Book Review of Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter, 2007 edition

Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter. Edited by Michael A. Newton. Oxford University Press, 2009. Hardcover, Bound. Volume 1-2, 1578 pages. $120.00 per volume.

Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter, 2007 is the first edition of a projected annual series publication. This reporter compiles select terrorism cases from around the world including cases from both domestic jurisdictions and a variety of international tribunals and bodies. The only commentary contained in this reporter is the editor’s introduction. The editor, Michael A. Newton, is a Professor at Vanderbilt University Law School and has extensive expertise in terrorism and international law. According to Professor Newton’s introduction, Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter is designed to provide researchers and practitioners an overview of terrorism jurisprudence. I recommend this reporter for a law library that serves policymakers or researchers interested in terrorism jurisprudence. It will not be useful to many practitioners because its scope is too broad and because it is not clear if future editions will provide a mechanism to update the cases. Researchers interested in terrorism jurisprudence may be able to find the cases located in this reporter using other means, but this publication is convenient because it pulls the cases together in an organized fashion. In addition, the Oxford University Press website boasts that many cases contained in this reporter are translated into English for the first time. This edition of the reporter contains decisions from 2007, but some earlier decisions are included. In his introduction, Professor Newton indicates that a select number of opinions decided prior to 2007 were necessary to illustrate the development of counterterrorism law.

Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter is user friendly. The cases are organized by subject. Both volumes include a detailed list of subjects. The main subject headings the cases are categorized under include: Terrorism and National Security in General; Constitutional Challenges, Human Rights, and Civil Liberties; Financial Aspects of Terrorism; and Specific Regions. The main subject headings are further divided into subtopics. Each volume contains a table of contents that includes the subjects addressed in that particular volume. Additionally, the reporter contains an individual table of contents in the beginning of each sub topical section that lists the corresponding cases alphabetically. If a given case addresses multiple subtopics listed in the reporter, the full case appears under the subtopic that is the primary focus of the opinion, and then cross-referenced in appropriate individual table of contents. For additional research ease, the second volume contains a Subject Index of Cases and a Consolidated Table of Cases. Professor Newton indicates in the introduction that cases in later editions, beginning with the 2008 edition, will contain editorial enhancements including headnotes and key words.

The Oxford University Press website indicates that Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter contains the full opinions of cases referred to in the first and second series of Terrorism: Documents of International and Local Control, which is a voluminous and expensive loose-leaf that examines the evolution of terrorism over a span of twenty-five years. A library would not have to purchase Terrorism: Documents of International and Local Control to use Terrorism: International Case Law Reporter. I could not determine if this reporter will be available in an electronic format. If it is not available electronically, Oxford University Press should consider an electronic format for this publication in the future.

Alyssa Folse, Reference and Instructional Services Librarian, Stetson University College of Law

Book Review: Copyright Law Deskbook, by Robert W. Clarida

Clarida, Robert W. Copyright Law Deskbook. BNA Books, 2009 ($395.00 / 857 pgs / 978-1-57018-691-2 / hardcover with CD-ROM cumulative case digest (1993-2008)).

It is difficult to overstate the importance of a work like the Copyright Law Deskbook, a one-volume compendium that serves as a useful summary of current copyright law. This very practical, portable work draws together the important cases and organizes them in a topical arrangement with commentary, explaining how the cases do (or do not) fit together.

Instead of an impassioned plea for one or another view about some point of controversy, the reader gets a useful statement of what the law is that can help both the seasoned practitioner and the copyright newcomer answer everyday questions. As one who is sometimes asked whether this or that practice is protected by the fact that an educational purpose would be served, for instance, I find it a pleasure to have Clarida’s chapter on fair use, which includes a two-page summary of how courts have viewed educational use when weighing the various fair use factors.

It is extremely helpful to have this reference work in one volume, albeit a hefty one. The Deskbook includes several appendices, one of them a CD-ROM that holds a 15 year case digest covering notable copyright cases from 1993 through 2008. In an academic law library, one groans to see a CD-ROM accompany a book, because it usually requires special storage and handling apart from the book to ensure that the disk does not disappear. Fortunately, the BNA Books Agreement that accompanies the work gives permission to make one copy of the CD-ROM for archival purposes, which helps to reduce the groan to a grimace.

