American Law: An Introduction

by Lawrence M. Friedman

Thousands of rules affect our work and play, what we buy, and how we get along with our neighbors. This book meets the need of students and general readers alike for a comprehensive introduction to the American legal system. It explains how laws are made and brilliantly explores the way changes in law mirror, and sometimes guide, changes in society . Lawrence Friedman now offers a revised and updated edition of his comprehensive introduction to the American legal system. Rich in anecdote and historical detail, this invaluable book makes the bewildering complexity of American law understandable to us all. It explains how laws are made, from the United States Constitution to the small-town zoning board, and how law is administered by courts and agencies at every level of government. It describes the tremendous variety of law: antitrust law, family law, torts (the law of accidents), criminal justice, rules for packaging medicine and food. And it brilliantly explores important trends to reveal the way changes in law mirror, and sometimes guide, changes in society.

Genres: Law, Nonfiction

416 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1984

About the author

Professor of law.

Also author of mystery novels, The Frank May Chronicles.

Reviews

[Alisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um sorry, this is really nerdy. But what a clear concise and compelling introduction to American law! Thanks Lawrence Friedman.

[Cara · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. The section on the history of American law, which was basically just an overview of US history, was reprehensible.

Friedman somehow writes about the colonization of the US West by saying that the US "chose not to act as a colonial power" and never mentioning the native people of this continent until the very end of the chapter. Only after claiming multiple times that the land was "empty". He even uses the word "destiny" to describe genocidal westward expansion by whites.

Not content to insult the indigenous people of this land, Friedman also chooses to treat the horrors of slavery as a kind of footnote to the rosy picture of American "freedom". I stopped reading the book when he said that nineteenth century visitors would have been impressed at the amount of personal freedom in the US.

Yes, the *nineteenth century*, for most of which the US had what I think was the only surviving chattel slavery system on earth, perpetrating some of the worst brutality humanity has seen upon people who, by definition, were not free.

I can't trust an author whose racism was clear from the first chapter. I'll have to find a fairer and more accurate overview of US law.

[John Preston · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a text book from my undergrad days at UW in 1984. It is interersting to read how much has changed and how much has stayed the same. Well written and organized though the author uses judgy biased language at times where it was uneeded...though maybe it wasn't thought to be judgy and biased in 1984.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was well-written and "did what it said on the tin", although, as others have noticed, it could be a bit dry at times.

Friedman aims for political neutrality quite successfully, although his selection of topics, his emphasis on context, and his pointing to discrepancies between the law in theory and the law in practice suggest that he is left-of-centre (which I had no problem with).

My only siginificant problem was he would often tease the reader with a reference to a case or article which sounded quite interesting. He references professionally, but it would have been nice for him to include a couple more details - I'm much too lazy to actually track down the sources that he refers to!

[Christie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well written account of pretty basic stuff when it comes to the law. Things are a bit outdated and the text can be a bit dry, but good for an overview of how American law came to be and how it works (or worked a decade or so ago).