This Week's Featured Book

Inheritance Law and the Evolving Family by Ralph C. Brashier and published by Temple University Press is this week's Featured Book.

“Nontraditional families are today an important part of American family life. Yet when a loved one dies, our inheritance laws are often stingy even towards survivors in the nuclear family. With humor, enthusiasm, and a bit of righteous outrage, Ralph C. Brashier explores how probate laws ignore gender roles and marital contributions of the spouse, often to the detriment of the surviving widow; how probate laws pretend that unmarried couples—particularly gay and lesbian ones—do not exist; how probate laws allow a parent to disinherit even the neediest child; and how probate laws for nonmarital children, adopted children, and children born of surrogacy or other forms of assisted reproductive technology are in flux or simply don't exist. A thoughtful examination of the current state of probate law and the inability of legislators to recognize and provide for the broad range of families in America today, this book will be read by those with an interest in the relationship between families and the law across a wide range of academic disciplines.” - Book Description

“This is an enlightening survey of American inheritance laws. Brashier outlines how our laws differ in troubling ways from common features of inheritance laws in other countries and also notes how our laws have largely not yet adapted to unmarried partner relationships. He makes sensible recommendations about how our laws should be changed.” - J. Thomas Oldham, John H. Freeman Professor of Law, University of Houston Law Center

Inheritance Law and the Evolving Family is on display on top of the first shelves to the left of the Rare Book Room and will be available to borrow after Friday, March 23, 2007.