Ed. note: Please welcome Renee Knake Jefferson back to the pages of Above the Law. Subscribe to her Substack, Legal Ethics Roundup, here.
Welcome to what captivates, haunts, inspires, and surprises me every week in the world of legal ethics.
Happy June! This week I’m mixing things up here at the Roundup. It is time for your Annual LER Summer Reading List. You’ll find an assortment of recently published books related to legal ethics that you might want to add to your own summer reading list, along with a few non-law recommendations too.
Click on the titles below to purchase. Doing so contributes to this reader-supported website, because the Legal Ethics Roundup earns a small commission at no cost to you. (For more suggestions, revisit the inaugural Summer Reading List LER No. 44 and last year’s Summer Reading List LER No. 93.)
If a legal ethics summer reading list isn’t for you, don’t worry. The Roundup in its regular form will be delivered to your inbox next Monday.
Books with Legal Ethics Ideas and Themes
The Price of Mercy: Unfair Trials, a Violent System, and a Public Defender’s Search for Justice in America by Emily Galvin Almanza. From the publisher: “As Americans, we are told a rose-tinted story about our criminal courts—that these are the hallowed halls of justice, that the purpose of our legal process is to find the truth, and that those who enforce the law are both equitable and heroic. But what if the reality is purposefully obscured to hide something rotten at the system’s core? In The Price of Mercy, attorney and former public defender Emily Galvin Almanza weaves hard data and unforgettable stories, dark humor and compelling evidence to tell us the truth about what’s really going on behind the closed doors of America’s criminal courts. … Galvin Almanza argues that we need an engaged public to confront the stark reality of our crime-generating, poverty-entrenching, health-destroying legal apparatus and rebuild it into something that can save our collective present and prevent our future from being torn apart. Provocative and eye-opening, The Price of Mercy lifts the curtain on the way our laws really operate and presents a path forward for true transformation of the American criminal court system. Justice, and the law itself, is not some static thing. It is something enacted together, decision by decision, in acts of inhumanity or mercy.” Read more and buy here.
Law on Trial: An Unlikely Insider Reckons With Our Legal System by Shaun Ossei-Owusu. From the publisher: “An insider’s sharp critique of legal education and the legal profession, revealing why the system is far from impartial, starting in law school and extending to the corporate world, government, and public interest organizations. The law promises justice. Too often, it delivers inequality. This contradiction raises a basic question: Why does a legal system that claims to stand for fairness and equality fail to uphold these ideals over and over? In Law on Trial, legal scholar and Bronx native Shaun Ossei-Owusu draws on more than a decade of observation and reflection―first as a scholar of inequality, then as a law student, practicing lawyer, and now as an Ivy League law professor―to provide an unvarnished account of the legal system. He reveals that the promise of justice is too often a convenient fiction invoked by lawyers, recited by textbooks, and betrayed in practice. … In this legal odyssey, Ossei-Owusu takes us inside law school classrooms where human suffering is reduced to abstract principles. He brings us to government offices where protecting cities can mean crushing the vulnerable. We go to Big Law conference rooms where power is exercised far from the communities most affected. At every step, he pulls back the curtain on legal education and the legal profession, creating a revelatory, unforgettable account of a system that touches all of us, in one way or another.” Read more and buy here.
The First Woman Judge: The Life and Legacy of Florence Allen by Tracy Thomas. From the publisher: “Florence Allen was the first woman judge many times over―first federal appellate court judge, first elected to a state supreme court, and first shortlisted for the U.S. Supreme Court. During Allen’s forty years on the bench, the country swung between progressivism and conservatism, with passage of a constitutional amendment for women’s voting rights, two world wars, the Red and Lavender Scares, and the New Deal. Amid these changes, women used their new political standing to transform the courts, first by becoming active agents in the justice system, and then by developing theories of public law, social justice, and fair process. Exploring Allen’s fascinating legal life, Tracy Thomas recounts the larger history of how women infiltrated the legal system as judges, lawyers, jurors, and legislators to demand a more representative system of justice for the welfare of all.” Read more and buy here. [Full disclosure: I served as an external reviewer of the book, and you’ll find my blurb on the back of the cover! Here’s my quote: “Florence Allen broke every barrier but one. First woman elected judge. First woman on a federal appeals court. Shortlisted for the Supreme Court―yet never appointed. This revelatory, carefully researched biography exposes how Allen transformed American courts. Her fight opened the door for generations of women judges to come. Thomas’s book is important reading for anyone who cares about the history of the legal profession and the future of the judiciary.”]
