The Texas Supreme Court : A Narrative History, 1836–1986
“Few people realize that in the area of law, Texas began its American journey far ahead of most of the rest of the country, far more enlightened on such subjects as women's rights and the protection of debtors.” Thus James Haley begins this highly readable account of the Texas Supreme Court. The first book-length history of the Court published since 1917, it tells the story of the Texas Supreme Court from its origins in the Republic of Texas to the political and philosophical upheavals of the mid-1980s. Using a lively narrative style rather than a legalistic approach, Haley describes the twists and turns of an evolving judiciary both empowered and constrained by its dual ties to Spanish civil law and English common law. He focuses on the personalities and judicial philosophies of those who served on the Supreme Court, as well as on the interplay between the Court's rulings and the state's unique history in such areas as slavery, women's rights, land and water rights, the rise of the railroad and oil and gas industries, Prohibition, civil rights, and consumer protection. The book is illustrated with more than fifty historical photos, many from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It concludes with a detailed chronology of milestones in the Supreme Court's history and a list, with appointment and election dates, of the more than 150 justices who have served on the Court since 1836.
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Lobbying Regulation : History, Laws, Reform Options, and Compliance
This book provides a retrospective and prospective analysis of the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) on its 20th anniversary. It begins with a historical summary of citizens' right to petition, the connection between the right to petition and lobbying, and the regulation of contact between citizens and government in the United States. The book then examines contemporary issues that might affect lobbying and citizens' right to petition government; and provides analysis of potential options for congressional action should Congress consider amending provisions of the LDA. Moreover, the book provides a brief history and description of the provisions of federal law restricting employment opportunities and activities of federal employees after they leave the service of the executive or legislative branches of the federal government.
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New scholarship for a new paradigm in interest groups politics… The 2010 campaign and election was pivotal: the Republican takeover of the House, the advent of' super PACs, 'and record-breaking sums spent on a midterm election. More than ever before, interest groups were able to mobilize new resources and new technologies in a shifting set of House and Senate races. This timely volume explores—in a series of lively case studies—a cross-section of groups, communities, and networks that vividly illustrates the' unleashing' of interest group activity in the electoral process in response to Citizens United and other court cases and events.
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