Advice for lawyers on how to take and defend depositions.

The History of Michigan Law offers the first serious survey of Michigan's rich legal past. Michigan was among the first states to admit African-Americans and women to its law schools and was the first governmental entity to abolish the death penalty. Additionally, the state, unlike its midwestern neighbors, did not enact racial exclusion laws in the post-Civil War era. Michigan has also played a leading role in developing modern rape laws, in protecting the environment, and in assuring the right to counsel for those accused of crimes. The story of Michigan's legal development includes high profile cases such as the Dr. Ossian Sweet murder trial, the cross-district busing case Milliken v. Bradley, and the affirmative action cases brought against the University of Michigan Law School.The History of Michigan Law documents and analyzes, as well, Michigan legal develpments in environmental history, civil rights, and women's history. This book will serve as the entry point for all future studies that involve the law in Michigan. With 2005 marking the bicentennial of the establishment of the Michigan Supreme Court, as well as the bicentennial of the creation of the Michigan Territory, The History of Michigan Law has appeal beyond the legal community to scholars and students of American history. ABOUT THE EDITORS---Martin Hershock is an associate professor of history at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. He is author of The Paradox of Progress: Economic Change, Individual Enterprise and Political Culture in Michigan, 1837-1878 (Ohio, 2003) Paul Finkelman is Chapman Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Tulsa College of Law. He is the author of many articles and books, including His Soul Goes Marching On: Responses to John Brown and the Harpers Ferry Raid and the Library of Congress Civil War Desk Reference.

The nation’s longest-serving attorney general tells the story of a life that spanned two centuries and a career that helped transform consumer protection and public interest law. After several years as a small-town lawyer in Alpena, Frank J. Kelley was unexpectedly appointed Michigan’s attorney general at the end of 1961. He never suspected that he would continue to serve until 1999, a national record. During that time, he worked with everyone from John and Bobby Kennedy to Bill Clinton and jump-started the careers of dozens of politicians and public figures, including U.S. Senator Carl Levin and Governors James Blanchard and Jennifer Granholm. In The People’s Lawyer: The Life and Times of Frank J. Kelley, the Nation’s Longest-Serving Attorney General, Kelley and co-author Jack Lessenberry reflect on the personal and professional journey of the so-called godfather of the Michigan Democratic Party during his incredible life and thirty-seven years in office. The People’s Lawyerchronicles Kelley’s early life as the son of second-generation Irish immigrants, whose father, Frank E. Kelley, started out as a Detroit saloon keeper and became a respected Democratic Party leader. Kelley tells of becoming the first of his family to go to college and law school, his early days as a lawyer in northern Michigan, and how he transformed the office of attorney general as an active crusader for the people. Among other accomplishments, Kelley describes establishing the first Office of Consumer Protection in the country, taking on Michigan’s public utility companies, helping to end racially restrictive real estate practices, and helping to initiate the multibillion-dollar Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement in 1998. Kelley frames his work against a backdrop of the social and political upheaval of his times, including the 1967 Detroit riots, the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa, and the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr. All those interested in American history and legal history will enjoy this highly readable, entertaining account of Kelley’s life of public service.

The Model Rules of Professional Conduct provides an up-to-date resource for information on legal ethics. Federal, state and local courts in all jurisdictions look to the Rules for guidance in solving lawyer malpractice cases, disciplinary actions, disqualification issues, sanctions questions and much more. In this volume, black-letter Rules of Professional Conduct are followed by numbered Comments that explain each Rule's purpose and provide suggestions for its practical application. The Rules will help you identify proper conduct in a variety of given situations, review those instances where discretionary action is possible, and define the nature of the relationship between you and your clients, colleagues and the courts.

A comprehensive guide to legal style and usage, with practical advice on how to write clear, jargon-free legal prose. Includes style tips as well as definitions.