Law Makers, Law Breakers and Uncommon Trials |
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From the divine right of Charles I to the civil rights struggle of Rosa Parks, 25 non-fiction stories from the pages of Litigation provide a panorama of people whose actions helped form our legal system and our world. Constitution makers, Civil War enemies, Irish rebels, World War II Nazis, murder and passion, art and prejudice appear in this unique look at our legal history. Did Dr. Samuel Mudd participate in the Lincoln assassination? Was Captain Charles McVay III responsible for the sinking of the USS Indianapolis? Did Levi Weeks kill pretty Elma Sands? Read about unknown founder James Wilson and Hitler's lawyer, Hans Frank. Discover the back stories of landmark cases and enjoy the cross examination and trial skills of lawyers in top form. Each story is complete, but together they reveal the power of the past.
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"Robert and Marilyn Aitken have provided a book that is enjoyable, detailed and instructive. These 25 cases portray the search for justice, a quest that still exists. Keep a copy in your office and when tempted to write a disingenuous letter to a judge or when you gaze out your window and question your career, pick it up and read a few pages. You will remember why you went to law school."
New York Law Journal
"The true-life characters and twisted plots that march across the pages of this marvelous collection, Law Makers, Law Breakers and Uncommon Trials, would put Dickens and Turow to shame: the sitting Supreme Court justice who is hounded by his creditors and twice imprisoned for debt. The young nation's first Jewish nominee to the Supreme Court, who turns the honor down, is later forced to flee the country to avoid a charge of treason, and who still later surfaces as London's leading barrister. The lame-duck Secretary of State, one John Marshall, who forgets to deliver the last of the "midnight judges" commissions, setting off a chain of events that culminates in his own celebrated opinion in Marbury v. Madison. Bob and Marilyn Aitken have reached back in time to show us how much our profession has changed, and how much it remains the same."
William T. Hangley
Hangley, Aronchick Segal & Pudlin
Philadelphia, PA
"For every reader, this book is a valuable library of dramatic events that have shaped our social history. The Aitkens have, however, bestowed a special gift on lawyers. They remind us of the role our profession has played in defining and protecting human liberty. They give us insight about the role each of us might play in that process. And they impart insight into the skills and commitment an advocate must have."
Michael E. Tigar
Chair, Section of Litigation, 1989-90
Professor, Washington College of Law
Visiting Professor, Duke Law School
"Marilyn and Bob Aitken's book contains a treasure trove of material about a number of intriguing cases and their resolutions. Their effortless, easy-to-read style is accessible to all and avoids legalistic parlance. They have unearthed many little known facts and events which led the parties into court. The diversity of material they have explored contributes to a deeper understanding of past lives and times, which, in turn, have helped shaped our own."
Thomas P. Sullivan
Jenner and Block
Chicago, IL
"This is a wonderful, readable and remarkably well researched collection. Each chapter provides a succinct history of the issues of the time and the personalities which make for an uncommon trial. "
Susan E. A. Wise
Wise Pearce Yocis & Smith
Long Beach, CA
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