The Lawyer, the Lion, and the Laundry by Jamie Jackson Spannhake. From the publisher: “Join lawyer and wellness coach Jamie Spannhake for a fun, enlightening journey that will clarify your desires so you can reclaim your time and enjoy your life. … Jamie has written a short book, one that you can read and work through in about three hours. She has synthesized a wealth of information into clear tips, methods and easy-to-use applications for you. Most importantly, this book does not require you to add more to your busy schedule. Rather, Jamie is sharing perspective shifts — two choices, two actions, and two thoughts — that allow you to create space and time to live the life you want.” Read more and buy here.
Last Branch Standing: A Potentially Surprising, Occasionally Witty Journey Inside Today’s Supreme Court by Sarah Isgur. From the publisher: “Most people get the Supreme Court all wrong. A smattering of high-profile decisions have popularized a simplistic idea of the Court and its justices. Yes, six of them were appointed by Republicans, and only three by Democrats. So, how does that 6-3 conservative majority explain why in the 2024-25 term, conservative Brett Kavanaugh was more likely to agree with liberal Elena Kagan than conservative Neil Gorsuch? Or why the court threw shade at Florida’s attempt to ban drag shows? … The ultimate insider, Isgur takes readers on a deep dive inside the Supreme Court: how cases land at the Court’s doorstep, which justices attend clerk happy hours (and which ones even bother showing up to the office), why conservatives already have buyer’s remorse about Amy Coney Barrett, and how the whole judicial system is kind of a constitutional anomaly. She’ll even help you decide whether you should throw your hat in the ring and go to law school! Blending irreverent humor and incisive commentary, Isgur goes underneath the robes—and shows us what we need to do to preserve the rule of law amid dicey times in this little self-governing experiment we’ve been running for the last 250 years.” Read more and buy here.
The Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader by Melissa Murray. From the publisher: “Think of this as the U.S. Constitution explained by America’s favorite law professor, Melissa Murray. On her podcast, Strict Scrutiny, Murray and her cohosts, Kate Shaw and Leah Litman, provide in-depth, accessible, and irreverent analysis of the Supreme Court and its cases, culture, and personalities. On that podcast, on MSNOW—where she is a frequent contributor—in opinion pieces, and when providing commentary as she did in a recent New York Times piece on Justice Brown Jackson, Murray spends an awful lot of time demystifying laws for everyone else. In this book, she tackles one of the founding American documents: the Constitution. Each amendment will be annotated with some historical context provided, as well as examples of how it is relevant to our present day. More necessary than ever, as we look to the Supreme Court and their interpretation of the Constitution as the last institution upholding our democracy, this book is an indispensable read for every thinking American.” Read more and buy here.
The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers, and Rogue Doctors Fuel America’s Lawsuit Factory by Elizabeth Chamblee Burch. From the publisher: “For decades, late-night television has blared a familiar refrain: If you or a loved one has been injured by X product… But behind those ads lies a lesser-known world where elaborate scams revictimize the injured. Why else would thousands of women with health insurance take out loans with astronomical interest rates and fly to south Florida to have their pelvic mesh surgically removed at a chiropractor’s clinic? The Pain Brokers, by law professor Elizabeth Burch, is a damning investigation of a scheme made possible by a medical and legal complex that too often views women’s bodies as cash machines and fails to take their pain seriously. As Burch unfurls each level to the scheme, we meet an enthralling cast of characters, from a world class scam artist who reaped tens of millions of dollars at a south Florida call center, to the ultimate white shoe power lawyer who defended Big Pharma but became an unlikely hero, to a newly minted small-town Arkansas attorney who advocated for the unseen and unheard. But at the center are three women, Jerri, Barb, and Sharon, whose lives were upended by the very procedure they were told would save them. A page-turning, urgently necessary work of public service journalism, The Pain Brokers is not only a chilling exposé of a legal system gone awry, but a wake-up call to the ways in which it harms those it is meant to help.” Read more and buy here. (And revisit LER Bonus Content No. 23 for a recap of the Faculty Lounge virtual book symposium.)
