Twenty-Five Years of Social Science in Law

32 Pages Posted: 26 Feb 2010

See all articles by John Monahan

John Monahan

University of Virginia School of Law

Laurens Walker

University of Virginia School of Law

Date Written: February, 26 2010

Abstract

In this Essay, we take the publication of the seventh edition of the casebook Social Science in Law (2010) as an opportunity to reflect on continuities and changes that have occurred in the application of social science research to American law over the past quarter-century. We structure these reflections by comparing and contrasting the original edition of the book with the current one. When the first edition appeared, courts’ reliance on social science was often confused and always contested. Now, courts’ reliance on social science is so common as to be unremarkable. What has changed - sometimes radically - are the substantive legal questions on which social science has been brought to bear.

Keywords: Social Science, Social Authority, Social Fact, Social Framework

Suggested Citation

Monahan, John and Walker, Laurens, Twenty-Five Years of Social Science in Law (February, 26 2010). Law and Human Behavior, Forthcoming, Virginia Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper No. 2010-09, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1559927

John Monahan (Contact Author)

University of Virginia School of Law ( email )

580 Massie Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903
United States
434-924-3632 (Phone)

Laurens Walker

University of Virginia School of Law ( email )

580 Massie Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903
United States
434-924-3834 (Phone)

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