The Choices Justices Make is a groundbreaking work that offers a strategic account of Supreme Court decision making. Justices realize that their ability to achieve their policy and other goals depends on the preferences of other actors, the choices they expect others to make, and the institutional context in which they act. All these factors hold sway over justices as they make their decisions, from which cases to accept, to how to interact with their colleagues, and what policies to adopt in their opinions.
Choices is a thought-provoking, yet nontechnical work that is an ideal supplement for judicial process and public law courses. In addition to offering a unique and sustained theoretical account, the authors tell a fascinating story of how the Court works. Data culled from the Court's public records and from the private papers of Justices Brennan, Douglas, Marshall, and Powell provide empirical evidence to support the central argument, while numerous examples from the justices' papers animate the work.
Formats Available from CQ Press
| ISBN: 978-1-56802-226-0 |
Format: Print Paperback |
Retail Price: $47.00 |
Price to Bookstores: $37.60 |
New to this Edition
Not applicable: This is the first edition of this work.
CQ Press is pleased to comply with the Higher Education Opportunity Act. Please email heoacompliance@cqpress.com for additional information that may be available. Be sure to include your name, contact information, academic affiliation, and the title, author, and edition of the book in question.
Contact us at collegesales@cqpress.com if we may assist you in your book selection or if you have feedback to share. Thank you for your consideration of CQ Press books.
CQ Press, a Division of SAGE Publications, Inc.
2300 N Street, NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20037
Table of Contents
Tables and Figures
Preface
- A Strategic Account of Judicial Decisions
Overview of the Strategic Account
Major Components of the Strategic Account
Conclusion
- Justices as Policy Seekers
Reasonableness of Policy Assumption
Exclusive Focus on Policy Goals
Attainment of Goals
- Strategic Interaction
Bargaining
Forward Thinking
Manipulating the Agenda
Strategic Opinion Writing
- The Institutional Context I
Institutions and the Formation of Expectations
The Internal Institutions of the Court
- The Institutional Context II
Separation of Powers
The Court and the American People
- Implications of the Strategic Account
Implications for the Emergence of Law
Implications for the Future Sudy of Courts and Law
Appendix
Index
Reviews
"Epstein and Knight have written a most informative, creative, and insightful study. It expertly weaves new and existing information to illustrate strategic political decision making by Supreme Court justices. The book is a first-rate creative intellectual exercise that is remarkably free of the jargon of economics."
- Richard A. Brisbin, West Virginia University
"Epstein and Knight wade into the debate about whether judges think and act strategically to further their contested interpretations of legal principles and rules. Choices systematically provides clear and convincing evidence, supported by equally clear and convincing reasoning, that judges can and do think and act strategically. Those who disagree will have to deny that evidence and reason are valid intellectual instruments--or invent tons of new data."
- Walter F. Murphy, Princeton University"The Choices Justices Make" represents a new generation in judicial scholarship. Epstein and Knight's emphasis on strategic interaction provides a new perspective on a range of problems."
- Barry R. Weingast, Stanford University"Choices is a terrific book! . . . Its clarity and focus make it easily accessible to even a reader like myself who is not a follower of positive theory . . . There were times when I couldn't put the book down. . . . In many ways Choices is foundational. . . . It has the potential to become a classic."
- Gerald Rosenberg, University of Chicago"A worthy successor to Walter Murphy's masterful Elements of Judicial Strategy."
- Jeffrey A. Segal, SUNY, Stony Brook
Bio(s)
Lee Epstein, University of Southern California, School of Law
Lee Epstein is Provost Professor of Law & Political Science and Rader Family Trustee Chair in Law at the University of Southern California.. She is also a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Academy of Political and Social Science. She is author, coauthor, or editor of fifteen books, including The Supreme Court Compendium: Data, Decisions, and Developments, 5th edition, with Jeffrey A. Segal, Harold J. Spaeth, and Thomas G. Walker; Courts, Judges, and Politics, 6th edition, with Walter F. Murphy, C. Herman Pritchett, and Jack Knight; and Advice and Consent: The Politics of Judicial Appointments, with Jeffrey A. Segal. Her most recent book is The Behavior of Federal Judges: A Theoretical and Empirical Study of Rational Choice (2012), with William M. Landes and Richard A. Posner.
Jack Knight, Washington University, St. Louis
Jack Knight is professor in the political science department, a fellow of the Center for Political Economy, and a member of the Committee on Social Thought and Analysis at Washington University. He is the author of Institutions and Social Conflict and co-editor of Explaining Social Institutions with Itai Sened.
