Updated Jan. 14, 2005
Prepared by Mary Whisner.
Among all the thousands of books about law and related fields, which ones are most influential? Or, if
we can’t measure influence directly, which ones are cited the most often in articles in law review and social science journals? One study gives us a
snapshot:
Fred R. Shapiro, The Most-Cited Legal Books Published Since 1978, 29 J. Legal Stud. 397 (2000), available on
Westlaw and
LexisnNexis.
Mr. Shapiro created four lists of books published since 1978:
Citations for multiple editions of one work were combined.
Here are the lists sorted by author, with their call numbers in the
Gallagher Law Library (or, if not available here, in the University of
Washington Libraries). (The article has the lists sorted by number of
articles citing each work.) The lists are used in this guide with the
permission of Fred R. Shapiro, Associate Librarian for Collections and
Access, Lillian Goldman Law Library, Yale Law School.
The Fifty Most Cited Legal Books (1978-1999)
Compiled by Fred R. Shapiro
|
Author |
Title |
Gallagher Law Library
(or UW Libraries) |
|
Ackerman, Bruce A. |
Social Justice in the Liberal State (1980) |
JC571 .A135 at Classified Stacks |
|
Ackerman, Bruce A. |
We the People (1991, 1998) |
KF4541 .A8 1991 at Classified Stacks |
Ackerman, Bruce A.
Hassler, William T. |
Clean Coal/Dirty Air: Or How the Clean Air Act Became a Multibillion-Dollar Bail-Out for High-Sulfur Coal Producers and What Should Be Done about It |
KF3812 .A93 at Classified Stacks |
|
Bell, Derrick A., Jr. |
And We Are Not Saved: The Elusive Quest for Racial Justice (1987) (1989) |
E185.615 .B39 1987 at Classified Stacks |
|
Bork, Robert H. |
The Antitrust Paradox: A Policy at War with Itself (1978) (1993) |
KF1649 .B67 at Classified Stacks [1978]
KF1649 .B67 1993 at Classified Stacks |
|
Bork, Robert H. |
The Tempting of America: The Political Seduction of the Law (1990) |
KF5130 .B59 1990 at Classified Stacks |
|
Breyer, Stephen G. |
Regulation and Its Reform (1982) |
HD3616.U47 B68 at Classified Stacks |
|
Calabresi, Guido |
Common Law for the Age of Statutes (1982) |
KF425 .C34 at Classified Stacks |
Calabresi, Guido
Bobbit, Philip |
Tragic Choices (1978) |
H61 .C23 1978 at Classified Stacks |
|
Choper, Jesse H. |
Judicial Review and the National Political Process: A Functional Reconsideration of the Role of the Supreme Court (1980) |
KF8748 .C39 at Classified Stacks |
|
Dworkin, Ronald M. |
A Matter of Principle (1985) |
KF380 .D85 1985 at Classified Stacks |
|
Dworkin, Ronald M. |
Law’s Empire (1986) |
K230.D9 L39 1986 at Classified Stacks |
|
Dworkin, Ronald M. |
Taking Rights Seriously (1978) |
K240 .D86 1978 at Reference Area & Classified Stacks |
Easterbrook, Frank H.
Fischel, Daniel R. |
The Economic Structure of Corporate Law (1991) |
KF1416 .E27 1991 at Classified Stacks |
|
Ellickson, Robert C. |
Order without Law: How Neighbors Settle Disputes (1991) |
K370 .E45 1991 at Classified Stacks |
|
Ely, John Hart |
Democracy and Distrust: A Theory of Judicial Review (1980) |
KF4575 .E4 at Classified Stacks |
|
Epstein, Richard A. |
Takings: Private Property and the Power of Eminent Domain |
KF5599 .E67 1985 at Classified Stacks |
|
Estrich, Susan |
Real Rape (1987) |
KF9329 .E87 1987 at Classified Stacks |
Farber, Daniel A.
