For evidence of the continued importance of the Supreme Court in American society, one has to look no further than the number of reference works published in recent years on this topic. The latest work, edited by legal historian Urofsky, offers a series of signed essays on the 107 men and women who have served on this bench, from John Jay to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, each written by a historian or legal scholar. Arrangement is alphabetical, and each essay is prefaced with a header that gives birth and death dates, and dates of service on the Court. Essays vary from one to nine pages. Brief annotated bibliographies are included for each justice, and there is a subject index and index of cases. Portraits are included for about half of the justices
The particular strength of this work is the focus the essays maintain on the judicial contribution and legal philosophy of each justice. Biographical details are provided, but they are not the emphasis of the essays, which are intended to be interpretive. A great deal of the focus is on the justices' written opinions and other evidence of their roles on the court. Thus, such justices as John Rutledge and James Francis Byrnes, who had important careers outside the court but whose contributions as justices were minimal, receive rather brief treatment. Each essay is careful to present varying viewpoints on its subject, as appropriate, and the authors do a generally good job of making clear the legal issues involved. One minor blemish is some carelessness in editing the chapter header information; Joseph Story was nominated in 1811 (not 1832), a retirement date is lacking for Harry Blackmun, and the headers are inconsistent about indicating whether an individual served as chief justice. In all these cases correct information is supplied in the text
This work most closely resembles "Supreme Court Justices: Illustrated Biographies, 1789-1993" (Congressional Quarterly, 1993). That work, however, offers unsigned entries that concentrate more on the lives and characters of the justices and gives a more cursory treatment of their judicial opinions. It is more profusely illustrated than the work under review. The most extensive treatment of the various justices is still the five-volume "Justices of the United States Supreme Court" (Chelsea House, 1969-78), frequently cited in the bibliographies of Urofsky's work. Biographical sketches of the justices can also be found in "A Reference Guide to the United States Supreme Court" (Facts On File, 1986), "Congressional Quarterly's Guide to the U.S. Supreme Court" (2d. ed., Congressional Quarterly, 1990), "The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States" (Oxford, 1992), and "The Supreme Court A to Z" (Congressional Quarterly, 1993). However, "The Supreme Court Justices" is unique in providing substantial treatments of the justices' legal contributions in a convenient and current manner, and thus should find a place in all but the smallest reference collections in academic and public libraries.
Contains analytical and interpretive essays on the 107 men and women who have sat on the nation's highest bench, from John Jay, the first Chief Justice, to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the latest appointee. Entries focus on each justice's court tenure and gauge his or her contributions to American law. Written in clear, nonlegal language, includes b&w portraits and a bibliography for each individual profiled. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
