For fans of the legal thriller and courtroom drama, Philllip Margolin brings us something very unique. Based on actual events, Worthy Brown's Daughter is an historical fiction set in Oregon on the eve of the Civil War. Worthy Brown is a slave brought to Oregon which prohibits slavery. He negotiates a deal with with his master that he will be free after a year of unpaid work. His unscrupulous master agrees to free Worthy Brown, but keeps Worthy's daughter. Worthy proceeds to hire an attorney to sue in court for his daughter's freedom. Reminiscent of Dredd Scott, Margolin puts forth the Constitutional issues of whether or not a slave can sue for freedom after being transported to a a state that has outlawed slavery. That being said, can he sue in a court of law when he has no legal rights? The courtroom drama and the image of frontier justice will keep you focused until the last page.
Sometimes, the practice of law is about torts, mergers and acquisitions. Sometimes, it is about justice.
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