Molly, thanks so much for this feedback. You’re right to suggest that folks should try reading an edited opinion from a casebook, rather than a full-length original. Thank you! We’ve updated the post to link to an edited version of the Erie opinion that one professor used in a recent civil procedure class, and we’ve added a similar link to a criminal law case, McBoyle v. United States. The linked versions allow readers to expand the elided sections, so folks who would prefer to see the original text can still do so.
Thanks, too, for highlighting name recognition among non-lawyers as an important—if frustrating and arbitrary—consideration. As a note to folks considering this factor in the future: because it’s tricky and context-dependent to decide out how to weigh this factor against others, we’d be happy to try to connect you with someone in the community who can help you think it through; please reach out!
Molly, thanks so much for this feedback. You’re right to suggest that folks should try reading an edited opinion from a casebook, rather than a full-length original. Thank you! We’ve updated the post to link to an edited version of the Erie opinion that one professor used in a recent civil procedure class, and we’ve added a similar link to a criminal law case, McBoyle v. United States. The linked versions allow readers to expand the elided sections, so folks who would prefer to see the original text can still do so.
Thanks, too, for highlighting name recognition among non-lawyers as an important—if frustrating and arbitrary—consideration. As a note to folks considering this factor in the future: because it’s tricky and context-dependent to decide out how to weigh this factor against others, we’d be happy to try to connect you with someone in the community who can help you think it through; please reach out!