The Legal Analyst

A Toolkit for Thinking About the Law

By: Ward Farnsworth

Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright

There are two kinds of knowledge law school teaches: legal rules on the one hand, and tools for thinking about legal problems on the other. Although the tools are far more interesting and useful than the rules, they tend to be neglected in favor of other aspects of the curriculum. In The Legal Analyst, Ward Farnsworth brings together in one place all of the most powerful of those tools for thinking about law.

From classic ideas in game theory such as the "Prisoner's Dilemma" and the "Stag Hunt" to psychological principles such as hindsight bias and framing effects, from ideas in jurisprudence such as the slippery slope to more than two dozen other such principles, Farnsworth's guide leads listeners through the fascinating world of legal thought. Each chapter introduces a single tool and shows how it can be used to solve different types of problems. The explanations are written in clear, lively language and illustrated with a wide range of examples.

The Legal Analyst is an indispensable user's manual for law students, experienced practitioners seeking a one-stop guide to legal principles, or anyone else with an interest in the law.

©2007 The University of Chicago (P)2021 Tantor

Very interesting book.

This book helped me think about my own pro se litigation in a new light.

A listen for all Law Students and Practitioners

For anyone practicing law, teaching law or learning about law for the first time, this book is an absolute MUST!

Behind the rules: ties it all together

I became a member of the CA Bar some 40 years ago, and have taught law at college level almost as long. This book is chock full of insights that make terrific sense out of law(s). It starts briefly at a dreary crawl, but quickly ramps up. For the serious legal thinker-practitioner, there is no better source than this, to deepen and expand on reasoning, arguments, or teaching. So many perplexing rules and outcomes suddenly make clear good sense. Those interested in other interfaces of law such as law and economics, or law and politics, are rewarded too.

Incredibly dry, not recommended for a layman.

The information contained in this book is dense. Those who are taking the bar exam or a lawyer or learning law might find some value but for me it was dry. Alot of the topics were about cost analysis and weighing both sides of an issue. I suspect it's not the authors fault because the law itself is dry. Given the subject material I'm not sure if he could have done much better but for me it wore out it's welcome quickly.