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The Law Library will be closed May 29, 2023 in observance of Memorial Day.

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The West Academic Study Aid subscription allows access to electronic copies of a variety of legal study aids, including the Acing, Exam Pro, and Nutshell series.

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Law School Hints and News

Where you study can be just as important as how you study. If you are surrounded by clutter and distractions, you cannot put your all into your efforts. Make sure to set up a designated study spot that you reserve for study use only and have your and supplies at hand and little else. For some tips on creating a good learning space, visit here.

Monthly Showcase

This month's display topic is Judicial Ethics.

The Supreme Court Justices by Supreme Court Historical Society Staff
ISBN: 0871877236
Publication Date: 1993-07-01
This biographical dictionary of Supreme Court justices through Clarence Thomas is organized chronologically by appointment to the Court. Five-page essays weave biographical data with information on decisions in which the justices played an important role. Each profile contains a black-and-white portrait and other illustrations or political cartoons relevant to the justices' careers. Entries help spotlight lesser-known justices such as Frank Murphy, who wrote a powerful dissenting opinion against the Japanese-American internment.
An appendix contains a chart listing each member's home state, the president who appointed, dates of appointment, years of service, etc. A bibliography lists sources on the Court and individual justices. A detailed index includes references to cases.
Congressional Quarterly's Guide to the U. S. Supreme Court by Joan Biskupic; Elder Witt
ISBN: 1568022360
Publication Date: 1996-11-01
No other reference on the U.S. Supreme Court offers so much detail and insight in so readable a format. This two-volume set is packed with all the information readers need from the Court's origins and how it functions, to the people who have shaped it and the impact of its decisions on American life.

Guide to the U.S. Supreme Court covers the Court's history; its operations; its power in relation to other branches of government; major decisions, and biographies of the justices. Decisions, changes, controversies, and appointments and retirements through the July 1996 term are placed in the context of the Court's history.
A People's History of the Supreme Court by Peter Irons
ISBN: 0143037382
Publication Date: 2006-07-25
A comprehensive history of the people and cases that have changed history, this is the definitive account of the nation's highest court featuring a forward by Howard Zinn Recent changes in the Supreme Court have placed the venerable institution at the forefront of current affairs, making this comprehensive and engaging work as timely as ever. In the tradition of Howard Zinn's classic A People's History of the United States, Peter Irons chronicles the decisions that have influenced virtually every aspect of our society, from the debates over judicial power to controversial rulings in the past regarding slavery, racial segregation, and abortion, as well as more current cases about school prayer, the Bush/Gore election results, and "enemy combatants." To understand key issues facing the supreme court and the current battle for the court's ideological makeup, there is no better guide than Peter Irons. This revised and updated edition includes a foreword by Howard Zinn. "A sophisticated narrative history of the Supreme Court . . . [Irons] breathes abundant life into old documents and reminds readers that today's fiercest arguments about rights are the continuation of the endless American conversation." -Publisher's Weekly (starred review)
The Supreme Court a to Z by Kenneth W. Jost
ISBN: 9780872893351
Publication Date: 2006-12-01
′′′′Revised and updated to include coverage of significant new cases and the recent changes on the bench, this valuable research tool is the definitive source for information on the Court, its justices, and its impact on American democracy. Written in understandable language for general audiences, The Supreme Court A to Z provides biographies of past and present justices, the history of important cases, and explanations of constitutional principles and legal concepts. ′′′′Important additions to the fourth edition include:′′′′New biographies of recently appointed Chief Justice John G. Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito′′′′Updated entries on key issues and concepts including capital punishment, confirmation process, habeas corpus, judicial activism, separation of powers, and many more′′′′New entries on intellectual property and international law′′′′With over 350 entries arranged in encyclopedic A-to-Z format, this updated ready reference is a must-have resource for school, academic, public, and special libraries.′′′′
Judicial Conduct and Ethics by Charles Gardner Geyh; James J. Alfini; James Sample
ISBN: 9781663308368
Publication Date: 2020-01-01
Judges are expected not simply to decide the law but to exemplify it. In the face of increasing public scrutiny and a welter of new decisions, even the best-intentioned judges can find themselves at a loss. Here is the authoritative, practical guidance you need to ensure judicial activities are irreproachable.

Now in its sixth edition, Judicial Conduct and Ethics has established its reputation as the nation's most definitive guide to the conduct of federal, state, and local judges. The new edition, which keeps pace with recent developments in this fast-evolving field, builds on this tradition.
The Puzzle of Judicial Behavior by Lawrence Baum
ISBN: 0472106708
Publication Date: 1997-11-21
From local trial courts to the United States Supreme Court, judges' decisions affect the fates of individual litigants and the fate of the nation as a whole. Scholars have long discussed and debated explanations of judicial behavior. This book examines the major issues in the debates over how best to understand judicial behavior and assesses what we actually know about how judges decide cases. It concludes that we are far from understanding why judges choose the positions they take in court. Lawrence Baum considers three issues in examining judicial behavior. First, the author considers the balance between the judges' interest in the outcome of particular cases and their interest in other goals such as personal popularity and lighter workloads. Second, Baum considers the relative importance of good law and good policy as bases for judges' choices. Finally Baum looks at the extent to which judges act strategically, choosing their own positions after taking into account the positions that their fellow judges and other policy makers might adopt. Baum argues that the evidence on each of these issues is inconclusive and that there remains considerable room for debate about the sources of judges' decisions. Baum concludes that this lack of resolution is not the result of weaknesses in the scholarship but from the difficulty in explaining human behavior. He makes a plea for diversity in research. This book will be of interest to political scientists and scholars in law and courts as well as attorneys who are interested in understanding judges as decision makers and who want to understand what we can learn from scholarly research about judicial behavior. Lawrence Baum is Professor of Political Science, Ohio State University.

FAMU Law Library Online Repository

Be sure to visit the Library’s Online Repository at http://commons.law.famu.edu/.

The Repository holds a variety of publications and documents that could be useful for projects and research. Alumni, faculty, and student academic publications are available free to access to anyone on the web and cover a wide variety of topics. Through the online repository platform, FAMU College of Law’s Scholarly Commons scholarship has reached thousands of researchers around the world. To see the readership that the College's scholarship has, you can view the daily downloads of the Repository’s holdings through a map located at the bottom of the main page.

The Repository also hosts materials on FAMU College of Law’s founding, including information on the efforts of Virgil Hawkins to enter into the profession of law.

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