Frickey, Philip P. |
Law and Public Choice: A Critical Introduction (1991) |
K487.E3 F37 1991 at Classified Stacks |
|
Fish, Stanley E. |
Doing What Comes Naturally: Change, Rhetoric, and the Practice of Theory in Literary and Legal Studies (1989) |
PN441 .F44 1989 at Classified Stacks |
|
Fletcher, George P. |
Rethinking Criminal Law (1978) |
KF5018 .F57 at Reference Area & Classified Stacks |
|
Fried, Charles |
Contract as Promise: A Theory of Contractual Obligation (1981) |
K840 .F74 at Classified Stacks |
|
Fried, Charles |
Right and Wrong (1978) |
BJ1012 .F74 at Classified Stacks |
|
Friedman, Lawrence M. |
A History of American Law (2d ed. 1985) |
KF352 .F7 1985 at Classified Stacks |
|
Glendon, Mary Ann |
Rights Talk: The Impoverishment of Political Discourse (1991) |
KF4749 .G54 1991 at Classified Stacks |
Goldstein, Joseph
Freud, Anna
Solnit, Albert J. |
Before the Best Interests of the Child (1979) |
KF547 .G64 at Classified Stacks |
|
Beyond the Best Interests of the Child (1979)
|
KF547 .G65 at Classified Stacks [1973 ed.]
HV713 .G54 1979 at
UW Libraries |
|
In the Best Interests of the Child: Professional Boundaries (1986) |
KF547 .I5 1986 at
UW Libraries |
|
The Best Interest of the Child: The Least Detrimental Alternative (1996) |
KF547 .G64 at Classified Stacks |
Hastie, Reid
Penrod, Steven D.
Pennington, Nancy |
Inside the Jury (1983) |
KF8972 .H3 1983 at
UW Libraries |
Heinz, John P.
Laumann, Edward O. |
Chicago Lawyers: The Social Structure of the Bar (1982) (1994) |
KF297 .H42 1982 at Classified Stacks |
|
Horwitz, Morton J. |
The Transformation of American Law, 1870-1960: The Crisis of Legal Orthodoxy (1992) |
KF380 .H67 1992 at Classified Stacks |
|
Huber, Peter W. |
Liability: The Legal Revolution and Its Consequences (1988) |
KF1250 .H8 1988 at Classified Stacks |
|
Kairys, David |
The Politics of Law: A Progressive Critique (1982) (1990) (1998) |
KF8700 .P65 1982 at Classified Stacks
KF8700 .P65 1990 at Classified Stacks
KF8700 .P65 1998 at Reference Area |
|
Kelman, Mark G. |
A Guide to Critical Legal Studies (1987) |
K230.K43 G85 1987 at Classified Stacks |
Landes, William M.
Posner, Richard A. |
The Economic Structure of Tort Law (1987) |
KF1251 .L36 1987 at Classified Stacks |
|
MacKinnon, Catharine A. |
Feminism Unmodified: Discourses on Life and Law (1987) |
KF478 .M25 1987 at Classified Stacks |
|
MacKinnon, Catharine A. |
Sexual Harassment of Working Women: A Case of Sex Discrimination (1979) |
KF3467 .M3 at Classified Stacks |
|
MacKinnon, Catharine A. |
Toward a Feminist Theory of the State (1989) |
K644 .M33 1989 at Classified Stacks |
|
Macneil, Ian R. |
The New Social Contract: An Inquiry into Modern Contractual Relations (1980) |
K840 .M3 at Classified Stacks |
|
Mashaw, Jerry L. |
Bureaucratic Justice: Managing Social Security Disability Claims (1983) |
KF3650.5 .M37 1983 at Classified Stacks |
|
Minow, Martha L. |
Making All the Difference: Inclusion, Exclusion, and American Law (1990) |
