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Loading... Evolution of the judicial opinion : institutional and individual stylesby William D. Popkin
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. 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. no reviews | add a review
In this sweeping study of the judicial opinion, William D. Popkin examines how judges' opinions have been presented from the early American Republic to the present. Throughout history, he maintains, judges have presented their opinions within political contexts that involve projecting judicial authority to the external public, yet within a professional legal culture that requires opinions to develop judicial law through particular institutional and individual judicial styles. Tracing the history of judicial opinion from its roots in English common law, Popkin documents a general shift from uno No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)347.73Social sciences Law Courts And Procedure North America United StatesLC ClassificationRatingAverage: No ratings.Is this you?Become a LibraryThing Author. |