An annotated bibliography on federal appellate practice and procedure.

• Author: Baker, Thomas E.
• Position: Bibliography

The materials in this bibliography are arranged by: treatises; textbooks; studies and books; manuals; symposia; and articles and annotations. The articles and annotations are grouped topically. Works are listed alphabetically by author. Especially important sources for studying and understanding appellate jurisdiction are noted with an asterisk. Each entry appears only once even if it might fit into more than one category.

1. TREATISES

   * James Wm. Moore & Daniel R. Coquillette, Moore's Federal Practice (3d ed., Matthew Bender 1997): 33 vols.; once considered the preeminent treatise on federal jurisdiction and procedure; volumes 19 and 20 cover appeals to the courts of appeals, but the treatise is better for issues on district court jurisdiction; organization and presentation of material are not up to earlier editions; still comprehensive; a good place to begin research.

   Richard J. Pierce, Jr., Administrative Law Treatise (4th ed., Aspen Law & Business 2002 & Supp. 2007): 3 vols.; once considered the preeminent treatise; primarily devoted to administrative law, but also covers administrative procedure.

   Ronald D. Rotunda & John E. Nowak, Treatise on Constitutional Law--Substance and Procedure (3d ed., West Group 1999): 5 vols.; an up-to-date analysis and synthesis of constitutional law; a superior resource on the constitutional aspects of federal jurisdiction; the popular one-volume student hornbook is keyed to this treatise.

   * Charles Alan Wright, Arthur R. Miller & Andrew D. Leipold, Federal Practice & Procedure (4th ed., Thomson West 2008): 78 vols.; the best and most usable multi-volume treatise on federal courts; updated continuously with supplements; volumes 15A, 15B, 16, and 16A cover the courts of appeals; each section amounts to a knowledgeable and thorough lecture on the topic with comprehensive and exhaustive citations; the sixth edition of Wright & Kane's student hornbook (2002) is a masterful highlight of this set.

2. TEXTBOOKS

   * Ruggero J. Aldisert, The Judicial Process--Text, Materials and Cases (2d ed., West Publg. Co. 1996): a thoughtful jurist examines his craft; a mixture of jurisprudence and procedure.

   Lea Brilmayer & Jacob Corre, An Introduction to Jurisdiction in the American Federal System (Michie Co. 1986): designed as a student guide to some of the more esoteric questions of jurisdiction.

   Robert C. Casad & William B. Richman, Jurisdiction in Civil Actions: Territorial Basis and Process Limitations on Jurisdiction of State and Federal Courts (3d ed., Lexis Law Publg. 1998 & Supp. 2006): a comprehensive treatment of all aspects of district court jurisdiction in civil actions, including constitutional limits and rules of procedure; very thorough on the original jurisdiction of the district courts.

   * Gregory A. Castanias & Robert H. Klonoff, Federal Appellate Practice and Procedure in a Nutshell (Thomson West 2008): a practical overview of federal appellate procedures; a useful student guide; a concise reference for attorneys.

   Erwin Chemerinsky, Federal Jurisdiction (5th ed., Aspen Publishers 2007): a discussion of the law and policy involved with current jurisdictional issues; focus is more on the district court level and federal-state issues; a comprehensive and thorough student guide written by a masterful teacher and prolific academic.

   Robert M. Cover, Owen M. Fiss & Judith Resnik, The Federal Procedural System: A Rule and Statutory Source Book (Foundation Press 1991): an innovative casebook that takes a theoretical approach to understanding federal court jurisdiction; a post-modern, meta-theory approach.

   David P. Currie, Federal Courts--Cases and Materials (4th ed., West Publg. Co. 1990): an effort at modern organization to emphasize major contemporary themes such as civil rights jurisdiction; note materials seek to deepen analysis; includes a statutory appendix.

   Donald L. Doernberg, C. Keith Wingate & Donald H. Zinger, Federal Courts, Federalism and Separation of Powers (3d ed., West Group 2004): a comprehensive and thorough casebook with a traditional approach.

   William N. Eskridge, Jr., Philip P. Frickey, Henry Melvin Hart & Albert M. Sacks, The Legal Process: Basic Problems in the Making and Application of Law (rev. ed., Foundation Press 1994): a re-publication of a classic law school text that defined process jurisprudence as a school of legal thought.

   * Richard H. Fallon, Jr., Daniel J. Meltzer & David L. Shapiro, Hart and Wechsler's The Federal Courts and the Federal System (5th ed., Foundation Press 2003): more than a casebook, an encyclopedic reference work, packed with history and theory; an exhaustive treatment of the federal courts in a new 1,638-page edition.

   Howard P. Fink, Linda S. Mullenix & Mark V. Tushnet, Federal Courts in the 21st Century (3d ed., LexisNexis 2007): a blend of history and constitutional law with practice and procedure; a casebook that describes the current state of the federal courts and considers their future.