K627 .M56 1990 at Classified Stacks |
|
Perry, Michael J. |
The Constitution, the Courts, and Human Rights: An Inquiry into the Legitimacy of Constitutional Policymaking by the Judiciary (1982) |
KF4749 .P43 1982 at Classified Stacks |
|
Posner, Richard A. |
See also Landes (coauthored work) |
KF1251 .L36 1987 at Classified Stacks |
|
Posner, Richard A. |
The Economics of Justice (1981) (1983) |
JC578 .P67 at Classified Stacks |
|
Posner, Richard A. |
The Federal Courts: Crisis and Reform (1985) |
KF8700 .P67 1985 at Classified Stacks |
|
The Federal Courts: Challenge and Reform (1996) |
KF8700 .P67 1996 at Classified Stacks |
|
Posner, Richard A. |
The Problems of Jurisprudence (1990) |
K230.P665 P76 1990 at Classified Stacks |
|
Shavell, Steven |
Economic Analysis of Accident Law (1987) |
K923 .S5 1987 at Classified Stacks |
|
Stevens, Robert B. |
Law School: Legal Education in America from the 1850s to the 1980s (1983) |
KF272 .S8 1983 at Classified Stacks |
|
Sunstein, Cass R. |
After the Rights Revolution: Reconceiving the Regulatory State (1990) |
KF3300 .S86 1990 at Classified Stacks |
|
Tushnet, Mark V. |
Red, White, and Blue: A Critical Analysis of Constitutional Law (1988) |
KF4575 .T87 1988 at Classified Stacks |
|
White, James Boyd |
When Words Lose Their Meaning: Constitutions and Reconstitutions of Language, Character, and Community (1984) |
P106 .W574 1984 at Classified Stacks |
|
Williams, Patricia J. |
The Alchemy of Race and Rights (1991) |
KF4757 .W53 1991 at Reference Area |
Woodward, Bob
Armstrong, Scott |
The Brethren: Inside the Supreme Court (1979) |
KF8742 .W66 at Classified Stacks |
top
The Twenty Most Cited Legal Texts and Treatises (1978-1999)
Compiled by Fred R. Shapiro
|
Author |
Title |
Gallagher Law Library |
Areeda, Phillip E.
Turner, Donald F. |
Antitrust Law: An Analysis of Antitrust Principles and Their Application |
KF1649 .A7 at Reference Area & Classified Stacks |
|
Collier, William M. |
Collier on Bankruptcy |
KF1524 .C63 at Reference Area |
|
Davis, Kenneth Culp |
Administrative Law Treatise (1978-84) |
KF5402 .D32 1979 at Classified Stacks |
Davis, Kenneth Culp
Pierce, Richard J. Pierce, Jr. |
Administrative Law Treatise (1994) |
KF5402 .D32 1994 at Classified Stacks |
|
Farnsworth, E. Allan |
Contracts (1982)
Farnsworth on Contracts (1990) (1998) |
KF801 .F365 1982 at Classified Stacks
KF801 .F366 1990 at Classified Stacks
KF801 .F367 1998 at Classified Stacks |
|
Gunther, Gerald |
Cases and Materials on Constitutional Law (1980) Constitutional Law (1985) (1991) |
KF4549 .G85 1980 at Classified Stacks
KF4549 .G85 1985 at Classified Stacks
KF4549 .G85 1991 at Classified Stacks |
Gunther, Gerald
Sullivan, Kathleen |
Constitutional Law (1997) |
KF4549 .G85 1997 at Classified Stacks |
|
Keeton, W. Page, et al. |
Prosser and Keeton on the Law of Torts (1984) |
KF1250 .P73 1984 at Classified Stacks |
LaFave, Wayne R.
Scott, Austin W., Jr. |
Criminal Law (1986) |
KF9219 .L38 1986 at Classified Stacks |
LaFave, Wayne R.
