The Evolving Role of Statistical Assessments as Evidence in the Courts

1 Introduction.- 1.1 Overview.- 1.2 The Field of Statistics and Statistical Assessments.- 1.3 Methodology.- 1.4 Early Uses of Probability and Statistics in the Law.- 1.5 The Increasing Volume of Statistical Argument.- 1.6 Cost and Benefits Associated with Increased Use of Statistics.- 1.7 Outline of Report and Summary of Principal Recommendations.- 2 Case Studies.- 2.1 Introduction.- 2.2 Vuyanich v. Republic National Bank.- 2.3 Carter et al. v. Newsday.- 2.4 E.E.O.C. v. Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond.- 2.5 Gulf South Insulation v. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.- 2.6 U.S. ex rel. DiGiacomo v. Franzen.- 2.7 Corrugated Container Antitrust Litigation.- 2.8 Some Lessons: The Institutional Competence of Courts.- 3 Review of the Use of Statistics in Selected Areas of Litigation.- 3.1 Introduction.- 3.2 Title VII Employment Discrimination Litigation.- 3.3 Statistical and Economic Assessment in Antitrust Litigation.- 3.4 Statistical Assessments as Evidence in Environmental Law.- 4 Statistics, Law, and Expert Testimony.- 4.1 The Methodologies of Law and Statistics.- 4.2 Major Differences Between Legal and Statistical Thinking.- 4.3 The Meeting of Two Cultures.- 4.4 Working Relationships Between Scientists and Lawyers.- 4.5 Psychological Problems with Statistical Testimony.- 5 Some Partial Solutions to the Problems Arising from Expert Statistical Testimony.- 5.1 Introduction.- 5.2 The Expert Witness: Advocate or Impartial Evaluator and Educator?.- 5.3 Statistics and Pretrial Discovery.- 5.4 The Role of Court-Appointed Experts.- 5.5 Enhancing the Capability of the Fact Finder.- 5.6 The Role of Statistical Education in the Presentation of Evidence.- 5.7 Implications for a Research Agenda.- Appendices:.- A Statistical Approaches, Probability Interpretations, and the Quantification of Standards of Proof.- A.l Relevance Versus Statistical Fluctuations.- A.2 Views on Statistical Inference.- A.3 Standards of Proof.- A.4 Pascalian Versus Baconian Probability.- A.5 Annotated Bibliography on Selected Topics in Statistical.- Methodology.- B Brief Historical Survey of the Legal Uses of Probability and Statistics Prior to 1970.- C The Federal Rules of Evidence.- C.l The Role of the Rules.- C.2 Selected Rules.- D Expert Witnesses in Other Fields.- D.l Expert Testimony in Psychology.- D.2 Expert Testimony in Psychiatry.- D.3 Standards for Expert Opinions in Engineering.- E Excerpt from Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.- F Recommendations on Pretrial Proceedings in Cases with Voluminous Data.- G A Comparative Perspective on the Role of Experts in Legal Proceedings.- G.l Overview of a Continental System.- G.2 The Role of Experts in the West German System.- G.3 Differing Roles for American and Continental Experts.- H Assessing the Impact of Statistical Evidence, A Social Science Evidence.- I Biographies of Panel Members and Staff.- References.- Index of Cases.- Author Index.