   Arthur D. Hellman & Lauren K. Robel, Federal Courts: Cases and Materials on Judicial Federalism and the Lawyering Process (LexisNexis 2005): comprehensive and unified treatment of litigation of federal issues in state courts and in federal courts; this casebook includes cases, notes, questions and problems.

   Peter W. Low & John C. Jeffries, Jr., Federal Courts and the Law of Federal-State Relations (5th ed., Foundation Press 2004): a modern treatment that de-emphasizes procedure and emphasizes themes of federalism; provides extended notes; includes a thorough bibliography of secondary authorities.

   Robert J. Martineau, Kent Sinclair, Michael E. Solimine & Randy J. Holland, Cases and Materials on Appellate Practice and Procedure (2d ed., Thomson West 2005): a casebook on appellate practice and procedure with an emphasis on appellate litigation.

   * Daniel J. Meador, Thomas E. Baker & Joan E. Steinman, Appellate Courts: Structures, Functions, Processes, and Personnel (2d ed., LexisNexis 2006): a comprehensive course book on all aspects of appellate practice and procedure; includes detailed chapters on the United States Courts of Appeals and the Supreme Court.

   James William Moore, Moore's Federal Practice Rules Pamphlet Part I (Matthew Bender): a handy desk reference of rules and statutes published annually.

   Linda S. Mullenix, Martin H. Redish & Georgene M. Vairo, Understanding Federal Courts and Jurisdiction (Matthew Bender 1998): a concise student handbook on federal courts and federal procedure.

   John E. Nowak & Ronald D. Rotunda, Constitutional Law (7th ed., Thomson West 2004): a handbook keyed to the author's multi-volume treatise; helpful on the constitutional aspects of federal court jurisdiction.

   James E. Pfander, Principles of Federal Jurisdiction (Thomson West 2006): a law student hornbook; provides up-to-date explanations of the leading principles of federal jurisdiction.

   Richard J. Pierce, Sidney A. Shapiro & Paul R. Verkuil, Administrative Law and Process (4th ed., Foundation Press 2004): a student hornbook that is an abbreviated version of, with citations to, the multi-volume treatise; a ready introduction to administrative procedures.

   Martin H. Redish, Federal Jurisdiction: Tensions in the Allocation of Judicial Power (2d ed., Michie Co. 1990): a collection of essays on federal-state issues; a much cited and thoughtful treatment by a leading scholar of the federal courts.

   Martin H. Redish & Suzanna Sherry, Federal Courts, Cases, Comments and Questions (6th ed., Thomson West 2007): a comprehensive casebook that includes the latest court decisions and scholarly literature.

   Thomson West, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: 2008-2008 Educational Edition (Thomson West 2008): a handy desk reference of rules and statutes.

   Laurence H. Tribe, American Constitutional Law (3d ed., Foundation Press 2000): an original synthesis from the author's orientation; a good resource for constitutional limits on federal court jurisdiction; the author has since abandoned his plan for a second volume.

   Michael L. Wells, William P. Marshall, & Larry W. Yackle, Cases and Materials on Federal Courts (Thomson West 2007): up-to-date casebook by three leading federal courts scholars; emphasizes broad constitutional themes.

   * Charles Alan Wright & Mary Kay Kane, Law of Federal Courts (6th ed., West Group 2002): modestly intended as a hornbook for law student use, but one of the most frequently-cited texts in judicial opinions; includes references to the multivolume treatise that is one of Charles Alan Wright's great testaments as a scholar; if a library could buy only one federal courts volume, this would be it.

   Charles Alan Wright, John B. Oakley & Debra Lyn Bassett, Federal Courts Cases and Materials (12th ed., Foundation Press 2008): traditional casebook that emphasizes jurisdiction and procedure; notes are sparse; mostly opinions; teaches the subject of federal courts for lawyers.

3. STUDIES AND BOOKS

   * Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Annual Reports of the Director of the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts: detailed statistics; available over time for comparisons and trend analyses; the mother lode of stats; enough to satisfy any federal court wonk.

   American Bar Association, Action Commission to Reduce Court Costs and Delay (1978): proposed several intramural procedural reforms to make appellate procedure more efficient and less judge-labor intensive; relied on the belief that appellate judges could do more work, if they worked more efficiently; issued subsequent reports and research findings intended to reduce court costs and delays, including Final Report of the Action Commission to Reduce Court Costs and Delay (ABA 1984), and Project Reports and Research Findings Supporting The Final Report of the Action Commission to Reduce Court Costs and Delay (ABA 1984).

   American Bar Association Standing Committee on Federal Judicial Improvements, The United States Courts of Appeals: Reexamining Structure and Process After a Century of Growth (ABA...