Legal self-help publisher HALT demystifies the complex civil justice system for the average citizen with the release of its newest Citizens Legal Manual, How Courts & Judges Work: HALT's Guide to America's Civil Justice System.

"With all the recent public attention focused on judicial nominees in Congress and the national media, it is remarkable how little most Americans know about the role that judges and courts play in our democracy," said HALT Executive Director James C. Turner. HALT's latest Citizens Legal Manual is designed to fill in this information gap."

HALT's How Courts & Judges Work, compiled with the assistance of Charles Marcus, Susan Nevelow Mart, Vincent Moyer and Julie Horst of the University of California Hastings College of the Law Library tells you in what court you can or should bring your case and why. It explains, in a concise and informed way, how courts are organized, how they work and the roles of the various officials you will encounter.

"How Courts and Judges Work opens the door and sheds some much-needed light on the judicial process," said Jennifer Sekula, Senior Reference Librarian at Marshall-Wythe Law Library, College of William & Mary School of Law. "With this book, HALT empowers readers to navigate the complexities of selecting the right forum for a dispute, and helps them understand what the options are when something goes wrong."

Although HALT encourages people to avoid litigation whenever possible - the truth is - most of us will need to deal with a legal matter that involves a court and a judge at some point. Whether it's probating an estate, serving on a jury, contesting a parking ticket or resolving a dispute with your landlord, you need to know your rights and be familiar with how our court system works. This is especially true if you're considering representing yourself (pro se).

"At $100, $200 and even $300 an hour, lawyers have priced themselves beyond the reach of average Americans," said HALT Program Director and editor Theresa Meehan Rudy. "That's why we've added a new chapter, Going Pro Se, and a comprehensive appendix of Pro Se Resources in our update."

For anyone who expects to be involved in a lawsuit or other court proceeding, the information in this manual will provide invaluable information on how the American judicial system works. How Courts & Judges Work sells for $12 plus shipping and handling.

For more information, contact HALT toll free 888-367-4258 or visit us online at www.halt.org.

Additional Reviews:

"The wealth of information on the Internet has empowered laypeople to become more knowledgeable in areas that were once the mysterious domain of the professional.  Legal rights is one of these such areas.  How Courts & Judges Work is a valuable complement to the Internet for anyone involved in a legal action, whether representing themselves or using the services of a licensed attorney."
-Leslie Ann Forrester, Director of Legal Research, Pachulski, Stang, Ziehl, Young, Jones & Weintraub, San Francisco, CA

"How Courts & Judges Work offers a frank and informative discussion for pro se patrons on the legal system.  Useful chapters outline the parameters of the federal and state court systems and provide realistic commentary on the pros and cons of representing yourself. Appendices address state specific court structure with website references and a list of pro se resouces for further reading."
-Gail F. Zwirner, Head of Access Services, University of Richmond Law School Library

"How Courts & Judges Work is an excellent resource for any size library. I will highly recommend it to legal support staff as well as attorneys looking for an easy-to-understand explanation of our courts and their systems."
-Diane M. Rodriguez, Librarian, Northern California Association of Law Librarians

"This book lays out in plain English the entire court system from federal to state to administrative tribunals. Additionally, the appendix supplies flow charts for each of the 50 state court systems. All of this information is of great benefit to those who are just being exposed to the legal process."
- Shannon S. Burchard, Head of Technical Services, University of San Francisco School of Law.