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Blinking on the Bench: How Judges Decide Cases

Chris Guthrie
Vanderbilt University - School of Law

Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law School

Andrew J. Wistrich
Independent



Cornell Law Review, Forthcoming
Vanderbilt Public Law Research Paper No. 07-25
Vanderbilt Law and Economics Research Paper No. 07-32

Abstract:     
How do judges judge? Do they apply law to facts in a mechanical and deliberative way, as the formalists suggest they do, or do they rely on hunches and gut feelings, as the realists maintain? Debate has raged for decades, but researchers have offered little hard evidence in support of either model. Relying on empirical studies of judicial reasoning and decision making, we propose an entirely new model of judging that provides a more accurate explanation of judicial behavior. Our model accounts for the tendency of the human brain to make automatic, snap judgments, which are surprisingly accurate, but which can also lead to erroneous decisions. Equipped with a better understanding of judging, we then propose several reforms that should lead to more just and accurate outcomes.

Keywords: behavioral law and economics, judges, heuristics and biases, dispute resolution, psychology, realism, formalism

Accepted Paper Series

Date posted: November 02, 2007 ; Last revised: December 17, 2007

Suggested Citation

Guthrie, Chris, Rachlinski , Jeffrey J. and Wistrich, Andrew J., Blinking on the Bench: How Judges Decide Cases. Cornell Law Review, Forthcoming; Vanderbilt Public Law Research Paper No. 07-25; Vanderbilt Law and Economics Research Paper No. 07-32. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1026414


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Contact Information

Chris Guthrie (Contact Author)
Vanderbilt University - School of Law ( email )
131 21st Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37203-1181
United States
615-322-6823 (Phone)
615-322-6631 (Fax)
Jeffrey John Rachlinski
Cornell Law School ( email )
Myron Taylor Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853
United States
607-255-5878 (Phone)
607-255-7193 (Fax)
Andrew J. Wistrich
Independent ( email )
No Address Available
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