The goal of this course is to provide you with an introduction to, and overview of, the scientific study of courts as political institutions. We will approach the study of judicial politics as just that - politics. The course covers the main subjects in the subfields of judicial politics, including collegial courts, judicial hierarchy, the separation of powers, and judicial selection. The central questions that we will ask are: (1) What motivates judges?; (2) What incentives are created by judicial institutions?; and (3) How do those incentives affect the behavior of judicial actors?
3-5 units · Letter or Credit/No Credit
The goal of this course is to provide you with an introduction to, and overview of, the scientific study of courts as political institutions. We will approach the study of judicial politics as just that - politics. The course covers the main subjects in the subfields of judicial politics, including collegial courts, judicial hierarchy, the separation of powers, and judicial selection. The central questions that we will ask are: (1) What motivates judges?; (2) What incentives are created by judicial institutions?; and (3) How do those incentives affect the behavior of judicial actors?