The name Corpus Juris literally means 'body of the law'; Secundum denotes the second edition of the encyclopedia, which was originally issued as Corpus Juris by the American Law Book Company (from 1914 to 1937).
Before Thomson's acquisition of West, CJS competed against the American Jurisprudence legal encyclopedia.
[2] While legal encyclopedias like CJS were at one time heavily used by the courts, the growth of statutory and regulatory governance has had the effect of eroding this reliance.
[2] Volumes 82, 97, and 98 of Corpus Juris Secundum appeared behind the closing credits of the Perry Mason television series.
Throughout the series, approximately twenty volumes can be seen on the shelf behind Mason's desk.