推開美國法律之門︰你想知道的美國法律體系的一切（英文版）

Preface
1 There Are No Secret Books:You Can Understand the Law
2 Constitutional Law and Constitutional Politics:Interpreting and Applying the Constitution
What is Constitutional law
Why do we need constitutional law
How does the Supreme Court decide what the Constitution means？
Where does the Supreme Court get the authority to interpret the constitution
When can the Supreme Court hear Constitutional casses
What Powers does constitutional law give to the rest of the federal governments？
What powers do the states have under constitutional law
3 First Freedoms:Constitutional Rights
What rights does constitutional law protect？
What is due process？
Does constitutional law requitr that everyon be treated equally
How des the Constitution protect freedom of speech？
What speech in not protected by the First Amendment？
How does the Constitution protect freedom of religion？
What other rights are protected by the Constitution？
4 Your Day in Court:the Litingation Process
What is civil procedure？
Why do we need civil litigation and civil procedure？
Where do court cases come from？
Where can a lawsuit be brought？
When can you make a federal case out of it？
lf you can sue in different places，what law will apply in each place？
How does a lawsuit begin？
What can the defendant do to respond to a lawsuit？
What if there are more than two parties to a lawsuit？
What if there are many parties to a lawsuit？
How do the parties discover the facts about their case？
What else happens before the trial？
That happens at trial？
What evidence can be presented at trial？
What about the jury？
What happens after trial？
5 Auto Accidents，Scalding Coffe，and Medical Malpractice:Personal Injuries and Tort Law
What is tort law？
Why do we need tort law？
ls it a trrt when you hit someone？
ls it a tort when you injure someone by not being careful？
What does the law mean by reasonable care？
How does a plaintiff prove that a defendant has been negligent？
What if the victim is partly at fault for an accident？
Suppose someone does not intend to injure someone else and acts with reasonable care．Can he or she still be liable in tort？
What damages can a plaintiff get in a tort case？
When are damages awarded to punish the defendant？
6 When Is a Deal a Deal？:Businesses，Consumers，and Contract Law
What is contract law？
Why do we need contract law？
What is a contract？
How do you make a contract？
Does a contract have to be in writing to be enforceable？
Can anyone make a contract？
Once two people make an agreement，is it always enforceable？
lf a contract is unfair，can a court refuse to enforce it？
Once you make a contract，can you ever get out of it？
What happens if one party’s performance depends upon something happening and it doesn’t happen？
Will a court order someone to perform a contract？
How much does someone have to pay for not keeping a promise？
How does the law treat form contracts？
7 You Are What You Own:The Law of Property
What is property law？
Why do we need property law？
What kinds of property are there？
How can someone acquire property？
How is property purchased and sold？
How is property transferred on death？
What is a trust？
How do people own property collectively？
How is the use of property controlled over time？
How else can ownership of property be shared？
What are the property rights of a landlord and a tenant？
When can the government lake your property？
8 From Insanity to In Cold Blood:Criminal Responsibility and Criminal Law
What is criminal law？
Why do we need criminal law？
What is a criminal act？
Does someone have to mean to commit a crime to be guilty？
When is self-defense justified？
ln what other circumstances is someone justified in committing a crime？
Why are criminals allowed to plead insanity as a defense？
What other defenses are available？
Can someone be convicted for almost committing a crime？
What is homicide？
Why is rape law so controversial？
9 Protecting the Innocent，Freeing the Guilty:Criminal Procedure
What is criminal procedure？
Why do we need criminal procedure？
What are the steps in the criminal process？
When can the police conduct a search and seizure？
What is the privilege against self-incrimination？
What happens if police violate a defendant’s rights？
What is plea bargaining？
Why do we have juries？
What is the adversary process？
How does sentencing work？
What about the death penalty？
Why does it seem that criminal appeals go on so long？
Conclusion
Index of Legal Cases
Index