How Constitutional Rights Matter

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How Constitutional Rights Matter

Author : Adam Chilton
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN 13 : 0190871458
Total Pages : 397 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (98 download)

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Book Synopsis How Constitutional Rights Matter by : Adam Chilton

Download or read book How Constitutional Rights Matter written by Adam Chilton and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2020 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Does constitutionalizing rights improve respect for those rights in practice? Drawing on statistical analyses, survey experiments, and case studies from around the world, this book argues that enforcing constitutional rights is not easy, but that some rights are harder to repress than others. First, enshrining rights in constitutions does not automatically ensure that those rights will be respected. For rights to matter, rights violations need to be politically costly. But this is difficult to accomplish for unconnected groups of citizens. Second, some rights are easier to enforce than others, especially those with natural constituencies that can mobilize for their enforcement. This is the case for rights that are practiced by and within organizations, such as the rights to religious freedom, to unionize, and to form political parties. Because religious groups, trade unions and parties are highly organized, they are well-equipped to use the constitution to resist rights violations. As a result, these rights are systematically associated with better practices. By contrast, rights that are practiced on an individual basis, such as free speech or the prohibition of torture, often lack natural constituencies to enforce them, which makes it easier for governments to violate these rights. Third, even highly organized groups armed with the constitution may not be able to stop governments dedicated to rights-repression. When constitutional rights are enforced by dedicated organizations, they are thus best understood as speed bumps that slow down attempts at repression. An important contribution to comparative constitutional law, this book provides a comprehensive picture of the spread of constitutional rights, and their enforcement, around the world.

How Constitutional Rights Matter

Author : Adam Chilton
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190871466
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (98 download)

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Book Synopsis How Constitutional Rights Matter by : Adam Chilton

Download or read book How Constitutional Rights Matter written by Adam Chilton and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2020-06-19 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Does constitutionalizing rights improve respect for those rights in practice? Drawing on statistical analyses, survey experiments, and case studies from around the world, this book argues that enforcing constitutional rights is not easy, but that some rights are harder to repress than others. First, enshrining rights in constitutions does not automatically ensure that those rights will be respected. For rights to matter, rights violations need to be politically costly. But this is difficult to accomplish for unconnected groups of citizens. Second, some rights are easier to enforce than others, especially those with natural constituencies that can mobilize for their enforcement. This is the case for rights that are practiced by and within organizations, such as the rights to religious freedom, to unionize, and to form political parties. Because religious groups, trade unions and parties are highly organized, they are well-equipped to use the constitution to resist rights violations. As a result, these rights are systematically associated with better practices. By contrast, rights that are practiced on an individual basis, such as free speech or the prohibition of torture, often lack natural constituencies to enforce them, which makes it easier for governments to violate these rights. Third, even highly organized groups armed with the constitution may not be able to stop governments dedicated to rights-repression. When constitutional rights are enforced by dedicated organizations, they are thus best understood as speed bumps that slow down attempts at repression. An important contribution to comparative constitutional law, this book provides a comprehensive picture of the spread of constitutional rights, and their enforcement, around the world.

Advancing Equality

Author : Jody Heymann
Publisher : Univ of California Press
ISBN 13 : 0520973879
Total Pages : 416 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (29 download)

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Book Synopsis Advancing Equality by : Jody Heymann

Download or read book Advancing Equality written by Jody Heymann and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2020-01-14 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a world where basic human rights are under attack and discrimination is widespread, Advancing Equality reminds us of the critical role of constitutions in creating and protecting equal rights. Combining a comparative analysis of equal rights in the constitutions of all 193 United Nations member countries with inspiring stories of activism and powerful court cases from around the globe, the book traces the trends in constitution drafting over the past half century and examines how stronger protections against discrimination have transformed lives. Looking at equal rights across gender, race and ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation and gender identity, disability, social class, and migration status, the authors uncover which groups are increasingly guaranteed equal rights in constitutions, whether or not these rights on paper have been translated into practice, and which nations lag behind. Serving as a comprehensive call to action for anyone who cares about their country’s future, Advancing Equality challenges us to remember how far we all still must go for equal rights for all. A free open access ebook is available upon publication. Learn more at www.luminosoa.org.

How Rights Went Wrong

Author : Jamal Greene
Publisher : Houghton Mifflin
ISBN 13 : 1328518116
Total Pages : 341 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (285 download)

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Book Synopsis How Rights Went Wrong by : Jamal Greene

Download or read book How Rights Went Wrong written by Jamal Greene and published by Houghton Mifflin. This book was released on 2021 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An eminent constitutional scholar reveals how our approach to rights is dividing America, and shows how we can build a better system of justice.