Lovely One: A Memoir by Ketanji Brown Jackson. From the publisher: “With this unflinching account, Justice Ketanji BrownJackson invites readers into her life and world, tracing her family’s ascent from segregation to her confirmation on America’s highest court within the span of one generation. Named ‘Ketanji Onyika,’ meaning ‘Lovely One,’ based on a suggestion from her aunt, a Peace Corps worker stationed in West Africa, Justice Jackson learned from her educator parents to take pride in her heritage since birth. She describes her resolve as a young girl to honor this legacy and realize her dreams: from hearing stories of her grandparents and parents breaking barriers in the segregated South, to honing her voice in high school as an oratory champion and student body president, to graduating magna cum laude from Harvard, where she performed in musical theater and improv and participated in pivotal student organizations. Here, Justice Jackson pulls back the curtain, marrying the public record of her life with what is less known. She reveals what it takes to advance in the legal profession when most people in power don’t look like you, and to reconcile a demanding career with the joys and sacrifices of marriage and motherhood. Through trials and triumphs, Justice Jackson’s journey will resonate with dreamers everywhere, especially those who nourish outsized ambitions and refuse to be turned aside. This moving, openhearted tale will spread hope for a more just world, for generations to come.” Read more and buy here.
We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution by Jill Lepore. From the publisher: “The U.S. Constitution is among the oldest constitutions in the world but also one of the most difficult to amend. Jill Lepore, Harvard professor of history and law, explains why in We the People, the most original history of the Constitution in decades―and an essential companion to her landmark history of the United States, These Truths. Arriving on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding―the anniversary, too, of the first state constitutions―We the People offers a wholly new history of the Constitution. … Challenging both the Supreme Court’s monopoly on constitutional interpretation and the flawed theory of ‘originalism,’ Lepore contends in this “gripping and unfamiliar story of our own past” that the philosophy of amendment is foundational to American constitutionalism. The framers never intended for the Constitution to be preserved, like a butterfly, under glass, Lepore argues, but expected that future generations would be forever tinkering with it, hoping to mend America by amending its Constitution through an orderly deliberative and democratic process.” Read more and buy here.
The Nuremberg Women: The Untold Story of the Eight Women Who Brought the Nazis to Justice by Natalie Livingstone. So this one isn’t out until November, but think of it as late-summer extended reading… From the publisher: “In November 1945, the eyes of the world turned to Nuremberg. Humanity was seeking not only the truth about Nazi crimes but also a vision of what justice might look like in their aftermath. The trials are traditionally associated with a roll call of famous men, but they were only part of the story. Not only were there women involved in the trial in every role―as journalists, researchers, lawyers, interpreters, court reporters, witnesses, artists, and even defendants―but they were pivotal in the trial’s outcome. The Nuremberg Women tells the story of eight women: a brilliant American lawyer, three pioneering journalists, two German, one British, an iconoclastic artist, a beautiful refugee aristocrat, a dauntless survivor of Auschwitz, and a young Russian translator. From the major stories about justice, gender, and politics at a pivotal moment in the twentieth century to the smaller, daily intimate tales of the women’s affairs and bar-room disputes, The Nuremberg Women shows the most famous trial of the twentieth century in a new light―making a brave new case for it having been a more diverse and democratic exercise than has often been recognized. They reveal a Nuremberg that is more intimate, human, and haphazard; one that was lower paid and less publicized. They demonstrate that the trial was remarkable not because it was perfect but because, against all odds, it happened. Thanks to these women and many others, justice was served.” Read more and buy here.
What’s Currently Stacked By My Bed or Packed In My Suitcase
Looking for something that isn’t related to legal ethics? Here are the non-law books currently stacked on my nightstand or packed in my suitcase for summer reading.
Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know by Alexandra Horowitz. From the publisher: “The instant classic on the mind of the dog is now updated to include the latest results in the booming field of dog cognition. What do dogs know? How do they think? The answers will surprise and delight you as cognitive scientist Alexandra Horowitz explains how dogs perceive their daily worlds, each other, and that other quirky animal, the human. Inside of a Dog is a fresh look at the world of dogs—from the dog’s point of view. … Much more than a scientific exploration, Inside of a Dog is a love letter to dogs, filled with personal observations and practical advice for people who live with dogs. With a light touch and the weight of scientific authority behind her, Horowitz offers an unparalleled exploration into the minds of our beloved four-legged companions.” Read more and buy here.
I Am Not A Robot: My Year of Using AI to DO (Almost) Everything by Joanna Stern. From the publisher: “What happens when intelligent machines aren’t just in our pockets but are also driving our cars, making our decisions, folding our laundry, and educating our kids? You’ve heard the hype: AI will make us healthier, give every child a personalized tutor, run our businesses more efficiently, return hours of free time to our overworked brains, and make discoveries previously unimagined by humankind. The AI future is going to be unlike any other technological revolution. But what does that really mean? And will AI truly make life better? To find out, award-winning journalist Joanna Stern surrendered her life to artificial intelligence for one year. The results are both hilarious and unsettling. … This book is not the definitive story, because we’re only a few years into the AI revolution. But after a year of living as a human lab rat, Joanna delivers one of the clearest—and funniest—pictures yet of what’s really happening and what it means for you.” Read more and buy here.
Unsayable: A Life in Writing by Michael Cunningham. From the publisher: “Luminous, perceptive, and powerful, Unsayable is an ode to literature, a meditation on craft, and an intimate account of a life spent trying to put into words that which resists depiction. This, it turns out, is the lifeblood of the fiction writer: the impossibility of capturing the human experience, and the relentless desire to try.” Read more and buy here.
How to Rule the World: An Education in Power at Stanford University by Theo Baker. From the publisher: “From Theo Baker, winner of the George Polk Award for his investigation that brought down Stanford’s president, comes a revelatory and gripping account of Silicon Valley hubris. Slush funds. Shell companies. Yacht parties. This is life for Silicon Valley’s favored teenagers. Seventeen-year-old Theo Baker showed up for freshman year at Stanford University as a tech-obsessed coder. It seemed like paradise. There were Rodin sculptures next to nuclear laboratories and inventors lounging with Olympians. But Baker soon discovered a culture that embraced corner-cutting, that vested infinite excess and access in the hands of kids with few safeguards to catch bad behavior. Stanford, he realized, was less a school than a business. Its annual budget was nearly twice that of Harvard or Yale and higher than those of 116 countries. The product? Students. … This is the incredible journey of a reluctant teenage reporter who uncovered a story that shook the scientific world and became front-page news across the country. It is also an unprecedented inside view of the students learning to rule the world—and what they’re learning from those who already do.” Read more and buy here.
Longevity Nation: The People, Ideas, and Trends Changing the Second Half of Our Lives by Michael Clinton. From the publisher: “Discover how individuals and institutions are redefining the second half of life through science, reinvention, and purpose, proving that living a centenarian life is no longer a distant dream—it’s today’s reality with the new longevity movement. As more people live into their eighties, nineties, and even hundreds, traditional models of aging no longer apply—and a bold new road map is emerging. Longevity Nation takes us to the front lines of the new longevity movement, giving us the tools and insights we need to radically reshape the second half of life in happier, healthier ways. With insights from the Stanford Center on Longevity and its groundbreaking New Map of Life, L’Oréal’s ‘All Generations’ workforce strategy, and Singapore’s incentives for hiring over-fifty-five workers, this book integrates global cutting-edge research across functional health, financial security, and lifelong learning—revealing what’s happening now and what’s coming next. From business and wealth to fitness and relationships, this practical guide spotlights innovators, experts, and everyday individuals who are redefining what it means to thrive later in life. Aimed at readers forty and up, Longevity Nation is an inspiring manifesto for a generation ready to reimagine aging—and live with more purpose, vitality, wellness, and vision than ever before.” Read more and buy here.
