2022/01/01 by Elliott Ash, Daniel L. Chen, Suresh Naidu · 1 voice
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · #Law, Economics, and Judicial Systems #Legal and Constitutional Studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.1093/qje/qjaf042
openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex publication_date 2026/01/01 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
This paper empirically studies the effects of the early law-and-economics movement on the U.S. judiciary. We focus on the Manne Economics Institute for Federal Judges, an intensive economics course that trained almost half of federal judges between 1976 and 1999. Using the universe of published opinions in U.S. Circuit Courts and 1 million District Court criminal sentencing decisions, we estimate the within-judge effect of Manne program attendance. Selection into attendance was limited, as the program was popular among judges of all backgrounds, frequently oversubscribed, and admitted participants on a first-come, first-served basis. We find that after attending economics training, participating judges use more economics language in their opinions, rule against regulatory agencies more often, and impose more severe criminal sentences. We argue that economics, as a rigorous social science, was especially effective in persuading judges.