Constitutional Rights

Author : Randy E. Barnett
Publisher : Aspen Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1454892900
Total Pages : 1108 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (548 download)

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Book Synopsis Constitutional Rights by : Randy E. Barnett

Download or read book Constitutional Rights written by Randy E. Barnett and published by Aspen Publishing. This book was released on 2017-12-01 with total page 1108 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Buy a new version of this Connected Casebook and receive access to the online e-book, practice questions from your favorite study aids, and an outline tool on CasebookConnect, the all in one learning solution for law school students. CasebookConnect offers you what you need most to be successful in your law school classes - portability, meaningful feedback, and greater efficiency. Constitutional Rights: Cases in Context, Second Edition places primary emphasis on how constitutional law has developed since the Founding, its key foundational principles, and recurring debates. By providing both cases and context, it conveys the competing narratives that all lawyers ought to know and all constitutional practitioners need to know. Teachable, manageable, class-sized chunks of material are suited to one-semester courses or reduced credit configurations. Generous case excerpts make the text flexible for most courses. Cases are judiciously supplemented with background readings from various sources. Innovative study guide questions presented before each case help students focus on the salient issues, challenging them to consider the court's opinions from various perspectives, and suggesting comparisons or connections with other cases. Key Benefits: Revised doctrinal areas with newer cases. Updated background contextual material to reflect current scholarship. A highly accessible and engaging structure that examines the competing narratives that pervade the development of American constitutional law since the founding. Related cases are grouped together into "assignments" and make for a reasonable amount of reading for each topic. A wealth of photographs, maps, and primary documents to bring the cases to life. CasebookConnect features: ONLINE E-BOOK Law school comes with a lot of reading, so access your enhanced e-book anytime, anywhere to keep up with your coursework. Highlight, take notes in the margins, and search the full text to quickly find coverage of legal topics. PRACTICE QUESTIONS Quiz yourself before class and prep for your exam in the Study Center. Practice questions from Examples & Explanations, Emanuel Law Outlines, Emanuel Law in a Flash flashcards, and other best-selling study aid series help you study for exams while tracking your strengths and weaknesses to help optimize your study time. OUTLINE TOOL Most professors will tell you that starting your outline early is key to being successful in your law school classes. The Outline Tool automatically populates your notes and highlights from the e-book into an editable format to accelerate your outline creation and increase study time later in the semester.

Why the Constitution Matters

Author : Mark Tushnet
Publisher : Yale University Press
ISBN 13 : 0300165358
Total Pages : 144 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (1 download)

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Book Synopsis Why the Constitution Matters by : Mark Tushnet

Download or read book Why the Constitution Matters written by Mark Tushnet and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A major legal scholar presents an empowering reassessment of our nation’s most essential document In this surprising and highly unconventional work, Harvard law professor Mark Tushnet poses a seemingly simple question that yields a thoroughly unexpected answer. The Constitution matters, he argues, not because it structures our government but because it structures our politics. He maintains that politicians and political parties—not Supreme Court decisions—are the true engines of constitutional change in our system. This message will empower all citizens who use direct political action to define and protect our rights and liberties as Americans. Unlike legal scholars who consider the Constitution only as a blueprint for American democracy, Tushnet focuses on the ways it serves as a framework for political debate. Each branch of government draws substantive inspiration and procedural structure from the Constitution but can effect change only when there is the political will to carry it out. Tushnet’s political understanding of the Constitution therefore does not demand that citizens pore over the specifics of each Supreme Court decision in order to improve our nation. Instead, by providing key facts about Congress, the president, and the nature of the current constitutional regime, his book reveals not only why the Constitution matters to each of us but also, and perhaps more important, how it matters.

Children’s Constitutional Rights in the Nordic Countries

Author : Trude Haugli
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 900438281X
Total Pages : 440 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (43 download)

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Book Synopsis Children’s Constitutional Rights in the Nordic Countries by : Trude Haugli

Download or read book Children’s Constitutional Rights in the Nordic Countries written by Trude Haugli and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2019-12-02 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book presents a comparative study of children’s constitutional rights in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The authors discuss the value of enshrining children’s rights in national constitutions in addition to implementing the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Central issues are whether enshrining children’s rights in the Constitution improves implementation and enforcement of those rights by providing advocacy tools and by mandating courts, legislators, policy-makers and practitioners to take children’s rights seriously. The study assesses whether the Nordic constitutions are in line with the child rights approach of the CRC both on a general level and in detail in three domains; the best interests of the child, participation rights, and the right to respect for family life.