big little truths by Liane Moriarty. From the publisher: “The last time we saw the women of Big Little Lies—Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata, and Bonnie—their children were five years old. … When the high school principal receives a threatening package in the mail, word quickly spreads throughout the community and parents are in an uproar. But Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata, and Bonnie have other things to worry about. Celeste’s mother-in-law, Mary Louise, is behaving oddly—is it old-age forgetfulness and bluntness or something more sinister? Madeline is facing perhaps the biggest challenge of her life, Jane is at a dangerous fork in her marriage, Bonnie has realized there’s only so much solace in yoga. And Renata? Renata is living her best life—revenge is sweet. When a stranger begins lurking around the school asking supposedly innocent questions, this tightly connected group of women must finally face the full repercussions of the big little truths they have and haven’t shared with their kids. Because the stakes are now much higher than not being invited to an ice-skating party—and the ice has never been thinner for any of them.” Read more and buy here.
Blunt Instrument by Amy Bloom. From the publisher: “A failed professor solves a murder on campus in this new whodunit from bestselling author Amy Bloom. The case of the bludgeoned lecturer has all of Cromwell University reeling, even though the elderly Professor Bullfinch wasn’t particularly well-liked. His ornery nature and Old World approach to campus politics ruffled more than a few feathers over the years, and present tensions within his department mean there are more suspects than mourners in the wake of his death. And the murder weapon—a bronze bust of Nathaniel Hawthorne—does seem to indicate that the attack may have been academically motivated. Enter Dell Chandler, the failed English professor turned self-taught private detective whom Dr. Cutty calls in to investigate the crime. She has the background to tease out the motives among the staff and just enough experience to conduct a thorough inquiry. If she solves the case before the cops do, the university could keep the whole thing quiet, avoiding sensational media about the dark side of campus life. But to do so, she’ll have to dodge her own demons from her past life as a disgraced academic. Written with the same depth of character and insight that readers have come to expect from author Amy Bloom’s novels and memoirs, Blunt Instrument is an engaging and entertaining mystery with a clever, complex protagonist at its core.” Read more and buy here.
What Should My Children Do? A Human’s Guide to the Age of AI by Daniel Susskind From the publisher: “We live at an extraordinary technological moment. Every day, it seems, we hear about machines taking on tasks that we thought only human beings alone would ever do: making medical diagnoses and composing jokes, drafting legal arguments and designing beautiful buildings, writing lines of code and even forming relationships. The leaders of the largest AI companies now claim that, within a few years, we will build an AI that can outperform us at every task that we do. For the last fifteen years, Prof. Daniel Susskind has been exploring the impact of technology on work. Recent developments in AI – ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok – are astonishing, but also best thought of as a remarkable new chapter in this far longer story. Still, the most common question people have remains–what should my children do? What Should my Children Do? is an optimistic and hopeful guide for parents thinking about how to help their families flourish in this age of astonishing labor market shifts. It is also for anyone thinking about their career, asking how to navigate the turmoil that is underway in the working world, as well as for business and political leaders navigating the same upheaval. With his deep knowledge of AI and how the world of work is changing, Prof. Susskind offers an evidence-based look at the problem and a practical path forward.” Read more and buy here.
My Voice
If you haven’t read them yet, here are two recommendations from yours truly. Shortlisted: Women in the Shadows of the Supreme Court is packed full of juicy tidbits about women considered for the Supreme Court before Sandra Day O’Connor became the first female justice. It definitely qualifies as a beach read. And Law Democratized: A Blueprint for Solving the Justice Crisis includes my own personal story of surviving a traumatic brain injury, which inspired me to explore how we can improve access to legal help.
Happy Reading
Thank you for indulging me in a different sort of Roundup to celebrate the first day of June. I’ll be back next week with a whirlwind of ethics news.
Keep in Touch
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Renee Knake Jefferson holds the endowed Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics and is a Professor of Law at the University of Houston. Check out more of her writing at the Legal Ethics Roundup. Find her on X (formerly Twitter) at @reneeknake or Bluesky at legalethics.bsky.social.
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