The Legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

by Scott Dodson (Editor)

Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a legal icon. In more than fifty years as a lawyer, professor, appellate judge, and associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, Ginsburg has influenced the law and society in real and permanent ways. This book chronicles and evaluates the remarkable achievements Ruth Bader Ginsburg has made over the past half century. Including chapters written by prominent court watchers and leading scholars from law, political science, and history, it offers diverse perspectives on an array of doctrinal areas and on different time periods in Ginsburg's career. Together, these perspectives document the impressive -- and continuing -- legacy of one of the most important figures in modern law.

Genres: Nonfiction, Law, Biography, Politics, Feminism

326 pages, Hardcover

First published January 26, 2015

Reviews

[Alex Yard]

This is the first time I've bailed mid way through a book in probably five years. And a shame too because I only had 70 pages left.

But I'm changing the way I do business.

Because this book started out okay but boy did it get dull. And the fact that this is an anthology of different authors' contributions, so a lot of points got mentioned over and over. They could have done some more mindful editing/revision when they put these pieces together in a single binding.

The opening sections actually weren't bad at all, especially interesting were the history of cases involving gender equality, and the philosophies Ginsburg has applied to influential judicial decisions.

But I came across the section on jurisdiction...federal vs state vs local....it was just deep insider baseball, nothing really interesting to get from it unless you're a law student.

Ultimately if you want interesting, compelling stuff about the Supreme Court, read Jeffrey Toobin's stuff.

This book falls deep below.

[Skostal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the first books to chronicle “Notorious RBG's" life and legal legacy. Edited by Professor Scott Dodson of UC Hastings College of the Law, the book contains both scholarly pieces on her contributions to jurisprudence as well as essays on her personal from prominent legal affairs journalists such as NPR’s Nina Totenberg and Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick. Essays cover her extraordinary marriage to Marty Ginsburg, how her early interest in gender discrimination (which she experienced firsthand) shaped her jurisprudence, her tenure at the ACLU and her career as a law professor.

On the scholarly side, household names include Boalt’s Herma Hill Kay and Harvard’s Lani Guinier, among others. Those pieces dissect her influence on legal issues as varied as race discrimination in public schools, the interaction of legal systems, her approach to Congressional power, and the law of federal jurisdiction. Other essays straddle the professional and personal, including a piece from SCOTUSblog’s Tom Goldstein on her oral-argument style.

While this reader was lost after the word “federal” in some essays, and though some anecdotes about her life are repeated, feminists and court junkies should love the collection. At 336 pages, it’s just the length for a week’s vacation.

[Taylor Curran · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read. The book is formatted as a series of essays on RBG, broken down into several sections, from her time as a professor of law and ACLU lawyer through to her Supreme Court rulings. As such, it provides a wide range of perspectives on her life, accomplishments, influence, and jurisprudence. But beware (from a non-lawyer): some of the essays are quite specific, technical, and perhaps tedious to some; but the upside is likely a more thorough understanding of her actual opinions, legal strategies, and effects on the law than you could get from most other books on the "Notorious RBG".

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is for Supreme Court nerds. I bought it at the Supreme Court book store and have it on my nightstand. I read it to learn about RBG but also about the Court's interpretation of various cases. Some articles are fascinating, most though are dense and real snoozers. My favorite article was written by Nina Totenberg.

[Everydayreader1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg' by Scott Dodson chronicles the life and achievements of United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg--more so from the perspective of her impact on women's rights as a law school professor, Appellate Court Judge, and U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice--with her personal life as wife and mother added in. Each chapter is written by those who know Justice Ginsburg through her work as well as those who know her as a person.

I found the book interesting, though some may find it geared more toward legal arguments and construct analysis rather than the biographical approach which they may be expecting. What I found most interesting were the opinions and reasoning of some of the other Justices in key cases, and I marveled at Justice Ginsburg's ability to make her points skillfully and adroitly without exploding in temper as I wanted to do when reading certain comments in quoted opinions. Justice Ginsburg is ever mindful of the past and its ability to teach us, while keeping an eye on the future.

[Giuseppe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great overview of the justice's jurisprudence. Each section is authored by highly regarded experts in law, history and political science. I enjoyed the majority of the book. Chapters written by Nina Totenberg and Dahlia Lathwick were particularly enjoyable. However, the chapter related to criminal procedure, an area of law often overlooked in discussions of Ginsburg, is hampered by the chapter's author, Aziz Z. Huq, who mistakens the use of advanced vocabulary as tantamount to substantive analysis. A wasted opportunity indeed.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the book because I learned a lot about this woman that I truly admire; but I will admit that it took me a long time given that I am not the intended audience for this book. This is a book written by law professionals for law professionals. Sometimes I'd have to read a sentence multiple times to figure it out (do they teach run on sentences purposefully in law school?). I also found at least 3 run on sentences with no noun - same author/different essays. Geez!

[ML Delaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a great book for such a great lady. I highly recommend the Nina Totenberg chapters.