The Role of Science in Law

The allure of science has always captivated members of the legal profession. Its siren's song offers a tune of perfection and the promise of endowing law with the respect and deference from society that lawyers crave. Both the bench and the bar continually look to science to rescue them from the discomfort of difficult legal decisions, and are frequently disappointed with the results. ications of taking a vigorously democratic approach to While most authors frame problems at the intersection of law and science in terms of how rapidly scientific information changes and how frequently the legal system distorts science, this book argues that problems at the intersection of law and science flow not from the changing nature of science, but from the changing nature of law. With this in mind, the book uses examples from doctrines related to abortion, gene patenting, copyright, environmental regulation, antitrust law, the insanity defense, and other doctrines to explore the nature of law and to suggest approaches for making science work more effectively within the domain of law.

1. ; Introduction ; 2. ; The Allure of Science in Modern Law ; 3. ; Incorporating Science Markers into Law ; A. Law & Neuroscience ; B. Abortion ; C. Internet Searching ; D. Patenting Genetic Inventions ; 5. ; Outsourcing Legal Dilemmas ; 6. ; Import & Export Combined: Modern Antirust Debates ; 7. ; The Repetitions of History: Legal Movements ; A. Pre-Civil War ; B. Classical Legal Theory ; C. Legal Process and the Rise of the Administrative State ; D. Law & Economics ; 8. ; The Repetitions of History: Doctrinal Examples ; A. Insanity Defense ; B. ; Child Custody ; C. ; Paternity evidence ; D. ; Utility rate regulation ; 9. ; The Nature of Law ; A. Law as Evolution ; B. Bounded Adaptation ; C. Is There Something Different About Technology? ; 10. ; The Mismatch of Law & Science ; 11. ; The Role of Science ; A. Aligning Incentives ; B. Testing & Transformation ; C. Speaking a Common Language ; D. The Embrace of Imperfection ; 12. ; Conclusion