Advanced Search
Print - Close Window
www.greenwood.com/catalog/C7824.aspx
All Greenwood Products
First among Friends Interest Groups, the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Right to Privacy
Suzanne U. Samuels
ISBN: 0-275-97824-9
ISBN-13: 978-0-275-97824-2
300 pages
Praeger Publishers
Publication: 9/30/2004
List Price: $102.95 (UK Sterling Price: £71.95)
Availability: In Stock
Media Type: Hardcover
Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4
Subjects:
Description: In the last several decades, there has been an explosion in the number of amici curiae, or friend of the Court, briefs filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. Amici are not formal parties to a lawsuit, but file to help inform the Justices about the wider repercussions of the case before them. Public law scholars have long discussed whether these briefs have an impact on the Justices. This book is the first study that seeks to assess the extent of amici influence.

This work examines the role of interest groups in the creation and interpretation of the right to privacy, a highly controversial right that derived almost entirely from case law. It looks at amici participation in abortion, aid in dying, family relationships, and anti-sodomy cases. This volume tracks the influence of amici arguments and data on the Justices' handling of these cases.
Table of Contents:
  • Foreword by Nadine Strossen
    Introduction: Decision-Making in the U.S. Supreme Court
    The Right to Privacy Created: Poe v. Ullman and Groswold v. Connecticut
    Amici Curiae and the Abortion Debate
    Amici Curiae and Assistance in Dying
    Amici Curiae and Protected Relationships
    Conclusions
    Bibliography
    Index
About the Author: SUZANNE U. SAMUELS is Associate Professor of Political Science at Seton Hall University. She has written widely in the area of law, politics and society, and is keenly interested in the interplay of law and social and political institutions.
LCC Class: 347
All rights reserved. Copyright © 1999-2009 ABC-CLIO
130 Cremona Dr., Santa Barbara, CA 93117 805-968-1911