Quarterly Journal of Economics · 2022 · Elliott Ash、Daniel L. Chen、Suresh Naidu
中文摘要
本文实证研究了早期法律经济学运动对美国司法体系的影响。我们重点考察曼恩联邦法官经济学研修班——一门高强度的经济学课程，1976年至1999年间，近一半的联邦法官曾参加该课程。利用美国联邦巡回上诉法院全部已公开发表的司法意见，以及100万份联邦地区法院刑事量刑裁决，我们估计了法官参加曼恩项目的个体内(within-judge)效应。参加该项目的选择性有限：该项目受到各种背景法官的普遍欢迎，报名经常超额，且按先到先得的原则录取参与者。我们发现，参加经济学培训后，参与项目的法官在司法意见中使用了更多经济学语言，更频繁地作出不利于监管机构的裁决，并判处更严厉的刑事量刑。我们认为，经济学作为一门严谨的社会科学，在说服法官方面尤其有效。
Abstract
Abstract This article empirically studies the effects of the early law and economics movement on the U.S. judiciary. We focus on the Manne Economics Institute for Federal Judges, an intensive economics course that trained almost half of federal judges between 1976 and 1999. Using the universe of published opinions in U.S. Circuit Courts and 1 million District Court criminal sentencing decisions, we estimate the within-judge effect of Manne program attendance. Selection into attendance was limited, as the program was popular among judges of all backgrounds, frequently oversubscribed, and admitted participants on a first-come, first-served basis. We find that after attending economics training, participating judges use more economics language in their opinions, rule against regulatory agencies more often, and impose more severe criminal sentences. We argue that economics, as a rigorous social science, was especially effective in persuading judges.