NOTE: Due to the 2007-2008 renovation project, much of the Law Library book collection is in storage and inaccessible. Consult the online catalog to determine the availability of a particular title listed in these guides, or contact a reference librarian for assistance.
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The Legal System
- Benítez, Alberto Manuel. An Introduction to the United States Legal System: Cases and Comments (KF385.A4 B42 2006).
- Burnham, William. Introduction to the Law and Legal System of the United States (4th ed.) (KF385.B87 2006).
- Farnsworth, F. Allan. An Introduction to the Legal System of the United States (3d ed.) (KF387.F37 1996).
- Feinman, Jay M. Law 101: Everything You Need to Know About the American Legal System (2d ed.) (KF387 .F45 2006).
- Fine, Toni M. (Duke Law ‘86). American Legal Systems: A Resource and Reference Guide (KF240 .F56 1997).
- Fletcher, George P. American Law in a Global Context: The Basics (KF380 .F59 2005).
- Fundamentals of American Law (Alan B. Morrison, ed.) (KF389. F85 1996).
- Hay, Peter. Law of the United States: An Overview (KF385 .H393 2002).
- Hegland, Kenney F. Introduction to the Study and Practice of Law in a Nutshell (4th ed.) (Reserve).
- Introduction to the Law of the United States (David S. Clark & Tugrul Ansay, eds.) (2d ed.) (KF385 .I58 2002).
- Johns, Margaret Z. & Rex R. Perschbacher. The United States Legal System: An Introduction (2d ed.) (KF386 .J64 2007).
- Melone, Albert P. & Allan Karnes. The American Legal System: Foundations, Processes, and Norms (KF386 .M45 2003).
- Moliterno, James E. & Fredric I. Lederer. An Introduction to Law, Law Study, and the Lawyer’s Role (2d ed.) (K237 .M65 2004).
- Von Mehren, Arthur Taylor & Peter L. Murray. Law in the United States (2d ed.) (KF385 .V66 2007). This presentation of the American legal system is designed for lawyers of civil law backgrounds.
The Courts
- Carp, Robert A., Ronald Stidham & Kenneth L. Manning. Judicial Process in America (7th ed.) (KF8700 .C37 2007).
- The Federal Court System in the United States: An Introduction for Judges and Judicial Administrators in Other Countries (Developed by Office of Judges Programs, Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts) (2d ed.) (Documents JU 10.2: F31/2 ).
- Meador, Daniel John. American Courts (2d ed.) (KF8720 .M43 2000).
- Miller, William S., A Primer on American Courts (KF8720 .M55 2005).
- Neubauer, David W. Judicial Process: Law, Courts, and Politics in the United States (3d ed.) (KF8719 .N48 2004).
- Segal, Jeffrey Allan, Harold J. Spaeth, & Sara C. Benesh. The Supreme Court in the American Legal System (KF8742 .S433 2005).
Legal Encyclopedias & Dictionaries
- The entries in West’s Encyclopedia of American Law (2d ed.) (Ref. KF154 .G77 2005) define terms and highlight significant concepts, events, cases, and people.
- American Jurisprudence 2d (1962-) (Practice & Procedure KF154 .A42) and Corpus Juris Secundum (1936-) (Practice & Procedure KF154 .C56) synthesize federal and state law to provide a comprehensive summary of American law.
- Black’s Law Dictionary (8th ed.) (Reserve and Ref. KF156 .B53 2004) is considered the most authoritative American legal dictionary. A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage (2d ed. (Ref. KF156 .G367 1995) and Mellinkoff’s Dictionary of American Legal Usage (Ref. KF156 .M45 1992) are dictionaries of legal language as used in the U.S. today. Legal Terminology (Ref. KF240.B7672006) provides basic explanations of legal terms.
Legal Language/Legal Writing
- Alcaraz Varó, Enrique & Brian Hughes. Legal Translation Explained (K213 .A4182 2002).
- Brostoff, Teresa Kissane & Ann Sinsheimer. Legal English: An Introduction to the Legal Language and Culture of the United States (2d ed.) (KF272 .B76 2003).
- Garner, Bryan A. The Elements of Legal Style (2d ed., 2002) (Reserve KF250 .G37 2002) and Legal Writing in Plain English: A Text with Exercises (KF250 .G375 2001).
- Rossini, Christine. English as a Legal Language (2d ed.) (Ref. K50 .R67 1998).
- Wojcik, Mark E. Introduction to Legal English: An Introduction to Legal Terminology, Reasoning, and Writing in Plain English (2d ed.) (KF250 .W65 2001).
Especially for International Students
- Gader-Shafran, Rachel. The International Student's Survival Guide to Law School in the United States: Everything You Need to Succeed: What to Expect Before You Come to Law School, What to Do When You Get to Law School, How to Organize for Classes, How Study for Exams, How to Attack Writing Papers (KF283 .G33 2003).
- Neacsu, Dana. Introduction to U.S. Law and Legal Research (KF240 .N42 2005 )
- Nedzel, Nadia. Legal Reasoning, Research, and Writing for International Graduate Students (KF240 .N43 2004).
- Ramsfield, Jill J. Culture to Culture: A Guide to U.S. Legal Writing (KF250 .R358 2005)
Katherine Topulos
10/2007