There is no indication of how often the CD-ROM will be reissued, but one hopes that consideration will be given to a Web-based platform rather than a CD-ROM to update the case summaries. For now, cases with citations to BNA’s United States Patents Quarterly (USPQ and USPQ 2d) have links that take the reader to BNA’s Intellectual Property Library on the Web for the full text. Subscribers to the BNA IP Library must enter their password and user ID to access the full text, while non-subscribers can use a link on the sign-in page to request a one-time-only temporary password that gives 15 days of access to full text with a temporary password and user ID. Our library uses IP validation for the BNA IP Library, which makes access simple, so I am not certain how hospitable the temporary password option will seem to non-subscribers.

The Deskbook was assembled with a practitioner in mind, as evidenced by an appendix of forms. The forms are reproductions, in tiny print, of various registration forms used by the Copyright Office and readily available from their Web site. For a practitioner unaccustomed to finding such things, it may be useful to read the forms first, although the tiny print is a hindrance and there is no introduction to point the reader to the Copyright Office Web site. A more useful appendix might have included contact information for the Copyright Office as well as URLs for the Web site, but this is a tiny quibble about a small appendix.

One may well ask why the CD-ROM holds only the last 15 years of cases. I think the idea was to cover ‘current’ copyright law, and for most purposes, the past 15 years should suffice. Author Robert Clarida, a partner at Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman, has written the summaries since 1993, but the firm has for many years summarized copyright decisions for the Copyright Society of the U.S.A. that are published in the Society’s journal. The firm also has had a long relationship with the publisher, Bureau of National Affairs (BNA), since the days when a founding partner of the firm, Alan Latman, took up the revision of Herbert Howell’s 1952 treatise on copyright law. Latman was a very influential figure in the development of copyright law whose casebook is familiar to anyone who took a law school copyright class in the 1980s or 1990s.

The Deskbook is a wonderful addition to any law library, although some will find it too expensive at a time when library budgets are being slashed and some serial costs are going up even more than the usual 7-9%. In addition to law firms, however, I suspect that the many law schools with an intellectual property program will add it, as I will, even though the volume itself will be in the non-circulating stacks, while the CD-ROM case summary will reside in a more supervised area of the library some distance away.

Reviewed by Keith Ann Stiverson, Director of the Library, IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, and former chair of the AALL Copyright Committee

Book Review: The View from the First Chair: What Every Trial Lawyer Really Needs to Know

Grayson, Martin L. The View from the First Chair: What Every Trial Lawyer Really Needs to Know. LawyerAvenue Press, 2009. ($45, 176 pages, Paperback: 978-0-940675-66-7).

With his 25 years of litigation experience on maritime, oil & gas, transportation, insurance, and corporate cases, Grayson is a seasoned litigator intent on mentoring associates interested or working in litigation through his work, View from the First Chair: What Every Trial Lawyer Really Needs to Know.

 

 

View from the First Chair is a good start for the new associate or law student looking for an easy read on trial work and exposes the realities of being the first or second chair for a trial. It is a succinct beginner’s guide with only 147 pages of actual content (excluding the appendix and introduction) and generous line spaces.  Key tips are highlighted to reinforce their relevance in actual practice and the text reads as though Grayson is speaking with the reader in his office offering advice.

The simple table of contents moves along with the timeline of a trial, giving the reader a sense of what to do, how to report to clients, and other key information that is not taught in law school, but by experience.  With its conversational tone, the book is a virtual mentor for associates new to the world of litigation and gives the associate a sense of the mental constitution required for trial preparation.  The chapters are not too long and don’t bore as though Grayson is factoring in the demands on an associate’s time.  There aren’t any footnotes, but occasionally a link is printed on the bottom of the page advertising the author’s or the publisher’s websites.

Since the text assumes the reader is an associate or law student, it doesn’t focus on caselaw, but rather on practice tips and real world examples.  Some of his examples detail dramatic interactions with opposing counsel, unexpected witness testimony, and highlight the importance of having organized case files to maximize efficiency.  Furthermore, Grayson expands on the psychology of being a trial lawyer and the need to be professional in all circumstances to promote one’s client’s case.

