Working Paper: NBER ID: w24703
Authors: Steven Shavell
Abstract: The conduct of adjudication is often influenced by motions––requests made by litigants to modify the course of adjudication. The question studied in this article is why adjudication is designed so as to permit the use of motions. The answer developed is that litigants will naturally know a great deal about their specific matter, whereas a court will ordinarily know little except to the degree that the court has already invested effort to appreciate it. By giving litigants the right to bring motions, the judicial system leads litigants to efficiently provide information to courts that is relevant to the adjudicative process.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: D02; D8; K15; K40; K41
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Judicial system (K40) | Efficient information transfer from litigants to courts (K41) |
| Motions (Y20) | Better-informed judicial decisions (K41) |
| Motions (Y20) | Net increase in social welfare (D69) |
| Motions protect confidentiality (Y20) | Prevent disclosure of sensitive information (D82) |
| Motions grant social value > Cost of considering motion (D46) | Motions should be granted (Y20) |
| Motions regime (P26) | Efficient elicitation of information (D83) |
| Motions regime superior to others (P39) | Efficient elicitation of information crucial for judicial decision-making (K41) |