The Empirical Jurisprudence of the United States Supreme Court

Abstract

The age of empirical jurisprudence appears to be upon us. At both trial and appellate levels, empirical data are playing ever more prominent roles in civil and criminal adjudication. Expert witnesses were once confined to a narrow class of forensic scientists. Today psychologists, sociologists, statisticians, and other empirical researchers regularly testify in court. Lawyers aware of the value of using empirical argument hire expert witnesses to discuss and dispute vast bodies of data often generated precisely for the purpose of influencing legal decision-makers.Courts are continually being asked to settle broad issues of social policy, many of which turn on empirical analyses of the effects of actual and proposed statutes, regulations, and judicially-generated rules. As a result, the use of data-oriented arguments continues to grow. Scholars are looking for change in the traditional structures for regulating the introduction of data into evidence, and have proposed innovative procedures that recognize the potential contributions of empirical results.