"An indispensable and provocative guide through the thicket of today's most challenging constitutional controversies by some of the most eminent judges of their time. It offers an invaluable peek behind the curtain of judicial decision making."



—David Cole, Professor of Law, Georgetown University





The Embattled

Constitution presents the

fourth collection of the James Madison lectures delivered at the NYU School of

Law, offering thoughtful examinations of an array of topics on civil liberties

by a distinguished group of federal judges, including Justice Stephen Breyer of

the U.S. Supreme Court. The result is a fascinating look into the minds of the

judges who interpret, apply, and give meaning to our “embattled Constitution.”



In these insightful

and incisive essays, the authors bring to bear decades of experience to explore

wide-ranging issues. Are today’s public schools racially segregated? To what

extent can the federal courts apply the Bill of Rights without legislative

guidance? And what are the criteria for the highest standards of judging and constitutional

interpretation? The authors also discuss how and why the Constitution came to

be embattled, shining a spotlight on the current polarization in both the

Supreme Court and the American body politic and offering careful and informed

analysis of how to bridge these divides.



Contributors include

Marsha S. Berzon, Michael Boudin, Stephen Breyer, Guido Calabresi, Robert H.

Henry, Robert Katzmann, Pierre N. Leval, M. Blane Michael, Davis S. Tatel, J.

Harvie Wilkinson, III, and Diane P. Wood.