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The Majesty of the Law
Reflections of a Supreme Court Justice
1 of 1 copy available
In this remarkable book, Sandra Day O’Connor explores the law, her life as a Supreme Court Justice, and how the Court has evolved and continues to function, grow, and change as an American institution. Tracing some of the origins of American law through history, people, ideas, and landmark cases, O’Connor sheds new light on the basics, exploring through personal observation the evolution of the Court and American democratic traditions.
Straight-talking, clear-eyed, inspiring, The Majesty of the Law is more than a reflection on O’Connor’s own experiences as the first female Justice of the Supreme Court; it also reveals some of the things she learned about American law and life—reflections gleaned over her years as one of the most powerful and inspiring women in American history.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
December 20, 2002 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781415953105
- File size: 274609 KB
- Duration: 09:32:06
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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Many Americans knows little about the highest court in the land. That's why this history by America's first woman on the Court is valuable. Bernadette Dunne's pleasant voice imparts the writer's knowledge--and entertains at the same time. While one is learning anew about the Court, one also hears anecdotes about its personage--such as the famous Justice who was nearly impeached because of his unusual way of handling some matters. Naturally, O'Connor talks about women past and present, including the Suffragettes and their movement's effects on the Court, and others in the field of law. Dunne sounds committed to the text, and one quickly forgets she's not the Judge. One begins to visualize a gentle woman adorned in a black robe, teaching but not lecturing, about how our High Court helps make our legal system the best in the world. A.L.H. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine -
Written and read by Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, THE MAJESTY OF THE LAW is a collection of speeches delivered by O'Connor over the past decade. As in most cases, it is intriguing to hear an author read her own work, especially when the author is such a noteworthy person. While O'Connor does not have an experienced actor's voice, her reading is sufficient. There are a few sections of the text that are less than scintillating, but the work as a whole is intriguing in its consideration of how the Supreme Court works and its discussion of important issues during Justice O'Connor's tenure. Overall, the book is useful and informative for those interested in understanding the American High Court. M.L.C. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine
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February 17, 2003
O'Connor, veteran associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, distills in this book the scores of talks she has given across the country and around the world in the 20 years since her accession to the high court. O'Connor, the author of the bestselling memoir Lazy B, is an enthusiast of the American legal system, reaching back to its origins in the Magna Carta and, later, in the English Privy Council, with its power to invalidate legislation. Declaring federal and state laws unconstitutional, of course, is the core of the Supreme Court's authority over this country's legal system, and O'Connor traces the exercise of that authority from the era of Chief Justice John Marshall to Brown
v. Board of Education. In other chapters, O'Connor profiles Supreme Court titans such as Holmes and Taft, and reviews the long struggle to gain for women the right to vote. Elsewhere, the author suggests reforms for the jury system, extols the benefits of an independent judiciary and offers a graceful tribute to Justice Thurgood Marshall. Canons of ethics prohibit judges from public comment on controversial matters likely to arise in their future cases, and a Supreme Court justice cannot reveal the dynamics of the Court's deliberations. These rules of discretion pervade O'Connor's book. Divisive (and provocative) issues such as abortion, the death penalty or affirmative action are addressed only in the broadest possible generalities. Purged of controversy, O'Connor's book is an engagingly written civics lesson, delivering a warm appreciation of legal history and principles but little light on the issues the Supreme Court confronts today.
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