Israel, Jerold H. |
Criminal Procedure (1984) (1985) (1992) |
KF9619 .L342 1984 at Classified Stacks
KF9619 .L34 1985 at Classified Stacks
KF9619 .L34 1992 at Classified Stacks |
|
McCormick, Charles T. |
McCormick on Evidence (1984) (1992) |
KF8935 .M29 1984b at Classified Stacks
KF8935 .M29 1992b at Classified Stacks |
|
Moore, J. W., et al. |
Moore’s Federal Practice |
KF8820.A313 M63 1997 at Reference Area |
|
Nimmer, Melville B. |
Nimmer on Copyright: A Treatise on the Law of Literary, Musical and Artistic Property, and the Protection of Ideas |
KF2991.5 .N5 1978 at Reference Area |
Nowak, John E.
Rotunda, Ronald D. |
Constitutional Law (1991) (1995) |
KF4550 .N6 1991 at Classified Stacks
KF4550 .N6 1995 at Classified Stacks |
Nowak, John E.
Rotunda, Ronald D.
Young, J. Nelson |
Handbook on Constitutional Law (1978) (1983) Constitutional Law (1983) (1986) |
KF4550 .N6 1983 at Classified Stacks
KF4550 .N6 1983A at Classified Stacks
KF4550 .N6 1986 at Classified Stacks |
|
Posner, Richard A. |
Economic Analysis of Law (1986) (1992) (1998) |
KF385 .P65 1986 at Classified Stacks
KF385 .P65 1992 at Classified Stacks
KF385 .P65 1998 at Classified Stacks |
|
Tribe, Laurence H. |
American Constitutional Law (1978) (1988) |
KF4550 .T785 at Classified Stacks
KF4550 .T785 1988 at Classified Stacks |
Weinstein, Jack B.
Berger, Margaret A.
McLaughlin, Joseph |
Weinstein's Evidence
Weinstein's Federal Evidence |
KF8935 .W39 1997 at Classified Stacks |
White, James J.
Summers, Robert S. |
Handbook of the Law under the Uniform Commercial Code (1980)
Uniform Commercial Code (1988-93) (1995) |
KF890 .W45 1980 at Classified Stacks
KF890 .W452 1988 at Classified Stacks
KF890 .W45 1995 at Classified Stacks |
|
Wigmore, John Henry |
Wigmore on Evidence |
KF8935 .W54 at Reference Area & Classified Stacks |
|
Wolfram, Charles W. |
Modern Legal Ethics (1986) |
KF306 .W59 1986b at Reference Area |
|
Wright, Charles Alan |
The Law of Federal Courts (1983) (1994) |
KF8840 .W7 1983b at Classified Stacks
KF8840 .W7 1994 at Classified Stacks |
|
Wright, Charles Alan, et al. |
Federal Practice and Procedure (“Wright & Miller”) |
KF8840 .W68 at Reference Area & Classified Stacks |
|
British Legal Books Most Cited in Social Sciences Citation Index (1978-1999)
Compiled by Fred R. Shapiro
|
Author |
Title |
Gallagher Law Library |
|
Atiyah, P. S. |
The Rise and Fall of Freedom of Contract (1979) |
KD1554 .A98 at Classified Stacks |
|
Baker, J. H. |
An Introduction to English Legal History (1979)(1990) |
KD532 .B34 1979 at Classified Stacks
KD532 .B34 1990 at Classified Stacks |
|
Brownlie, Ian |
Principles of Public International Law (1979) (1990) (1998) |
KZ3225.B76 A37 1979 at Classified Stacks
KZ3225.B76 A37 1990 at Classified Stacks
KZ3225.B76 A37 1998 at Classified Stacks |
|
Finnis, John |
Natural Law and Natural Rights (1980) |
K460 .F57 at Classified Stacks |
|
Hart, H. L. A. Tony Honoré |
Causation in the Law (1985) |
K940 .H37 1985 at Classified Stacks |
|
MacCormick, Neil |
Legal Reasoning and Legal Theory (1978) (1994) |
K213 .M28 at Classified Stacks
K213 .M28 1994 at Classified Stacks |
|
Raz, Joseph |
The Morality of Freedom (1986) |
JC571 .R39 1986 at UW Libraries |
|
Raz, Joseph |
