Wisconsin Lawyer
Vol. 79, No. 9 September
2006
Book Reviews
Wisconsin Wages & Hours Handbook
By Daniel T. Dennehy (Madison, WI: State Bar of Wisconsin CLE
Books, 2005). 300 pgs. Includes November 2005
supplement. $45 State Bar members, $60 nonmembers. Order, (800) 728-7788
or www.wisbar.org.
Reviewed by Scott B. Franklin
The main volume of the Wisconsin Wages & Hours Handbook
was released in early 2005 and contained nine chapters on subjects such
as minimum wage and overtime laws, record keeping requirements, child
labor regulations, migrant and seasonal workers, and enforcement of the
various Wisconsin labor laws. Throughout the materials, the author
compares, contrasts, and expands on the federal labor laws that are
either effective in Wisconsin or superseded by stricter Wisconsin
provisions.
The discussion of each topic is easy to read and well footnoted to
the applicable federal or state rule. The book provides many appendices,
including references to pertinent federal labor laws and a comprehensive
selection of Wisconsin statutes and administrative code regulations
covering wages and hours issues. Although the various appendices
comprise more than one-half of the handbook, it is a good compilation
that blends federal and Wisconsin guidelines into one convenient
reference source. A supplement was issued in late 2005 to reflect
several law changes.
In the October 2004 Wisconsin Lawyer, this reviewer
discussed the 2004 U.S. Master Wage-Hour Guide by CCH Inc. The
Wisconsin Wages & Hours Handbook is the perfect companion
to the federal only CCH title and should be in the library of every
labor attorney and human resources professional.
A Practical Guide to Document Authentication:
Legalization of Notarized and Certified Documents
By John P. Sinnott (Dobbs Ferry, NY: Oceana Publications,
2005). 716 pgs. $175. Order, (800) 831-0758.
Reviewed by Thomas H. Barland
This reference book contains the how, where, when, and cost of
authenticating documents in each of the 50 states, the two U.S.
protectorates, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and 214 nations,
territories, or national departments. The book opens with an informative
and concisely written "How to Use It" chapter. It closes with eight
brief and easily read appendices setting forth the full text of the
Hague Convention relating to the legalization of documents, the U.S.
State Department certification process, and other helpful
information.
Without the Hague Convention, authenticating a document for use in
another country is a complicated, time consuming, and expensive process.
The process incorporates four steps. The Hague Convention eliminates two
of those steps through the device of an "Apostille" (French legal term
for a notation on a document). The Apostille is issued by the secretary
of state of the state in which the document is executed and contains a
special seal or certification recognized by countries that are parties
to the Hague Convention.
This thorough book contains the addresses, fee charges, phone
numbers, fax numbers, and hours of operation for all U.S. secretaries of
state and foreign embassies and consulates involved in the process.
In short, this reference book is an up-to-date compendium of
virtually all one needs to know to certify and authenticate documents to
be used in other states and foreign countries. Does this book have a
place in the average law office? It does, if the practice of that office
includes any foreign legal matters, including not only commercial and
corporate activities, but foreign adoptions, marriages, or international
study issues.
For any lawyer involved in international or interstate work, this
book can be a great time saver.
Maritime Security Handbook: Implementing the
New U.S. Initiatives and Regulations
By Jonathan K. Waldron & Andrew W. Dyer Jr. (Pittsburgh,
PA: Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, 2005). 160 pgs. $79.
Order, (800) 462-6420.
Reviewed by Guy Charlton
The Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002 (MTSA) and the Coast
Guard and Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2004 (CGMTA) are major
pieces of post-9/11 security legislation. Maritime Security
Handbook: Implementing the New U.S. Initiatives and Regulations is
a recent attempt to explain this complex legislation. Written for
lawyers and other persons who need to comply with the new requirements,
this book provides a section-by-section explanation of the statutes and
regulations. The legislation and regulations also are provided.
The handbook concentrates on the security related provisions of the
MTSA. These include such things as U.S. and foreign port vulnerability
assessments; national, area vessel, and port facility security plans;
terrorist incident response requirements; security cards; and cargo
identification systems. The legislation attempts to create an integrated
layered security apparatus and identification system to deter a
"transportation security incident" and provide for a comprehensive
response to security threats and emergencies.
Implementing this legislation will prove no easy task. It requires
port and ship authorities to create vulnerability assessments and
security plans, intensive cargo screening, and new visa and
identification requirements for sailors and port personnel. The authors
discuss this difficulty mainly in the context of how the designated
federal agencies have implemented the legislation through rule-making.
The reader would have benefited if the authors had better illustrated
the specific actions that facilities, owners, and operators need to take
in order to comply. Moreover, the authors do not provide adequate
background and context. More discussion on international efforts to
improve maritime security and particular problems and issues confronting
facility and vessel security in complying with the law would have been
useful.
