Charles Rembar

Traces the evolution of our legal system from medieval Britain up to the present judicial system in America.

The Evolution of Our Legal System

The Law of the Land

The Trials of Lady Chatterley, Tropic of Cancer, and Fanny Hill

The End of Obscenity

Alan M. Dershowitz

G.P. Putnam's Sons

Reuben Goodman

Brief for Intervenor, G.P. Putnam's Sons

Attorney General V. a Book Named "John Cleland's Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure"

Between 1959 and 1966, Charles Rembar successfully defended publishers in several censorship trials in cases that helped establish First Amendment protection of works of literary merit. His account of the trials is interesting reading for lawyers and laymen.

Winner of the George Polk Award: Charles Rembar’s illuminating account of overturning America’s obscenity laws and protecting literature from censorship Up until the 1960s, depending on your state of residence, your copy of Henry Miller’s Tropic of Cancer might be seized by the US Postal Service before reaching your mailbox. Selling copies of Cleland’s Fanny Hill in your bookstore was considered illegal. Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence was, according to the American legal system, pornography with no redeeming social value. Today, these novels are celebrated for their literary and historic worth. The End of Obscenity is Charles Rembar’s account of successfully arguing the merits of such great works of literature in front of the Supreme Court. As the lead attorney on the case, he—with the support of a few brave publishers—changed the way Americans read and honor books, especially the controversial ones. Filled with insight from lawyers, justices, and the authors themselves, The End of Obscenity is a lively tour de force. Racy testimony and hilarious asides make Rembar’s memoir not only a page-turner but also an enlightening look at the American legal system.

The Trials of Lady Chatterley, Tropic of Cancer & Fanny Hill by the Lawyer Who Defended Them

National Book Award Finalist: “A learned, thoughtful, witty legal history for the layman” (The New Yorker). What do the thoughts of a ravenous tiger have to do with the evolution of America’s legal system? How do the works of Jane Austen and Ludwig van Beethoven relate to corporal punishment? In The Law of the Land, Charles Rembar examines these and many other topics, illustrating the surprisingly entertaining history of US law. Best known for his passionate efforts to protect literature, including Lady Chatterley’s Lover, from censorship laws, Rembar offers an exciting look at the democratic judicial system that will appeal to lawyers and laymen alike. From the dark days of medieval England, when legal disputes were settled by duel, through recent paradigm shifts in the interpretation and application of the legal code, The Law of the Land is a compelling and informative history of the rules and regulations we so often take for granted.

Charles Rembar

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