For one-term, undergraduate courses in Sociology of Law, Introduction to Law, Law and Society, and other criminology and criminal justice courses offered by departments of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Political Science. This balanced and comprehensive overview of the entire legal systemadministrative, civil, and criminal lawconsiders the most recent research and theories, and discusses important recent trends and real-life developments. It focuses on the emergence of modern legal systems, current intellectual movements in law, reciprocity between law and social change, and the profession and practice of law.