Constitutional Rights and Powers of the People

Author : Wayne D. Moore
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 1400887453
Total Pages : 310 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (8 download)

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Book Synopsis Constitutional Rights and Powers of the People by : Wayne D. Moore

Download or read book Constitutional Rights and Powers of the People written by Wayne D. Moore and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2017-03-14 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: American constitutionalism rests on premises of popular sovereignty, but serious questions remain about how the "people" and their rights and powers fit into the constitutional design. In a book that will radically reorient thinking about the Constitution and its place in the polity, Wayne Moore moves away from an exclusive focus on courts and judges and considers the following queries: Who is included among the people? How are the people politically configured? How may the people act? And how do the people relate to government and other representative structures? Going beyond though not excluding relevant discussions of specific constitutional texts (such as the preamble, articles V and VII, and the ninth, tenth, and fourteenth amendments), Moore examines historical material from the antebellum period, such as the opinions of U.S. Supreme Court justices in the notorious Dred Scott case and significantly different perspectives from the writings and speeches of Frederick Douglass. He also looks at influential thinking from the founding period and examines precedents set during prominent controversies involving the establishment of a national bank, regulations of the economy, and efforts to limit sexual and reproductive choices. The penultimate chapter explores issues raised by claims of state interpretive autonomy, and the conclusion models various dimensions of the constitutional order as a whole. The book offers fresh insights into central problems of constitutional history, theory, and law. Originally published in 1996. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

The Global Model of Constitutional Rights

Author : Kai Möller
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199664609
Total Pages : 239 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (996 download)

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Book Synopsis The Global Model of Constitutional Rights by : Kai Möller

Download or read book The Global Model of Constitutional Rights written by Kai Möller and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2012-10-25 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rapid spread of judicially-enforced constitutional rights has been one of the most dramatic developments in modern law. This book argues that there is now a global model for how such rights should function, and develops an original, philosophically grounded, account of their nature and scope.

America's Unwritten Constitution

Author : Akhil Reed Amar
Publisher : Basic Books (AZ)
ISBN 13 : 0465029574
Total Pages : 644 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (65 download)

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Book Synopsis America's Unwritten Constitution by : Akhil Reed Amar

Download or read book America's Unwritten Constitution written by Akhil Reed Amar and published by Basic Books (AZ). This book was released on 2012-09-11 with total page 644 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reading between the lines: America's implicit Constitution -- Heeding the deed: America's enacted Constitution -- Hearing the people: America's lived Constitution -- Confronting modern case law: America's "warrented" Constitution -- Putting precedent in its place: America's doctrinal Constitution -- Honoring the icons: America's symbolic Constitution -- "Remembering the ladies" : America's feminist Constitution -- Following Washington's lead: America's "Georgian" Constitution -- Interpreting government practices: America's institutional Constitution -- Joining the party: America's partisan Constitution -- Doing the right thing: America's conscientious Constitution -- Envisioning the future: America's unfinished Constitution -- Afterward -- Appendix: America's written Constitution.

The Collapse of Constitutional Remedies

Author : Aziz Z. Huq
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0197556817
Total Pages : 193 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (975 download)

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Book Synopsis The Collapse of Constitutional Remedies by : Aziz Z. Huq

Download or read book The Collapse of Constitutional Remedies written by Aziz Z. Huq and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2021 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "This book describes and explains the failure of the federal courts of the United States to act and to provide remedies to individuals whose constitutional rights have been violated by illegal state coercion and violence. This remedial vacuum must be understood in light of the original design and historical development of the federal courts. At its conception, the federal judiciary was assumed to be independent thanks to an apolitical appointment process, a limited supply of adequately trained lawyers (which would prevent cherry-picking), and the constraining effect of laws and constitutional provision. Each of these checks quickly failed. As a result, the early federal judicial system was highly dependent on Congress. Not until the last quarter of the nineteenth century did a robust federal judiciary start to emerge, and not until the first quarter of the twentieth century did it take anything like its present form. The book then charts how the pressure from Congress and the White House has continued to shape courts behaviour-first eliciting a mid-twentieth-century explosion in individual remedies, and then driving a five-decade long collapse. Judges themselves have not avidly resisted this decline, in part because of ideological reasons and in part out of institutional worries about a ballooning docket. Today, as a result of these trends, the courts are stingy with individual remedies, but aggressively enforce the so-called "structural" constitution of the separation of powers and federalism. This cocktail has highly regressive effects, and is in urgent need of reform"--

