Introduction to the Study and Practice of Law in a Nutshell (Nutshell Series)

If you are about to start law school or are in your first year, this book would be a good companion. Now in the fourth edition, this text has helped thousand of folks become better law students and down the road, better lawyers.

Like other introductory books, it covers the basics: reading and briefing cases; preparing for class; outlining and study groups; taking exams. There are exercises so you can apply what you have learned. In addition to these essentials, the book focuses of what is often quite elusive: legal analysis; Why do courts follow precedent?; How are cases applied and distinguished?; How is ambiguous language interpreted? Legal analysis is the hidden ball of the first year, and with this book you will be well on your way.

There are chapters on legal writing (not necessarily boring or highfalutin') and on oral argument (not necessarily terrifying). These chapters will help in first year writing and Moot Court Programs. And, for those of you who aren't sure, there are chapters revealing the wide array of careers that will be open to you.

The book reads fast, well, and is often funny. That said, drawing on the work of philosophers, psychologists, and novelists, it takes you and your calling quite seriously, but never (not even once) pompously.

Professor Hegland has written two popular Nutshells, The Introduction to the Study and Practice of Law (4th Edition) and Trial and Practice Skills (3rd edition). He has co-authored a book on elder law, Fifty and Beyond, The Law You and Your Parents Need to Know. He is the James E. Rogers Professor of Law at the University of Arizona and has also taught at UCLA and Harvard. He has degrees from Stanford, UC Berkeley and Harvard. Before teaching, he practiced criminal law and poverty law for California Rural Legal Assistance.