本書作者以精簡篇幅，扼要勾勒出美國法制的大致梗概。前三章從美國的源起與歷史背景談起，接著簡述法學教育以及實務上各類法律職業；中段第四至八章則以較為複雜的司法制度、立法制度、成文法及案例法為主軸，一步步地讓讀者瞭解美國法制精髓，並且以清晰一貫的邏輯，使讀者了解美國法律制度從何而來以及如今發展的樣貌；最後在第九至十二章，分門別類將美國法進行系統性的完整介紹。
深入淺出的闡述，相信即使非英美法系國家的讀者，亦能輕易融入美國法的領域之中。另外，本中譯版本更收錄世界各地學者與實務專家的推薦序文，引領讀者從比較法觀點深層思考。無論是對法律有興趣之人，或有意赴美深造及從事法律實務之人，誠可謂法律人的第二本書。
The author delineates the features of American legal system in a succinct way. The first three chapters deal with the origins and historical background, then the education system and various legal professions. In the second part, from chapter 4 to 8, focuses on the more complicated topics as judicial and legislative system, statutes and case laws, for readers to gradually grasp the essence of the system with meticulous clarity on its past and presence. Lastly from chapter 9 to 12, is a systematic overview of each category in the division of subjects.
Readers from outside common-law countries could easily benefit by its in-depth yet concise illustration. Especially in this translated edition includes prefaces of experts in different jurisdictions, offering insights from comparative viewpoints. People interested in law, or pursing further studies or better practicing in the field would certainly find the work both useful and handy.
作者簡介：
亞倫˙方茨沃斯（E. Allan Farnsworth，1928-2005）
任教於美國哥倫比亞大學法學院，知名契約法與比較法教授。曾於1971年受美國法律研究所（American Law Institute）委託撰寫《美國契約整編（第二版）》。
譯者簡介：
藍元駿
臺灣大學法學博士。現為中國文化大學法律學系教授，法學院比較法研究中心主任。教授之相關課程：比較法、行政法、財稅法等。
元駿正在構思編纂一多功能的比較法學辭典，並認為譯介人文社會經典是其第一步。近年相關譯作：《大陸法傳統》（出版中）、《美國法制概述》（2019）、《國際租稅入門》（2018）、《資本主義經濟學及其社會學──熊彼德論文選集》（2017）、《租稅正義與人權保障──葛克昌教授祝壽論文集》（2016）。
Mr. Yuan-Chun (Martin) LAN,LL.B (NTU), LL.M (NTU), PhD (NTU), Postdoc (NTU), is a professor of law. He has founded and is currently the director of Center of Comparative Jurisprudence in College of Law of Chinese Culture University in Taiwan.
Martin has a dream, which is to compile a set of multilingual, interdisciplinary legal thesaurus. He begins its realization by translating classic works, his recent publications include: John Henry Merryman& Rogelio Pérez-Perdomo, The Civil Law Tradition—An Introduction to the Legal Systems of Europe and Latin America, Stanford University Press, (forthcoming); E. Allan Farnsworth, An Introduction to the Legal System of the United States, Oxford University Press (2019); Brian Arnold & Michael McIntyre, International Tax Primer, Wolters Kluwer (2018); Joseph Schumpeter’s Anthology, The Capitalism of Economics and Sociology, Princeton University Press(2017); and monographs in: Tax Justice and Protection of Human Rights—a Festschrift for Professor Gee Keh-Chang, Sharing Publishing (2016)