For one-semester undergraduate courses in Law and Society, Sociology of Law, Introduction to Law, and a variety of criminal justice courses offered in departments of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Political Science. Examines the interplay between law and society. provides an informative, balanced and comprehensive analysis of the interplay between law and society. This text presents an overview of the most advanced interdisciplinary and international research, theoretical advances, ongoing debates and controversies. It raises new levels of awareness on the structure and functions of law and legal systems and the principal players in the legal arena and their impact on our lives. In addition, it looks at the legal system in the context of race, class, and gender and considers multicultural and cross-cultural issues in a contemporary and interdisciplinary context.