The book does not have an index, although it does have an appendix with a sample report to the client that readers can adapt for their own purposes.  There are examples of letters, memos, and reports scattered in the chapters to illustrate the author’s emphasis on concise, clear legal writing.

I recommend this book for law firm libraries that specialize in litigation as it details common sense for trial lawyers and it would be a good read for a new associate to begin to understand his or her profession.

Reviewed by Esther Cho, Reference/Government Documents Librarian, Loyola Law School.

Globalization: A Very Short Introduction (second edition) by Manfred B. Steger

Globalization: A Very Short Introduction (second edition) by Manfred B. Steger is part of a series published by Oxford University Press. Each book in the series gives a quick overview of a topic and addresses key issues that may relate to the topic. Globalization is a great jumping-off point for anyone who wants to dig deeper into the subject, but it is also a brilliant overview for anyone who is purely interested in learning more about the causes and effects of globalization. This book is a concise, uncomplicated and very readable explanation of a very important process in the world today. Steger does an excellent job of remaining objective when examining the positive and negative consequences of the globalization process and astutely evaluates its role in world development.

While most writers on the subject focus on economic globalization, Steger acknowledges that the process is broken down into other key components, including historical, political, cultural, ecological, and ideological aspects – while keeping in mind its operation as an interacting whole.

The book starts out with a deconstruction of Osama bin Laden in order to illustrate the intricate and sometimes contradictory social dynamics of globalization. Steger then moves on to a definition of the concept – “the term globalization applies to a set of social processes that appear to transform our present social condition of weakening nationality into one of globality.”  Globalization is not a single process but a set of processes that operate simultaneously and unevenly on several levels and in various dimensions. As background, Steger discusses five influential definitions of globalization, also considering some objections raised by “globalization skeptics.”

In chapter two, Steger examines the history of globalization. While many commentators maintain that globalization is a relatively new phenomenon, Steger contends that the answer to the question of whether globalization constitutes a new phenomenon depends on how far we are willing to extend the chain of causation that resulted in those recent technologies and social arrangements that most people have come to associate with the fashionable buzzword. In fact, he gives examples of how cultural exchanges can be traced back to the prehistoric period.

Chapter three dissects the economic dimensions of globalization.  The book gives details about the emergence of the global economic order, including the internationalization of trade and finance, and the power of transnational corporations (TNCs). Steger also examines the history and role of the IMF, the World Bank, and the WTO. He points out that these three institutions enjoy the privileged position of making and enforcing the rules of a global economy that is sustained by significant power differentials between the global North and South.  He goes on to concede that the growing power of TNCs has profoundly altered the structure and functioning of the international economy. As a consequence, TNCs are extremely important players that influence the economic, political, and social welfare of many nations.

The chapter on the political dimension of globalization (chapter 4) did an excellent of analyzing the intensification and expansion of political interrelations across the globe. Steger begins with a discussion of the origins of the modern nation-state system, which can be traced backed to the seventeenth-century in Europe. He moves on from there to discuss hyper globalization and the rise of a “borderless world.”  The chapter concludes with a look at the visible rise of supraterritorial institutions and associations, using the European Union as an example.

When exploring cultural globalization, rather than offering a laundry list of relevant topics, Steger focuses chapter 5 on the tension between sameness and difference in the emerging global culture; the crucial role of TNCs in disseminating popular culture; and the globalization of languages. This chapter also considers such concepts as “Americanization” and “McDonaldization.” And, surprisingly, Steger notes that given the current rate of decline in languages, some linguists predict that 50-90 percent of the world’s languages will have disappeared before the end of the twenty-first century.

In chapter 6, the book turns its attention to the ecological dimension of globalization. Steger begins by acknowledging that the ecological impacts of globalization are increasingly recognized as the most significant. He goes on to note that the scale, speed, and depth of the Earth’s environmental decline have been unprecedented, and unless we are willing to change the underlying cultural and religious value structure that has combined with the social and economic dynamics of unrestrained capital accumulation, the health of Mother Earth is likely to deteriorate further. This chapter also does a wonderful job of identifying major manifestations and consequences of global environmental degradation and recognizes that they are all global issues.