On Constitutional Disobedience

Author : Louis Michael Seidman
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199898286
Total Pages : 192 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (998 download)

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Book Synopsis On Constitutional Disobedience by : Louis Michael Seidman

Download or read book On Constitutional Disobedience written by Louis Michael Seidman and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2013-01-02 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What would the Framers of the Constitution make of multinational corporations? Nuclear weapons? Gay marriage? They led a preindustrial country, much of it dependent on slave labor, huddled on the Atlantic seaboard. The Founders saw society as essentially hierarchical, led naturally by landed gentry like themselves. Yet we still obey their commands, two centuries and one civil war later. According to Louis Michael Seidman, it's time to stop. In On Constitutional Disobedience, Seidman argues that, in order to bring our basic law up to date, it needs benign neglect. This is a highly controversial assertion. The doctrine of "original intent" may be found on the far right, but the entire political spectrum--left and right--shares a deep reverence for the Constitution. And yet, Seidman reminds us, disobedience is the original intent of the Constitution. The Philadelphia convention had gathered to amend the Articles of Confederation, not toss them out and start afresh. The "living Constitution" school tries to bridge the gap between the framers and ourselves by reinterpreting the text in light of modern society's demands. But this attempt is doomed, Seidman argues. One might stretch "due process of law" to protect an act of same-sex sodomy, yet a loyal-but-contemporary reading cannot erase the fact that the Constitution allows a candidate who lost the popular election to be seated as president. And that is only one of the gross violations of popular will enshrined in the document. Seidman systematically addresses and refutes the arguments in favor of Constitutional fealty, proposing instead that it be treated as inspiration, not a set of commands. The Constitution is, at its best, a piece of poetry to liberty and self-government. If we treat it as such, the author argues, we will make better progress in achieving both.

Comparative Matters

Author : Ran Hirschl
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN 13 : 0198714513
Total Pages : 317 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (987 download)

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Book Synopsis Comparative Matters by : Ran Hirschl

Download or read book Comparative Matters written by Ran Hirschl and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2014 with total page 317 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Charting the history and analytical underpinnings of comparative constitutional inquiry, this book probes the various types, aims, and methodologies of engagement with the constitutive laws of others through the ages. It explores how and why comparative constitutional inquiry has been and ought to be pursued by academics and jurists worldwide.

Not a Suicide Pact

Author : Richard A. Posner
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199885362
Total Pages : 208 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (998 download)

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Book Synopsis Not a Suicide Pact by : Richard A. Posner

Download or read book Not a Suicide Pact written by Richard A. Posner and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2006-09-01 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Eavesdropping on the phone calls of U.S. citizens; demands by the FBI for records of library borrowings; establishment of military tribunals to try suspected terrorists, including U.S. citizens--many of the measures taken by the Bush administration since 9/11 have sparked heated protests. In Not a Suicide Pact, Judge Richard A. Posner offers a cogent and elegant response to these protests, arguing that personal liberty must be balanced with public safety in the face of grave national danger. Critical of civil libertarians who balk at any curtailment of their rights, even in the face of an unprecedented terrorist threat in an era of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, Posner takes a fresh look at the most important constitutional issues that have arisen since 9/11. These issues include the constitutional rights of terrorist suspects (whether American citizens or not) to habeas corpus and due process, and their rights against brutal interrogation (including torture) and searches based on less than probable cause. Posner argues that terrorist activity is sui generis--it is neither "war" nor "crime"--and it demands a tailored response, one that gives terror suspects fewer constitutional rights than persons suspected of ordinary criminal activity. Constitutional law must remain fluid, protean, and responsive to the pressure of contemporary events. Posner stresses the limits of law in regulating national security measures and underscores the paradoxical need to recognize a category of government conduct that is at once illegal and morally obligatory. One of America's top legal thinkers, Posner does not pull punches. He offers readers a short, sharp book with a strong point of view that is certain to generate much debate. OXFORD'S NEW INALIENABLE RIGHTS SERIES This is inaugural volume in Oxford's new fourteen-book Inalienable Rights Series. Each book will be a short, analytically sharp exploration of a particular right--to bear arms, to religious freedom, to free speech--clarifying the issues swirling around these rights and challenging us to rethink our most cherished freedoms.

