The Warren Court and the Pursuit of Justice

Critical Issue

by Morton J. Horwitz

The Hill and Wang Critical Issues Series: concise, affordable works on pivotal topics in American history, society, and politics.

The men who made up the Supreme Court when Earl Warren was Chief Justice (1953-69) changed America forever, and their decisions are still affecting constitutional law today. This overview of the Warren Court focuses on its landmark cases and enduring legacy.

Genres: Law, Nonfiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Morton J. Horwitz is a legal scholar specializing in the history of American law. Horwitz obtained an A.B. from the City College of New York (1959), an A.M. and Ph.D. from Harvard University (1962 and 1964), and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School (1967). He has taught at Harvard Law School since 1970, where since 1981 he has served as the the Charles Warren Professor of American Legal History.

Reviews

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating! I had no idea that the Warren court is responsible for unifying many of the ammendments in the Bill of Rights among the fifty states. This book is just over 100 pages and very readable for the non-lawyer.

[Amy]

This book is going to lose a star simply because there's no damn footnotes.

[Alec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readable history of the Supreme Court's liberal era in the 20th century. Fitting follow-on to constitutional law this semester and a fast-paced intro to seminal 1A caselaw. I'm very taken with Brennan's notion of "human dignity" as the benchmark for a decision. Effects may be challenging to discern and the marbled steps of the Court may put Justices far above the realities of its cases, but keeping an eye on whether its reasoning accounts for the value of all people is a ballast. Reminds me of Lessig's "double helix" re: EP/DP.

[Colin Milon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice synopsis and refresher, but nothing groundbreaking you don’t already know.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Morton Horwitz's book offers its readers a short and easily digestible overview of the main personalities and cases associated with the Supreme Court in the 1950s and 1960s. His focus is on the liberal justices -- a small and constantly fluctuating group -- and their role in shaping a remarkable period of the Court's history. While some of his contextual analysis is dated and his coverage of the conservative justices of the period limited, these flaws are more than offset by his explanation of the ideas and concepts that the Court's decisions introduced into American jurisprudence. For anyone seeking a quick introduction to the the Warren Court and its legacy, this is a good place to start.

[Christina Basandella · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

[Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overall, but sometimes lacking in details on some of the crucial cases decided by the court.