Includes such presentations as: Introduction to Adversary System; Other Views of Adversary System; The Trial Judge: The Limits of Neutrality and Passivity; Place of the Jury in Adversarial Adjudication; and Lawyers: Their Usefulness, Zeal, and Candor.

This is the first volume that directly compares the practices of adversarial and inquisitorial systems of law from a psychological perspective. It aims at understanding why American and European continental systems differ so much, while both systems entertain much support in their communities. The book is written for advanced audiences in psychology and law.

Robert Kagan examines the origins and consequences of the American system of "adversarial legalism". This study aims to deepen our understanding of law and its relationship to politics, and raises questions about the future of the American legal system.

Our adversarial legal system is used to evade the truth and makes winning the paramount goal. Here, a law veteran proposes we shift to an inquisitorial system seeking the truth, and recommends changes to evidentiary rules that confuse law enforcement and juries alike.

In the first edition of this groundbreaking book, Robert Kagan explained why America is much more adversarial—likely to rely on legal threats and lawsuits—than other economically advanced countries, with more prescriptive laws, more costly adjudications, and more severe penalties. This updated edition also addresses the rise of the conservative legal movement and anti-statism in the Republican party, which have put in sharp relief the virtues of adversarial legalism in its ability to empower citizens, lawyers, and judges to mount challenges to the arbitrary or unlawful exercise of government authority. “This is a wonderful piece of work, richly detailed and beautifully written. It is the best, sanest, and most comprehensive evaluation and critique of the American way of law that I have seen. Every serious scholar concerned with justice and efficiency, and every policymaker who is serious about improving the American legal order, should read this trenchant and exciting book.” —Lawrence Friedman, Stanford University “A tour de force. It is an elegantly written, consistently insightful analysis and critique of the American emphasis on litigation and punitive sanctions in the policy and administrative process.” —Charles R. Epp, Law and Society Review

This book outlines key aspects of the use of non-adversarial practices in the Australian justice system with reference to similar developments in the United States, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. It examines in detail non-adversarial theories and practices such as therapeutic jurisprudence, restorative justice, preventive law, creative problem solving, holistic law, appropriate or alternative dispute resolution, collaborative law, problem-oriented courts, diversion programs, indigenous courts, coroners courts and managerial and administrative procedures.