Separation of Powers Law

Click here to download the Second Edition Table of Cases for Separations of Powers Law. If you would like a printed copy please contact us.

Presidential impeachment, Bush v. Gore, the authorization for military tribunals to try American civilians for criminal offenses, executive privilege squabbles with courts and Congress, the rise and fall of the line-item veto — it is impossible to overstate the significance of the inter-branch confrontations that have promised to revolutionize separation of powers understandings since the mid-1990s.

In Separation of Powers Law, Second Edition, Professors (and former law deans) Shane and Bruff have updated their treatment of this critical area to encompass these and other dramatic issues, such as the impact of 9/11 on the law of electronics surveillance and the capacity of the executive branch to withhold sensitive information on national policy grounds. The books retains its clear structure and historical perspective, plus an emphasis on the ethical challenges posed for constitutional lawyers in the executive and legislative branches seeking to address novel constitutional issues in professionally appropriate ways.

The authors continue to introduce key episodes not only through judicial decisions, but also through administrative orders and memoranda, opinions of the Attorney General and the Office of Legal Counsel, and legislative documents, presenting a broad spectrum of the kinds of legal materials that government lawyers actually consult.