Trials from Salem Witchcraft to Rodney King.

From Salem witchcraft to Rodney King.

This two volume set offers unmatched insight into the lives and careers of 100 of America's most notable defense and prosecuting attorneys. Trial lawyers, noted one observer, are "the closest thing America has to the Knights of the Round Table." In this new two volume encyclopedia, which chronicles the lives and careers of America's 100 greatest trial lawyers, readers can explore the historic legal careers of extraordinary barristers like Thomas Jefferson, the young Virginia attorney who drafted the Declaration of Independence, and Daniel Webster, staunch defender of the union. Readers will also meet contemporary litigators like Lawrence Tribe, who led the fight against the tobacco industry; Marian Wright Edelman, a leading advocate for children's rights; Alan Dershowitz, renowned criminal appellate lawyer and public intellectual; and Johnnie Cochran, the defense attorney whose spectacular victory in the O. J. Simpson trial propelled him to superstardom. In the stories of these preeminent litigators, readers will discover not only what qualities make a great lawyer, but also how much we owe to those who have served as our legal advocates.

In a bravura performance that ranges from Aaron Burr to O. J. Simpson, Robert A. Ferguson traces the legal meaning and cultural implications of prominent American trials across the history of the nation. His interdisciplinary investigation carries him from courtroom transcripts to newspaper accounts, and on to the work of such imaginative writers as Emerson, Thoreau, William Dean Howells, and E. L. Doctorow. Ferguson shows how courtrooms are forced to cope with unresolved communal anxieties and how they sometimes make legal decisions that change the way Americans think about themselves. Burning questions control the narrative. How do such trials mushroom into major public dramas with fundamental ideas at stake? Why did outcomes that we now see as unjust enjoy such strong communal support at the time? At what point does overexposure undermine a trial’s role as a legal proceeding? Ultimately, such questions lead Ferguson to the issue of modern press coverage of courtrooms. While acknowledging that media accounts can skew perceptions, Ferguson argues forcefully in favor of full television coverage of them—and he takes the Supreme Court to task for its failure to grasp the importance of this issue. Trials must be seen to be understood, but Ferguson reminds us that we have a duty, currently ignored, to ensure that cameras serve the court rather than the media. The Trial in American Life weaves Ferguson’s deep knowledge of American history, law, and culture into a fascinating book of tremendous contemporary relevance. “A distinguished law professor, accomplished historian, and fine writer, Robert Ferguson is uniquely qualified to narrate and analyze high-profile trials in American history. This is a superb book and a tremendous achievement. The chapter on John Brown alone is worth the price of admission.”—Judge Richard Posner “A noted scholar of law and literature, [Ferguson] offers a work that is broad in scope yet focuses our attention on certain themes, notably the possibility of injustice, as illustrated by the Haymarket and Rosenberg prosecutions; the media’s obsession with pandering to baser instincts; and the future of televised trials. . . . One of the best books written on this subject in quite some time.”—Library Journal, starred review

In The Death of the American Trial, distinguished legal scholar Robert P. Burns makes an impassioned case for reversing the rapid decline of the trial before we lose one of our public culture’s greatest achievements. As a practice that is adapted for modern times yet rooted in ancient wisdom, the trial is uniquely suited to balance the tensions—between idealism and realism, experts and citizens, contextual judgment and reliance on rules—that define American culture. Arguing that many observers make a grave mistake by taking a complacent or even positive view of the trial’s demise, Burns concludes by laying out the catastrophic consequences of losing an institution that so perfectly embodies democratic governance.

Historian Peter Charles Hoffer reexamines a notorious episode in American history and presents many of its legal details in true perspective for the first time. Hoffer also shows how rights we take for granted today did not exist in colonial times, and he demonstrates how these cases relate to current instances of children accusing adults of abuse.