IN COURT Jack Batten. Toronto, Macmillan, c1982. 212pp, paper, $17.95 (cloth), $9.95 (paper). ISBN 0-7715-9717-7 (cloth), 0-7715-9761-4 (paper). Grades 12 and up. Reviewed by Allan Kogon. Volume 11 Number 5. 1983 September. It is about time a Canadian book has been written that successfully illustrates Canadian ability and talent in the field of law. In Court is written by a lawyer who has found more success in journalism than as a legal practitioner, and it is a compilation of legal vignettes. Batten took a more interesting approach than most commentators on the legal scene. He used lawyers from Vancouver to Toronto, from senior practitioners to junior members of the bar, to illustrate the breadth of talent across the country. The typical book would contain only the successes, yet this book has examples of cases lost by lawyers, even eminent lawyers like J.J. Robinette. One chapter involves a hockey player, forced to play despite injuries, while another involves cold-blooded murder. Some of the cases readers will have heard about in the media, and others are obscure, but each illustrates the lawyers' concern to give their client the best possible result. The easy style is quick pleasant reading. This is a well written book that deserves to be widely read because of its tight story lines and enlightening subject matter. A worthwhile addition to secondary, post-secondary, and public libraries. Allan Kogon, Georgetown, ON.