Feminist Legal Theory

Feminist legal theory is one of the most dynamic fields in the law, and it affects issues ranging from child custody to sexual harassment. Since its initial publication in 2006, Feminist Legal Theory: A Primer has received rave reviews. Now, in the completely updated second edition of this outstanding primer, Nancy Levit and Robert R.M. Verchick introduce the diverse strands of feminist legal theory and discuss an array of substantive legal topics, pulling in recent court decisions, new laws, and important shifts in culture and technology. The book centers on feminist legal theories, including equal treatment theory, cultural feminism, dominance theory, critical race feminism, lesbian feminism, postmodern feminism, and ecofeminism. Readers will find new material on women in politics, gender and globalization, and the promise and danger of expanding social media. Updated statistics and empirical analysis appear throughout. The authors, prominent experts in the field, also address feminist legal methods, such as consciousness-raising and storytelling. The primer offers an accessible and pragmatic approach to feminist legal theory. It demonstrates the ways feminist legal theory operates in real-life contexts, including domestic violence, reproductive rights, workplace discrimination, education, sports, pornography, and global issues of gender. The authors highlight a sweeping range of cutting-edge topics at the intersection of law and gender, such as single-sex schools, abortion, same-sex marriage, rape on college campuses, and international trafficking in women and girls. At its core, Feminist Legal Theory shows the importance of the roles of law and feminist legal theory in shaping contemporary gender issues.

This book offers powerful analyses of the relationship between law and gender and new understandings of the limits of, and opportunities for, legal reform drawn from the experiences of women and from critical perspectives developed within other disciplines.

"In the completely updated second edition of this outstanding primer, Nancy Levit and Robert R.M. Verchick introduce the diverse strands of feminist legal theory and discuss an array of substantive legal topics, pulling in recent court decisions, new laws, and important shifts in culture and technology. The book centers on feminist legal theories, including equal treatment theory, cultural feminism, dominance theory, critical race feminism, lesbian feminism, postmodern feminism, and ecofeminism. Readers will find new material on women in politics, gender and globalization, and the promise and danger of expanding social media. Updated statistics and empirical analysis appear throughout. At its core, Feminist Legal Theory shows the importance of the roles of law and feminist legal theory in shaping contemporary gender issues"--Unedited summary from book cover.

As a distinct scholarly contribution to law, feminist legal theory is now well over three decades old. Those three decades have seen consolidation and renewal of its central concerns as well as remarkable growth, dynamism and change. This Companion celebrates the strength of feminist legal thought, which is manifested in this dynamic combination of stability and change, as well as in the diversity of perspectives and methodologies, and the extensive range of subject-matters, which are now included within its ambit. Bringing together contributors from across a range of jurisdictions and legal traditions, the book provides a concise but critical review of existing theory in relation to the core issues or concepts that have animated, and continue to animate, feminism. It provides an authoritative and scholarly review of contemporary feminist legal thought, and seeks to contribute to the ongoing development of some of its new approaches, perspectives, and subject-matters. The Companion is divided into three parts, dealing with 'Theory', 'Concepts' and 'Issues'. The first part addresses theoretical questions which are of significance to law, but which also connect to feminist theory at the broadest and most interdisciplinary level. The second part also draws on general feminist theory, but with a more specific focus on debates about equality and difference, race, culture, religion, and sexuality. The 'Issues' section considers in detail more specific areas of substantive legal controversy.

Feminist Legal Theory is a groundbreaking collection of feminist work proceeding from the core assumption that the differences among women are essential to feminist analysis. Rather than presenting feminist legal theory sequentially, with “African American feminism” or “critical race feminism” added on at the end, the volume thoroughly integrates key readings from non-white, non-middle class, and non-mainstream writers throughout. The volume explores the intersections of race, class, and gender in such areas as theory, family, work and economic issues, and violence against women. Each section of the book begins with an introduction providing context and insights into how the particular pieces included challenge norms and create new paradigms. This vibrant, challenging collection of work by a broad range of authors represents the cutting edge of feminist theory in concrete applications essential to gender equality. Contributors include: Patricia Hill Collins, Bonnie Thornton Dill, Angela P. Harris, Sylvia A. Law, Mari Matsuda, Martha Minow, Esther Ngan-Ling Chow, john a. powell, Jenny Rivera, and Maxine Baca Zinn.

