Don Quixote de la Corte: Serial Litigants, Emotions, and Access to Justice

Abstract

Serial litigants are a well-known phenomenon. This article deals with this phenomenon on two different levels using Israel as a test-case. First, we analyze the burden serial litigants put on the judicial system as a whole, and the institutional responses to that burden, as well as the impact (both positive and negative) such serial litigants have on other people (especially in total institutions). they Second, we analyze the personal motives of serial litigants and identify their common denominators. We then show that serial litigants do not constitute a monolithic group, and suggest that courts have to take the differences between them into account. We compare serial litigants to people who suffer from health-related anxiety and suggest learning from their experience. We further propose the formulation of systemic tools that take into account both the negative and the positive aspects of serial litigants in order to strike a proper balance between the optimal allocation of resources, and the right of access to justice.

Keywords: serial litigants, courts, litigation, vexatious litigation

JEL Classification: k10, k41, z13, z18