Steger distinguishes between globalization and three types of globalism – market globalism, jihadist globalism, and justice globalism in chapter 7. Globalization is a social process, while globalism is an ideology that endows a concept of globalization with a particular concept or value. He considers market globalism the dominant ideology of our time, and believes that there are five major ideological claims of market globalism. When discussing justice globalism, the book uses, by way of example, the WTO protests in Seattle in 1999 to highlight this emerging social justice movement. Steger does an excellent job of using the 9/11 attack to illustrate the devastating effect that jihadist globalism can have, highlighting the fact that Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda terrorists fed on the perceived “Americanization” of the world to justify their actions. 

Chapter 8, capping off the introduction, contains a brief assessment of the future of globalization. Steger ends his discussion by asking the question, “Will the global fight against terrorism lead to more extensive forms of international cooperation and interdependence, or might it stop the powerful momentum of globalizations?” Without giving an answer, the book concludes that only time will tell what path globalization takes. Steger does emphasize that nothing can be accomplished without a moral compass and an ethical polestar guiding our collective efforts.

Maureen Anderson is associate professor at the University of Dayton Zimmerman Law Library in Ohio.

Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges

JUSTICE SCALIA TO ATTORNEYS: PERSUADE ME…

By Claudia Cook
Claudia Cook is a Reference Librarian at the
Bernard E. Witkin Alameda County Law Library
She can be reached at Claudia.Cook@acgov.org.

      
Making your case: The art of persuading judges, Justice Antonin Scalia and Bryan E. Garner, ThomsonWest, May 2008

“Don’t underestimate the importance of facts.”

This volume discusses both the substance and style of legal writing designed to persuade judges. The judicial perspective is from Justice Antonin Scalia. Justice Scalia is known for his keen wit and trenchant legal reasoning and writing. The co-author is Bryan E. Garner, Editor of Black’s Law Dictionary, among other works, who certainly knows his legal vocabulary.

The book covers general principles of argumentation, legal reasoning, briefing and oral argument. The authors maintain a conversational tone, using idioms and anecdotes and quotes from Cicero to present day jurists. It is an entertaining read like Woe Is I and other good for you books. It succeeds by all its own criteria. The authors argue that this style would benefit legal writing and advocacy in general, especially in briefs and oral arguments.

It is well organized and even the index uses the same breezy yet informative tone, including such terms as “emotion”, “stopping when judge interrupts”, “words and phrases to avoid” and “voir dire, pronunciation of”.  It is also very thorough; the subheadings under “briefs” are almost a full page long.  It also speaks to authority, including headings of “court rules”, “case law” and “citations”.

Stylistically, some suggestions are to avoid jargon, clichés and unnecessary Latin terms. (See Index heading “words and phrases to avoid”.) Doesn’t “in the instant case” simply mean “in this case”? Use “this or that action” instead of “such action,” replace “hearinbefore” with “earlier” and “pursuant to” with “under.”

 You can make persuasive arguments without using archaic phrases.

“Make it interesting” by considering more colorful words, mixing up sentence length and structure. Short sentences can pack a punch. All of this is to make your stellar legal arguments stand out and be memorable, but not at the expense of the substance of your case.

Pronunciation counts. The comedian Lenny Bruce said that if Einstein had pronounced it “nucular” fission, no one would have taken him seriously. (Although Jimmy Carter did call himself a “Nucular” engineer.)

They explore what motivates judges and equally what irritates, annoys and is “most likely not to succeed with judges.”  Common wisdom is that a “jury argument” will almost certainly not be a good “judge argument”.  Juries may be persuaded by blatant appeals to emotion and sentimentality whereas these authors characterize this kind of tactic in front of judges as “misconduct”.  Many judges also find such appeals insulting to their intelligence, assuming as it does that judges are on the same level intellectually as a juror or other layperson.

What does motivate judges is that, for basics, attorneys understand and convey forcefully and convincingly what they want the court to do, they understand and articulate whether this is within the court’s power to do, and attorneys convince them that what they are asking for is the best solution for now and for the future.

While appeal courts are not “fact courts”, “facts should not be overestimated.”  But appellate judges unlike trial judges are concerned not only with justice for the individual but also with public policy and how this decision may play out in the broad picture down the road.

They point out the fallacy that oral argument is not nearly as important as briefs and other pleadings. During oral argument, attorneys should maintain a presentation style that projects a respectful equality with the judge. They should listen closely, and restrain emotions such as anger or contempt toward other parties. Employ the masterful use of a pause.