Constitutionalism Under Extreme Conditions

Author : Richard Albert
Publisher : Springer Nature
ISBN 13 : 3030490009
Total Pages : 445 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (34 download)

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Book Synopsis Constitutionalism Under Extreme Conditions by : Richard Albert

Download or read book Constitutionalism Under Extreme Conditions written by Richard Albert and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-09-24 with total page 445 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines the problem of constitutional change in times of crisis. Divided into five main parts, it both explores and interrogates how public law manages change in periods of extraordinary pressure on the constitution. In Part I, “Emergency, Exception and Normalcy,” the contributors discuss the practices and methods that could be used to help legitimize the use of emergency powers without compromising the constitutional principles that were created during a period of normalcy. In Part II, “Terrorism and Warfare,” the contributors assess how constitutions are interpreted during times of war, focusing on the tension between individual rights and safety. Part III, “Public Health, Financial and Economic Crises,” considers how constitutions change in response to crises that are neither political in the conventional sense nor violent, which also complicates how we evaluate constitutional resilience in times of stress. Part IV, “Constitutionalism for Divided Societies,” then investigates the pressure on constitutions designed to govern diverse, multi-national populations, and how constitutional structures can facilitate stability and balance in these states. Part V, titled “Constitution-Making and Constitutional Change,” highlights how constitutions are transformed or created anew during periods of tension. The book concludes with a rich contextual discussion of the pressing challenges facing constitutions in moments of extreme pressure. Chapter “Public Health Emergencies and Constitutionalism Before COVID-19: Between the National and the International” is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

How to Read the Constitution--and Why

Author : Kim Wehle
Publisher : HarperCollins
ISBN 13 : 0062896318
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (628 download)

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Book Synopsis How to Read the Constitution--and Why by : Kim Wehle

Download or read book How to Read the Constitution--and Why written by Kim Wehle and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2019-06-25 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A must-read for this era.”—Jake Tapper, CNN Anchor and Chief Washington Correspondent An insightful, urgent, and perennially relevant handbook that lays out in common sense language how the United States Constitution works, and how its protections are eroding before our eyes—essential reading for anyone who wants to understand and parse the constantly breaking news about the backbone of American government. The Constitution is the most significant document in America. But do you fully understand what this valuable document means to you? In How to Read the Constitution--and Why, legal expert and educator Kimberly Wehle spells out in clear, simple, and common sense terms what is in the Constitution, and most importantly, what it means. In compelling terms and including text from the United States Constitution, she describes how the Constitution’s protections are eroding—not only in express terms but by virtue of the many legal and social norms that no longer shore up its legitimacy—and why every American needs to heed to this “red flag” moment in our democracy. This invaluable—and timely—resource includes the Constitution in its entirety and covers nearly every significant aspect of the text, from the powers of the President and how the three branches of government are designed to hold each other accountable, to what it means to have individual rights—including free speech, the right to bear arms, the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, and the right to an abortion. Finally, the book explains why it has never been more important than now for all Americans to know how our Constitution works—and why, if we don’t step in to protect it now, we could lose its protections forever. How to Read the Constitution--and Why is essential reading for anyone who cares about maintaining an accountable government and the individual freedoms that the Constitution enshrines for everyone in America—regardless of political party.

Closing the Courthouse Door

Author : Erwin Chemerinsky
Publisher : Yale University Press
ISBN 13 : 0300224907
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (2 download)

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Book Synopsis Closing the Courthouse Door by : Erwin Chemerinsky

Download or read book Closing the Courthouse Door written by Erwin Chemerinsky and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2017-01-10 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A leading legal scholar explores how the constitutional right to seek justice has been restricted by the Supreme Court The Supreme Court s decisions on constitutional rights are well known and much talked about. But individuals who want to defend those rights need something else as well: access to courts that can rule on their complaints. And on matters of access, the Court s record over the past generation has been almost uniformly hostile to the enforcement of individual citizens constitutional rights. The Court has restricted who has standing to sue, expanded the immunity of governments and government workers, limited the kinds of cases the federal courts can hear, and restricted the right of habeas corpus. Closing the Courthouse Door, by the distinguished legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky, is the first book to show the effect of these decisions: taken together, they add up to a growing limitation on citizens ability to defend their rights under the Constitution. Using many stories of people whose rights have been trampled yet who had no legal recourse, Chemerinsky argues that enforcing the Constitution should be the federal courts primary purpose, and they should not be barred from considering any constitutional question.