Multidisciplinary focus Surveying many disciplines, this anthology brings together an outstanding selection of scholarly articles that examine the profound impact of law on the lives of women in the United States. The themes addressed include the historical, political, and social contexts of legal issues that have affected women's struggles to obtain equal treatment under the law. The articles are drawn from journals in law, political science, history, women's studies, philosophy, and education and represent some of the most interesting writing on the subject. The law in theory and practice Many of the articles bring race, social, and economic factors into their analyses, observing, for example, that black women, poor women, and single mothers are treated by the wielders of the power of the law differently than middle class white women. Other topics covered include the evolution of women's legal status, reproduction rights, sexuality and family issues, equal employment and educational opportunities, domestic violence, pornography and sexual exploitation, hate speech, and feminist legal thought. A valuable research and classroom aid, this series provides in-depth coverage of specific legal issues and takes into account the major legal changes and policies that have had an impact on the lives of American women.

Attuned to the social contexts within which laws are created, feminist lawyers, historians, and activists have long recognized the discontinuities and contradictions that lie at the heart of efforts to transform the law in ways that fully serve women's interests. At its core, the nascent field of feminist legal history is driven by a commitment to uncover women's legal agency and how women, both historically and currently, use law to obtain individual and societal empowerment. Feminist Legal History represents feminist legal historians' efforts to define their field, by showcasing historical research and analysis that demonstrates how women were denied legal rights, how women used the law proactively to gain rights, and how, empowered by law, women worked to alter the law to try to change gendered realities. Encompassing two centuries of American history, thirteen original essays expose the many ways in which legal decisions have hinged upon ideas about women or gender as well as the ways women themselves have intervened in the law, from Elizabeth Cady Stanton's notion of a legal class of gender to the deeply embedded inequities involved in Ledbetter v. Goodyear, a 2007 Supreme Court pay discrimination case. Contributors: Carrie N. Baker, Felice Batlan, Tracey Jean Boisseau, Eileen Boris, Richard H. Chused, Lynda Dodd, Jill Hasday, Gwen Hoerr Jordan, Maya Manian, Melissa Murray, Mae C. Quinn, Margo Schlanger, Reva Siegel, Tracy A. Thomas, and Leti Volpp

The leading text in the field, Introduction to Feminist Legal Theory was the first book that served as an introductory survey of feminist jurisprudence. Its historical view of feminist legal theory places issues in social context and thoroughly reviews the evolving paradigms of contemporary feminism from the 1970s through the present. The full range of legal issues affecting women are covered, including gender discrimination, rape, sexual harassment, motherhood, reproductive issues, and much more. Clear, energetic presentation keeps students engaged and involved with succinct overviews, intellectually stimulating material, and jargon-free prose. The Third Edition features up-to-date theories and topics, such as the "autonomy" feminism and "masculinities" theory. Expansion of the current theory-based structure includes the "big three" feminisms described in the previous edition and the "new three" feminisms, which are expanded in the third edition. New applied areas are covered as well, such as transgender legal issues and sex trafficking. While the book remains U.S.-focused, important new material on global and comparative feminism has been added. Throughout the text, students will find discussion about changes in the law since 2003 on issues such as rape, pay equity, sex stereotyping, marriage equality, Title IX, and more. Thoroughly updated, the revised Third Edition presents: Up-to-date theories and topics "autonomy" feminism, "masculinities" theory, "social justice" feminism LGBT and critical race perspectivesa Two-part organization, focusing on chronology and substantive areas of the law that are of particular importance to feminist legal scholars Part one focuses on chronology by examining the three generations of feminist legal theory that have emerged since 1971 the Generation of Equality (1970s) the Generation of Difference (1980s) the Generation of Complex Identities (1990s to present) this part will also include the "new three" feminisms in the 3rd edition (intersectional, autonomy and postmodern feminism) Part two focuses on substantive areas of the law, which fall into three categories economic subordination of women sexual subordination of women motherhood and reproduction Introduction of new applied areas transgender legal issues sex trafficking reproductive justice More material on global and comparative feminism, while remaining U.S.-focused Discussion of changes in the law since 2003 rape domestic violence pay equity torts and tax law same-sex marriage Title IX, and more