And finally, never, ever ask for extra pages!

Book Review of Free Speech: A Very Short Introduction by Nigel Warburton

Warburton, Nigel: Free Speech: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2009. ($11.95|116 pages|978-0-19-923235-2|paperback).

 Free speech has continued to be a highly debated topic.  “Should all speech be protected at any cost?” is often the question.  There are some who would advocate that without an uncensored and uninterrupted freedom of speech, society will eventually move towards a non-democratic environment.  Still there are others who are supporters of free speech but feel that in certain circumstances the right to free speech should be limited.  With his book Free Speech: A Very Short Introduction, Lecturer Nigel Warburton provides a very careful and efficient inspection of this area by discussing the central arguments as they are related to the idea of free speech while examining the need for limitations.

Free Speech: A Very Short Introduction is a new release from Oxford University Press in their Very Short Introduction titles.  It is organized into five chapters.  The book starts with a general overview of free speech in the first chapter.  The chapters that follow provide brief explanations of several key points in the free speech debate, including, but not limited to, the censorship of pornography and a chapter on the internet.  Warburton concludes the book with his speculations as to where we may see the future of free speech lead.  He also provides a section of books that would be helpful about free speech.

Warburton provides a brief look into what free speech is and why it is important.  Being that it is a short introduction to the area of free speech and not a comprehensive textbook or how to guide, the title will be a useful addition to any library seeking to acquire titles that will assist in explaining this idea in a concise manner, but would appear to be most useful in an academic setting.  The title will be great for students who have been newly introduced to the idea of free speech and need a to the point look at free speech without feeling overwhelmed by mounds of legal jargon.  Although not intended as a study guide, the book does serve as a brief snap shot of the important ideals surrounding free speech and would compliment lecture materials.  It will also be useful as a great starting point for those individuals who are developing or have an interest in this hot topic area and need a quick read to introduce them to the highlights of free speech.  The book can be a great learning tool.  I would recommend this title to professors in the area of first amendment law as a way of introducing their students to the idea.      

As a researcher in the area of First Amendment law, I found Free Speech: A Very Short Introduction a very well written and easy to read beginning to the topic of free speech.  The organization of the book provided a straightforward discussion that readers could follow effortlessly.  Warburton’s writing proves that he is well versed in the area and provides support to back up his findings.  His use and inclusion of some key figures, such as Judge Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., in the area of free speech only adds to the book’s appeal.  Warburton’s discussion of John Stuart Mill’s On Liberty provides readers with intriguing and thought-provoking insight.  I found Free Speech: A Very Short Introduction to provide exactly what the title series set out to accomplish by introducing the free speech in a brief and easy to read format. 

 –Tiffany R. Paige, Esq., Acting Acquisitions Librarian, Mississippi College Law Library.

Book Review: Intellectual Property in Government Contracts, by James G. McEwen, David S. Bloch and Richard M. Gray

McEwen, James G, David S. Bloch & Richard M. Gray. Intellectual Property in Government Contracts. Oxford University Press, 2009. ($185.00  ‌  616 pages  ‌  Paperback:  9780195338560).

An unwritten rite of passage for law librarians is certainly learning what the acronym FAR stands for and researching the labyrinth of processes unique to federal and state government procurement. Helpful research tools of course include the American Bar Association’s recent book on Government Contract Law and the ABA Public Contract Law section periodical entitled The Procurement Lawyer.  However, McEwen’s book is an essential addition to any public or law firm library whose patrons sell emerging technologies to the federal government or any of its state counterparts. In addition, since more than half of the book is devoted to intellectual property rights and procurement laws in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, it would add great value to the next update of Nyberg and Boast’s Subject Compilations of State Laws, which is now accessible through HeinOnline.

McEwen’s book delivers on its promotional promise to explain the confusing process of government procurement to “high-tech contractors looking to do business with the government sector.” However, having been written by a team of public and private practitioners, it provides a balanced description of the intellectual property issues driving  both sides to these contracts.

