Feminist Legal Theory Second Edition

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.

"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.

"Feminist Legal Theory" is a carefully balanced and thoughtfully edited collection of classic and new papers from the exciting field of feminist legal thought. What makes current feminist legal theory so important is the far-reaching challenge it poses to the assumptions embedded in traditional legal doctrine and method as well as the light it sheds on how these assumptions have so consistently undercut efforts toward fundamental gender change.The papers gathered here reveal the influences of feminist work in philosophy, psychoanalysis, political theory, and literary criticism, fields that have enriched legal theory and provided feminist scholars with more and sharper tools, and the results, as evidenced in this volume, are impressive and encouraging. They are also sobering, in that they force the realization that there is much theoretical and practical work yet to be done, under constraints we are only beginning to fully comprehend.

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

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.

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.

An updated edition of the praised primer for feminist legal theory and how it shapes contemporary gender issues At long last, the complex field of feminist legal theory is presented in accessible, teachable form by two of its experts, Nancy Levit and Robert R. M. Verchick. In this outstanding primer, the authors introduce the diverse strands of feminist legal theory and the array of substantive legal issues relevant to women's and gender studies. The book centers on feminist legal theories—including equal treatment theory, cultural feminism, dominance theory, critical race feminism, lesbian feminism, postmodern feminism, and ecofeminism. The authors also address feminist legal methods, such as consciousness raising and storytelling. The primer 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. Levit and Verchick highlight a sweeping range of cutting edge topics at the intersection of law and gender, such as single sex schools, women in the military, abortion, same sex marriage, date rape, and the international trafficking in women and girls. At its core, Feminist Legal Theory shows the importance of the role of law and feminist legal theory in shaping contemporary gender issues.