This book leaves the impression that Congress is attempting to do too
much with this legislation. The identified threats are too diffuse, the
requirements are too onerous and bureaucratic, and there is a greater
need for international cooperation than is allowed by the
legislation.
The Persuasive Edge, 2d ed.
By Richard J. Crawford & Charlotte A. Morris (Tucson, AZ:
Lawyers & Judges Publishing Co., 2005). 300 pgs. $65. Order, (800)
209-7109.
Reviewed by Kirk L. Deheck
The Persuasive Edge is a revision of the 1988 original text.
Richard Crawford is joined by Charlotte Morris to provide updated
insights into the use of persuasion in legal practice.
The text includes an extensive table of contents and an index, which
collectively allow a novice practitioner to expeditiously find and
review the pertinent sections of the text. The table of contents
includes several of the key points that are addressed in the given
chapters. Having read the text, a cursory review of the table of
contents provides a convenient means of refreshing the topics discussed
therein.
The authors have extensive experience as trial consultants. The
persuasive opportunities addressed are related to those that present
themselves before judge and jury. However, the art of incorporating and
maximizing persuasion in written work is only marginally addressed.
The organization of the text follows a jury trial from voir dire to
closing and outlines the persuasive opportunities that abound therein.
Additionally, the lessons of persuasion can be extrapolated beyond the
referenced legal framework.
The theme of the text is "purposeful persuasion." This principle is
expressly stated and indicates the straightforward nature of the text.
Whether you are a seasoned trial advocate or simply desire to be more
persuasive, the text is understandable and has limited chaff included
with the persuasive wheat. The directness of the text allows the reader
to quickly harvest and digest the persuasive elements.
In addition to encouraging practitioners to be more cognizant of
persuasive opportunities, the text provides dos and dont's as well as
their consequences. The text also recognizes the dynamic nature of legal
practice and does not suggest or propose that every situation should be
similarly handled. The text outlines a collection of useful persuasive
tools and encourages the practitioner's discretionary use of those
tools.
Restoring the Lost
Constitution: The Presumption of Liberty
By Randy E. Barnett (Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press,
2005). 384 pgs. $18.95. Order, (609) 258-7879.
Reviewed by Eric G. Barber
Even if you do not know Randy Barnett's name, you might be familiar
with one of his recent appellate arguments: representing California
medicinal-marijuana users before the U.S. Supreme Court in Gonzales
v. Raich, 125 S. Ct. 2195 (2005). In Raich, Barnett argued
that enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act by the DEA would
violate several constitutional provisions, including the Commerce
Clause.
In Restoring the Lost Constitution: The Presumption of
Liberty, Barnett argues compellingly that the Constitution embodies
a "presumption of liberty." The framers believed the totality of natural
rights and liberty interests were incapable of complete enumeration in
any written document, and therefore, the Ninth Amendment, the Necessary
and Proper Clause, and the Privileges and Immunities Clause were all
crafted as procedural safeguards against government encroachment of
individuals' rights. The founders' goal: "Islands of government in a sea
of liberty."
Judges, according to Barnett, have thwarted the founders' goal. From
an incorrect definition of "commerce" (far too broad) to Caroline
Products' famed footnote four (elevating enumerated rights to
"fundamental" status and later Casey's footnote four plus
(better but still wrong)), judges have impermissibly contributed to the
erosion of the "rights retained by the People" by allowing Congress to
enact legislation that far outstrips the power of the federal government
that the framers envisioned (and as set forth in the Constitution).
Rather, courts should be using judicial review to "[p]rotect
all the rights retained by the people equally whether
enumerated or unenumerated."
What does a "presumption of liberty" mean for you and me? First, the
practical implications are so staggering to give all but the most ardent
libertarians pause (for example, "Congress [would lack] the power it now
claims to regulate the legal relationship between employers and
employees"; forget most possessory crimes as well). Second,
congressional enactments would, on a whole, be subject to much more
exacting scrutiny, because all government enactments would have to
overcome the presumption of liberty.
However unlikely it is that Barnett's interpretation will prevail,
Restoring the Lost Constitution is convincing. But should you
read the book? Maybe. If you are a curious law student, constitutional
law professor, an attorney with a soft spot for theoretical discussions
of the Constitution, or just do not like the government messing with you
and want to be able to point to the Constitution to support your
libertarian position, then yes, you should read this book.
Top of page
To Review a Book...
The following books are available for review. Please request the book
and writing guidelines from Karlé Lester at the State Bar of
Wisconsin, P.O. Box 7158, Madison, WI 53707-7158, (608) 250-6127, klester@wisbar.org.
Publications and videos available for review
- Ending the Gauntlet: Removing Barriers to Women's Success in the
Law, by Lauren Stiller Rikleen (New York, NY: Thomsonlegalworks,
2006). 408 pgs.
- Religion and the Constitution: Free Exercise and Fairness,
by Kent Greenawalt (Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press, 2006). 480
pgs.
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