New Book - The Politics of Precedent

I received a desk copy of Thomas Hansford's and James Spriggs' new book, The Politics of Precedent on the U.S. Supreme Court (Princeton 2006), which Amazon reports as being available this Friday, March 3rd. Their "key" question is: "Why and when does the Court interpret its precedent positively or negatively." (p. 8) In answering this question, Hansford and Spriggs expressly recognize the role of both policy and legal concerns in judicial decision-making—even in the court where, relative to other American courts, ideology likely matters most.