Author Description

The fifth edition of Property: Cases and Materials by Jim Smith, Ed Larson, and new author Alejandro Camacho brings current topics and recent cases including the Public Trust Doctrine and Race and the Law to the basic property course without sacrificing coverage of established material. Property: Cases and Materials features sweeping coverage in a single volume, from “old property,” including the basics of estates in land and servitudes to “new property,” including intellectual property, cultural property, and property in living things. The text provokes debate on fundamental questions such as the creation of property, information as property, collective v. individual rights, and property as related to other bodies of law. Its coverage of intellectual property shows how the law grows and responds to social and technological change Principal cases include Marshall v. ESPN Inc. (student athletes’ publicity rights), Bonnichsen v. United States (Native American human remains), Glass v. Goeckel (public trust doctrine), Friends of Danny DeVito v. Wolf (COVID-19 takings dispute), and Dred Scott v. Sandford. New to the Fifth Edition: A new chapter, “Race and Exclusion in the Property System,” explores how status and power have fundamentally shaped rights in property rights in the United States. Enhanced coverage of public trust doctrine, which has emerged as a critical tool for environmental protection in many states. More cases from the twenty-first century than any other major property casebook. Professors and students will benefit from: Coverage of the basics of real property law, tangible personal property, and intangible property including publicity rights and intellectual property. The most concise property casebook available allowing users to cover most or all of the book in a one-semester property course, a feature that no other book has. Provokes readers to debate fundamental questions from multiple perspectives. Shows how a body of law grows and evolves over time