The Authority of Law: Essays on Law and Morality (1979) |
BJ55 .R4 at Classified Stacks |
|
Smart, Carol |
Feminism and the Power of Law (1989) |
K370 .S63 1989 at UW Libraries |
|
Williams, Glanville L. |
Textbook of Criminal Law (1978) (1983) |
KD7869 .W54 at Classified Stacks |
Nonlegal Books Most Cited in Legal Periodicals (1978-1999)
Compiled by Fred R. Shapiro
|
Author |
Title |
Gallagher Law Library |
|
Axelrod, Robert M. |
The Evolution of Cooperation (1984) |
HM131 .A89 1984 at Classified Stacks |
|
Fish, Stanley E. |
Is There a Text in this Class? The Authority of Interpretive Communities (1980) |
PN81 .F56 at UW Libraries
PN81 .F56 at UW Libraries |
|
Fisher, Roger D. & William Ury |
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving in (1981) (1991) |
BF637.N4 F57 at Classified Stacks
BF637.N4 F57 1991 at Reference Area |
|
Foucault, Michel |
Power/Knowledge: Selected Interviews and Other Writings, 1972-1977 (1980) |
HM291 .F59 1980 at UW Libraries |
|
Geertz, Clifford |
Local Knowledge: Further Essays in Interpretive Anthropology (1983) |
GN316 .G43 1983 at UW Libraries |
|
Gilligan, Carol |
In a Different Voice: Psychological Theory and Women's Development (1982) |
HQ1206 .G58 1982 at Classified Stacks |
|
Loftus, Elizabeth F. |
Eyewitness Testimony (1979) (1996) |
KF9672 .L63 at UW Libraries
KF9672 .L63 1996 at Reference Area |
|
Lowi, Theodore J. |
The End of Liberalism: The Second Republic of the United States (1979). |
HM276 .L57 1979 at
Classified Stacks
|
|
MacIntyre, Alasdair C. |
After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory (1981) (1984) |
BJ1012 .M325 1984 at Classified Stacks |
|
Mueller, Dennis C. |
Public Choice (1979)
Public Choice II (1989) |
JF1001 .M78 at UW Libraries
JF1001 .M78 1989 at UW Libraries |
|
Nisbett, Richard E. |
Human Inference; Strategies and Shortcomings of Social Judgment (1980) |
BF311 .N57 at UW Libraries |
|
Rawls, John |
Political Liberalism (1993) (1996) |
JC578 .R37 1993 at Classified Stacks
JC578 .R37 1996 at UW Libraries |
|
Rorty, Richard |
Philosophy and the Mirror of Nature (1979) |
B53 .R68 at UW Libraries |
|
Samuelson, Paul A. |
Economics (1980)
Economics (1985) (1989) (1992) (1995) (1998) |
HB171.5 .S25 1980 at UW Libraries
HB172.5 .S255 1992 at UW Libraries
HB171.5 .S25 1995 at UW Libraries
HB171.5 .S25 1998 at UW Libraries |
|
Sandel, Michael J. |
Liberalism and the Limits of Justice (1982) |
JC578 .S26 at Classified Stacks |
|
Scherer, F.M. |
Industrial Market Structure and Economic Performance (1980) (1990) |
HD2326 .S286 1980 at Classified Stacks
HD2326 .S286 1990 at Classified Stacks |
|
Walzer, Michael |
Spheres of Justice: A Defense of Pluralism and Equality (1983) |
JC575 .W34 1983 at Classified Stacks |
|
Weitzman, Lenore J. |
The Divorce Revolution: The Unexpected Social and Economic Consequences for Women and Children in America (1985) |
KF535 .W43 1985 at Reference Area |
|
Williamson, Oliver E. |
The Economic Institution of Capitalism: Firms, Markets, Relational Contracting (1985) |
HB99.5 .W55 1985 at UW Libraries |
|
Wilson, William J. |
The Truly Disadvantaged: The Inner City, the Underclass, and Public Policy (1987) |
HV4045 .W55 1987 at UW Libraries |
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