you've collected on Supreme Court Justices. This is the only book you will ever need to get through college level government classes. Truly The Best!

This book provided excellent bios of all former and current Chief and Associate Justices of the Court. It also includes excellent summaries of major cases and doctrines. I highly recommend this book to all law students, and especially to Political Science undergrads who are contemplating attending law school, and enrolling in undergrad law course.

_The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States_ ranks among the top five reference works I have perused. Actually, I read this one all the way through, from A to Z. It is the ultimate one-volume guide to American jurisprudence. There are multi-paragraph summaries of just about every High Court case of lasting significance, excellent and detailed biographies and photographs/illustrations of all the Justices through Clarence Thomas, detailed explanations of all the legal, political and historical principles and terms needed to understand the Court and its workings, and, as an added bonus, excellent biographies of figures (such as Judge Learned Hand and defeated nominees such as Haynsworth and Bork) who never served on the Court but had an influence on it in one way or another.

In short, this is the only book on the Supreme Court that a layman should ever need. I can't recommend it enough - it should be the home of every educated person with an interest in the law.

The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court is a solid compilation of people, ideas, issues, and desicions involving the U.S. Supreme Court. It is getting a bit dated, but it still has many, many entires that will help anyone better understand the court's history.

Like other Oxford companions, this one was compiled by experts in the field and has much to offer. Likewise it has the annoying nuances of the other volumes (such as using symbols to indicate cross referenced items rather than boldface or italics) but these do not detract from the book's value.

Historians, lawyers, consititution adherents, and many others will find this an invaluable resource worth purchasing,...

Good resource for general Supreme Court information and pre-1992 key cases. However, as those who follow the Supreme Court know, much has happened in the intervening 9 years since the book was published. We currently have a very conservative, yet very active Supreme Court. New judicial trends are emerging in the areas of federalism and congressional commerce powers that are suddenly vastly different from what they had been from the New Deal up until 1995. A glance at recent cases such as The City of Boerne v. Flores and the mind-boggling Bush v. Gore show the Supreme Court's reinterpretation of the reach and power of the 14th Amendment. In short, many of the precedents outlined in this book are no longer valid.

For a more current, and cheaper, book that covers much of the same ground, check out The Oxford Guide to United States Supreme Court Decisions, released in 1999. It only covers the cases, unlike "The Companion;" but that's kinda' the point isn't it?