Legislating Apology: The Pros and Cons

Abstract:     
Should apologies be admissible into evidence as proof of fault in civil cases? The past year has seen a tremendous rise in "apology legislation" designed to exclude apologies from admissibility into evidence. For example, California passed a law in 2000 barring apologetic expressions of sympathy ("I'm sorry that you are hurt") but not fault-admitting apologies ("I'm sorry that I injured you") after accidents from introduction into evidence as proof of fault. Other states are now debating proposed apology legislation, including bills that would exclude fault-admitting apologies from evidence. As apologies can be central elements in preventing and settling lawsuits, such legislation has the potential to dramatically affect dispute resolution and legal practice. This Article examines policy arguments that can be made supporting and opposing such legislation and offers remaining questions for future research.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 76

Keywords: Apology, dispute resolution, conflict resolution, negotiation, evidence, forgiveness

JEL Classification: K40, K41, D74

working papers series