The Death of the American Trial

By Robert P. Burns

Book Overview

In The Death of the American Trial , distinguished legal scholar Robert P. Burns makes an impassioned case for reversing the rapid decline of the trial before we lose one of our public culture's greatest achievements. As a practice that is adapted for modern times yet rooted in ancient wisdom, the trial is uniquely suited to balance the tensions--between idealism and realism, experts and citizens, contextual judgment and reliance on rules--that define American culture. Arguing that many observers make a grave mistake by taking a complacent or even positive view of the trial's demise, Burns concludes by laying out the catastrophic consequences of losing an institution that so perfectly embodies democratic governance.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0226081273
• ISBN13: 9780226081274
• Release Date: May 2011
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"