The book is incredibly well-organized and easy to follow. Realizing that government procurement is a niche industry with its own specialized jargon, the authors lay a careful foundation by thoroughly defining all terms and concepts before explaining how parties variously address intellectual property rights in contracts that federal and state governments make as consumers. As a result, a separate glossary is totally unnecessary. Throughout the first four introductory chapters, I kept finding myself, admittedly a novice in this area of the law, asking mental questions that the authors would either answer in the very next paragraphs or cross-reference to entire chapters later on in the book. The authors also provided extensive and authoritative footnotes akin to an annotated atlas of information revealing the secret rules to government contracting.

Much more than a how-to-guide, the book also addresses procurement relationships full circle by devoting an entire chapter to remedies and damages in contract breach actions where governments have waived their sovereign immunity from claims for patent, trademark, copyright, or trade secret infringement. Finally, the information in the stand-alone state chapters deftly parallels that provided for federal contracting, with the added bonus of relevant comparisons between the states. Since this book is bound to get a lot of practical use, the authors might want to consider a hard bound version if they ever publish a second edition.

Reviewed by Kathleen M. Sasala, Esq., Director, Cleveland Law Library Association

Book Review: The Marketer’s Handbook of Tips & Checklists

Haserot, Phyllis Weiss.  The Marketer’s Handbook of Tips and Checklists.  Eagan, MN.  Thomson West, 2008.  221 pages.

In today’s economy, marketing your business is essential to the success of your venture.  Ms. Haserot, the President of Practice Development Counsel where she counsels firms and individuals on business development strategies, has created a handbook for marketers filled with tips and checklists that can be used by seasoned law firm professionals or sole practitioners to market their law firm. 

 

The Table of Contents of The Marketer’s Handbook of Tips and Checklists, is divided into seven topics, which in and of itself is a marketing plan from start to finish.   The book starts with a chapter on planning your marketing strategy and concludes with strategies to use when hiring a marketing professional to work with you.  In between, Ms. Haserot provides information on communicating with clients, business development techniques, selling your services, providing quality services to your clients, and managing a law firm.  Each checklist is clearly titled so that the reader knows the subject matter of the checklist, making it easy to decide whether the list is applicable to your project or situation.  Another helpful strategy used by the author are the do’s and don’ts lists she provides.   Furthermore, the list the author provides are very detailed and account for all contingencies.   

 

Ms. Haserot is obviously very knowledgeable on the subject.   This book would be ideal for any law firm library or marketing department.  It would also be useful for academic law libraries and every graduate from law school considering the start of their own firm should own a copy.

 

Christine Hepler is associate law library director at the University of Maine Donald L. Garbrecht Law Library in Portland.

Book Review: The Oxford Guide to United States Supreme Court Decisions, Second Edition

The Oxford Guide to United States Supreme Court Decisions, Second Edition. Kermit L. Hall and James W. Ely Jr., Editors.  Oxford University Press, 2009.  ($35.00 | 499 pages | Hardcover: 978-0-19-537939-6).

The first edition of The Oxford Guide to United States Supreme Court Decisions has been a reference staple in law libraries for over a decade. Edited by the late Kermit Hall, it contains summaries of the 400 most notable Supreme Court cases. The new edition with James Ely at the helm is an obvious update, with the addition of fifty cases from the Court’s recent terms. The tried and true format remains, and this second edition will rightfully find its way to almost as many law libraries as the first one has.

Case summaries are listed alphabetically. Both a party name index and a topical index appear at the end of the book, along with a bibliography for further research on particular topics. The rest of the appendix is composed of materials every law library already possesses several times over. There is a quick history of Supreme Court appointments (i.e. date of nomination/confirmation, nominating president, etc.), a short glossary of basic legal terms, and the text of the United States Constitution.

Each case summary includes basic information like the official citation (unless unavailable, in which case unofficial citations are substituted), argument and decision dates, the voting lineup, and a breakdown of opinions, concurrences, and dissents. This is followed by several paragraphs giving the case’s background, the holding, and the significance of the case’s impact. These succinct capsules contain just enough information to jog the memory of a forgetful student or hold the researcher over until she has time to consult the full opinion firsthand. The case summaries are signed by their respective authors, the ranks of whom consist largely of law professors.

