We are now closed for the Christmas and New Year period, reopening on Friday 3rd January 2025. Orders placed during this time will be processed upon our return on 3rd January.
The device(s) you use to access the eBook content must be authorized with an Adobe ID before you download the product otherwise it will fail to register correctly.
For further information see https://www.wildy.com/ebook-formats
Once the order is confirmed an automated e-mail will be sent to you to allow you to download the eBook.
All eBooks are supplied firm sale and cannot be returned. If you believe there is a fault with your eBook then contact us on ebooks@wildy.com and we will help in resolving the issue. This does not affect your statutory rights.
Over the last twenty-five years, there has been a spirited debate in the courts, Congress, and in the academy about how to interpret federal statutes, the laws of Congress. Federal judges spend a considerable amount of time trying to understand Congress's meaning.
Just as Congress produces laws, so courts are called on to interpret them. When the language of the statute is unambiguous, then, the job of the judge is generally straightforward. But when-as often happens-the statute is ambiguous, the interpretative task is not obvious.
How a judge interprets statutes - sticking only to the text when the language is ambiguous, or going beyond the text to legislative materials - is of fundamental importance. For the methodology of interpretation can affect the outcome and thus whether the law has been construed consistently with Congress's meaning. Justice Scalia has fueled the debate, arguing that courts should look to the text of the statute and to virtually nothing else.
In Judging Statutes Chief Judge Robert A. Katzmann of the U.S Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, respectfully disagrees. Drawing upon his interdisciplinary background in law and political science, he argues that our constitutional system charges Congress with enacting laws; so, how Congress makes its purposes known, through text and reliable accompanying materials should be respected.
Judge Katzmann contends that there has been scant consideration given to what is critical as courts interpret statutes - an appreciation of how Congress actually functions and signals its meaning, and what Congress expects of those interpreting its laws.
Judging Statutes explores how Congress works; how agencies construe legislation; and examines two interpretative approaches, purposivsm and textualism. The author discusses cases in which he was the writing judge and which the Supreme Court reviewed, and concludes with some suggestions to promote understanding between courts and Congress.
