How do justices and judges view their role in society? How do they defend their positions against rival and competing positions? Straight from the mouths of our nation's judges come interesting answers to these interesting questions. In David O'Brien's wide-ranging collection, Supreme Court justices, as well as lower federal court and state court judges, discuss the judicial process, constitutional interpretation, statutory interpretation, judicial federalism, and the role of the judiciary in American politics. A balanced mix of perspectives, these views from the bench feature commentary from such distinguished jurists as Bork, Rehnquist, and Scalia to Brennan, Breyer, Ginsburg, and Marshall.
the best collection of essays from judges about the work of judging currently available in a single collection. a truly niche subject, I know, but that's why it's now in its 3rd or 4th edition. o'brien adds some nice essays of his own that knit together the disparate excerpts that comprise each section. i taught from this for years, but never read it in its entirety. highly recommended if you're teaching courses on american legal history or judicial politics.