Tag: Judicial Behavior

The Costs Of Judging Judges By The Numbers

Marin K. Levy & José A. Cabranes & Kate Stith

What is to be gained by using empirical evidence to rank or “judge” judges? These empirical studies claim two major benefits. First, because the criteria are assertedly apolitical, the resulting rankings will identify the “best” judges across the political spectrum and thereby improve, for instance, the Supreme Court nomination process. Second,… Read More »

Evaluating Judges and Judicial Institutions: Reorienting the Perspective

Mitu Gulati & David F. Levi & David E. Klein

In September 2009, we hosted an unusual workshop at Duke Law School. The workshop focused on the empirical evaluation of judges, judging, and judicial institutions. Most work in this area has been driven by the agendas and constraints of empirical researchers, and empiricists from multiple disciplines—including history, sociology, anthropology, political… Read More »

Pitfalls of Empirical Studies That Attempt to Understand the Factors Affecting Appellate Decisionmaking

Hon. Harry T. Edwards - Senior Circuit Judge, D.C. Circuit Court

I recently read a paper in which a prominent legal scholar argued that empirical evidence conclusively demonstrates that decisionmaking in the federal courts of appeals is highly politicized. No body of empirical evidence supports this claim.
When federal appellate judges decide a case, we focus on the relevant legal materials,… Read More »