Includes bibliographical references and index.

This text provides an introduction to U.S. law. It is intended for law students, lawyers, and legal scholars from foreign countries; U.S. graduate and undergraduate college students; members of the general reading public in the United States; and anyone who seeks a "big picture" of the law and legal system. Not a casebook, it explains the major substantive areas of the law in narrative form with citations to cases and sources for additional detail. In addition to covering the principal substantive areas of the law, the book has chapters on: essential basic history and governmental structure necessary to an understanding of the legal system; the legal profession; the theory and practice of the adversary system of justice; and statutory interpretation and case law reasoning.