Over 160 of these individuals lent their time and (frequently notable) names to the case summaries, and the quality is readily apparent. They reliably explain the important points of complicated Supreme Court cases with an economy of words. With the additional case summaries, no drop in quality, and a relatively low price of thirty-five dollars, most libraries already possessing the first edition will probably purchase the second to keep their collections more current. Nevertheless, I can think of one heretical reason a cash-strapped library might forgo this new volume.

Wikipedia has rapidly growing coverage of Supreme Court cases. As in the Oxford Guide, these cases can be found by searching party name or topic. Wikipedia’s coverage of recent cases is broader and more current than that of the Oxford Guide. Wikipedia articles on these cases contain all the information that can be found in the Oxford Guide and more. In fact, its relative glut of information compared to the Oxford Guide would be its largest drawback for some users. Wikipedia is a more natural research tool for law students and younger attorneys, though, who will find skimming its articles for the relevant information a familiar and no more time-consuming process. Taking this into account, the most important remaining advantage the Oxford Guide has is the authority brought by its cadre of authors.  This is more than enough reason for most law libraries to purchase it.

Reviewed by Jacob Sayward, Serials Librarian at Fordham Law’s Leo T. Kissam Memorial Library

Book Review: Gray Markets: Prevention, Detection and Litigation, by David R. Sugden

Sugden, David R. Gray Markets: Prevention, Detection and Litigation.  Oxford U. Press, 2009.  ($185.00 | 360 pages | 9780195371291).

David Sugden, author of Gray Markets, is a partner at Call, Jensen & Ferrell in California, where he specializes in intellectual property litigation and brand protection.  In this book, Sugden writes about the “gray market,” so-named because it hovers between the legal market and the black market.  Sugden’s book is one of the only books on this topic, and its comprehensiveness makes it an attractive purchase for both academic and law firm libraries.  I would especially recommend this book to any firm that deals with matters such as trademark and copyright issues. 

Sugden’s book has four parts. The introduction provides an overview of the gray market, including examples of its effect on a variety of industries.  The gray market, in its essence, can be described as “goods diverted from a brand owners’ authorized sale channel.” A distributor may legally buy a product at a reduced or wholesale price, and then resell it at a higher price, often in a different market.  If the resale value undercuts the brand’s official price point in a given market, the distributor will earn a profit, and the brand will presumably lose a sale.  For example, Omega manufactured and sold watches to authorized distributors overseas.  Those watches eventually made their way to Costco, who sold them in California.  While Omega authorized the original transaction, it did not authorize the importation of the watches into the United States, nor the sales made by Costco.  This portion of the book also provides the reader with information on other consequences of the gray market, such as loss of tax revenue for states. 

In Parts II and III, Sugden focus on prevention and monitoring.  He discusses how things can go wrong for businesses in the distribution chain, and he describes steps businesses must take to claim damages or demonstrate how their products are materially different from products found on the gray market.  The portion on monitoring discusses warning flags and ways to detect gray market activity.  Not only does Sugden give recommendations for monitoring, but he also provides case analysis for practitioners to understand the legal ramifications for their actions and advice.  He includes a great deal of case law in these two parts of the book, and both sections offer practical advice for attorneys.

The final section describes how businesses should react to the discovery of gray market activity.  Sugden discusses preliminary activities that businesses should take; how to pursue the case in court, if at all; and recommendations on how to handle the potential problem of destruction of evidence in a civil suit.  His analysis of recovery is particularly useful in Part IV.  He offers six different theories of liability, each in their own chapter.  Each chapter then discusses how the theories would apply to the gray market, provides affirmative defenses under those theories, and states what remedies are available.  Sugden pays special attention to copyright and trademark laws.

The book is similar to a law review article: it is written in an outline format and has ample discussion of case law.  It also follows the traditional pattern of identifying a problem, explaining the importance of the problem, and advancing solutions to that problem.  His outline format is problematic in that he does not transition well from one topic to the next.  He rarely provides introductions to the chapters.  The reader is unsure of how the different components relate to one another and fit into the scheme of the chapter as a whole.

Despite this drawback, the book would make an excellent addition to any law firm, particularly one that works with trademark and copyright issues.  The book is comprehensive, but brief enough to function as a guide for practitioners.  The book would also make a good addition to an academic law library, primarily for his advancement of different theories in Part IV. 

Reviewed by Ryan Harrington, Reference Librarian, Yale Law School, Lillian Goldman Law Library