America's Lawyer-Presidents: From Law Office to Oval Office.

• Position: Brief Article - Book Review

What do Presidents Abraham Lincoln, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton have in common? They were all lawyers before they became president. In fact, 25 of America's 43 presidents have been lawyers.

America's Lawyer-Presidents: From Law Office to Oval Office, edited by Norman Gross, director of the ABA Museum of Law in Chicago, is a readable collection of essays that explores the law careers of our national leaders and how these experiences shaped their presidencies. A majority of our past leaders have been legal professionals, and their choices have greatly influenced the history of the United States.

America has elected lawyers as presidents from the beginning. John Adams, the second president and America's first lawyer-president, combined a 20-year law practice with significant contributions to our nation's founding charters. His son, John Quincy Adams, argued landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases both before and after his presidency--including the famed Amistad case. In fact, eight of the 25 lawyer-presidents appeared as counsel before the highest court in the land during their careers.

Lincoln was...