The Economics of Civil Procedure

Forthcoming, Annual Review of Law & Social Science

USC CLASS Research Paper No. 15-6

USC Legal Studies Research Paper No. 15-6

44 Pages Posted: 24 Feb 2015 Last revised: 24 Apr 2015

See all articles by Daniel M. Klerman

Daniel M. Klerman

University of Southern California Gould School of Law

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: April 21, 2015

Abstract

The economic analysis of procedure reduces most issues to direct costs and error costs. Direct costs are ordinary litigation costs. Error costs are the reduction in deterrence and the increase in chilling that result from inaccurate adjudication. The goal of procedure is the minimization of the sum of direct and error costs. This framework has been applied to many procedural issues, and this survey focuses on three: dispositive motions (motions to dismiss and summary judgment), discovery, and jurisdiction. Economic analysis has yielded significant insights in these areas, but important questions remain for future researchers. Because theory is often indeterminate, this survey discusses empirical as well as theoretical work, although, unfortunately, empirical work has focused on direct costs and has largely neglected error costs.

Keywords: litigation, accuracy, motion, summary judgment, discovery, jurisdiction

Suggested Citation

Klerman, Daniel M., The Economics of Civil Procedure (April 21, 2015). Forthcoming, Annual Review of Law & Social Science, USC CLASS Research Paper No. 15-6, USC Legal Studies Research Paper No. 15-6, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2568705 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2568705

Daniel M. Klerman (Contact Author)

University of Southern California Gould School of Law ( email )

699 Exposition Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90089
United States
213-740-7973 (Phone)
213-740-5502 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://weblaw.usc.edu/contact/contactInfo.cfm?detailID=227

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
273
Abstract Views
1,830
Rank
203,702
PlumX Metrics