Winner of the APSA Law and Courts Section’s Teaching and Mentoring Award! 
Meeting the needs of professors who teach one-term courses―or for those teaching two terms who wish to assign other readings―this condensed and concise one-volume text spans the breadth of institutional powers and civil rights and liberties. Epstein and Walker emphasize political context―arguments and input from lawyers and interest groups, justices’ ideological and behavioral inclinations, elected officials’ partisan positions, as well as public opinion― allowing students to see the development of constitutional doctrine within its decidedly political environment. 
For this new fourth edition, material has been thoroughly updated through the end of the 2007–2008 term of the Supreme Court, with coverage and analysis of presidential signing statements, a survey of how legal principles affect the Court’s decision making, and detailed overviews of recent cases, such as Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, Gonzales v. Raich, Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, Kelo v. City of New London, and Van Orden v. Perry. Additionally, Epstein and Walker are including a brand new, concise chapter on the Second Amendment with the recent District of Columbia v. Heller case. 
Commentary helps students understand context of particular cases, while Aftermath boxes and profiles of influential groups and justices, photographs of litigants, and exhibits from cases enliven the text and enhance learning.

Constitutional Law for a Changing America: A Short Course

Lee Epstein

Thomas G. Walker

Constitutional Law

CQ Press

Constitutional Law for a Changing America: Institutional Powers and Constraints

Lee J. Epstein

Kevin T. McGuire

Constitutional Law for a Changing America

SAGE Publications, Inc. (US)

Constitutional Law for a Changing America: Rights, Liberties, and Justice

Constitutional Law for a Changing America draws on political science as well as legal studies to analyze and excerpt cases. With meticulous revising and updating throughout, Epstein and Walker streamline material while accounting for recent landmark cases and new scholarship.

Political factors influence judicial decisions. Arguments and input from lawyers and interest groups, the ebb and flow of public opinion, and especially the ideological and behavioral inclinations of the justices all combine to shape the development of constitutional doctrine. Drawing on political science as much as from legal studies, Constitutional Law for a Changing America helps students realize that Supreme Court cases are more than just legal names and citations. 
As always, Epstein and Walker account for new scholarship as well as reconsider all excerpted cases for both additions and cuts. With meticulous updating throughout, the authors feature reworked and revised discussion on: 
<ul>
<li>the methods of constitutional interpretation, </li>
<li>jurisdiction stripping and standing, </li>
<li>the appointments clause and theories of presidential power, </li>
<li>theories of the separation-of-powers system, </li>
<li>all cases related to the war on terrorism, </li>
<li>theories of federalism and the current state of the federalism/commerce doctrine; in particular, linkages between chapters 6 and 7 have been made more explicit. </li>
</ul>
Two important improvements in the book’s design lead to more focused and effective reading: 
<ul>
<li>a revamped interior layout clearly delineates between author commentary and opinion excerpts, </li>
<li>a new "Arguments" section in the case commentary details the attorneys’ arguments for each side.</li>
</ul>

Politics & Social Sciences

Politics & Government

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Books by Thomas G. Walker