An Economic Theory of Court Delay

Delay undermines the performance of courts around the world. Its implications and possible solutions, however, are not so widely understood. The assessment of the efficiency of delay as a rationing mechanism requires a general theory, which looks at the effect on the number of conflicts, suits, settlements and trials. The outcome is somewhat disturbing: delay may be socially beneficial, but the assumptions seem prohibitively strict. The policy implications are that court delay is best reduced via increases in court fees and improvements in legislative and judicial quality.     

专家证言的概念性挑战

本文重点考察了专家知识与案件审理模式之间的关系。总体而言，案件审理是一种教育性活动，其间，事实认定者应能够理解、处理和思考证据，并得出理性的结论。这一过程反映了审理中准确事实认定的根本重要性，若没有准确的事实认定，权利和义务便是空谈。专家证据通常涉及一种遵从性而非教育性的诉讼程序模式，从这一点上来说其有悖于常规的审判理想状态。本文讨论了这一发展过程、其形成原因及其后果。若要实现审判的理想状态，那么替代性措施（即所有证据应以教育性模式呈现）则更为优越。如果证据无法以此种方式（教育性模式）呈现，那么在审理过程中通过证据所展现的待证事项便无法与常规的审判理想状态保持一致。     

家族企业继承机制及其文化基础的国际比较

家族企业对经济的重要贡献已经得到公认 ,而家族企业对继承人的选择、培养以及是否实施适当的继承规划机制是关系到家族企业的持续发展、乃至生死存亡的关键问题 ,本文试图通过比较华人家族企业、美国家族企业和日本家族企业在企业代际传承中的实践 ,发现华人家族企业的现状 ,以便对华人家族企业下一步应采取的步骤有更清楚的认识。     

是合理的变通还是“意义”的流失——谈文学翻译中的“随意”现象

文学翻译的目的何在?仅为了向读者介绍作品的故事情节,还是通过阅读这些作品,让读者了解名著中所包含的深刻思想内涵以及原文作者的本意?大凡严肃的译者都以后一种目的为追求.尤金·奈达提出"翻译,即译意",这句名言明确了翻译的使命所在.因为原文作者的本意是译作的根本.离开了这一根本,译者的创作就表现出一种随意性,就会造成原作意义的流失.     

Statistical Difficulties in Determining the Role of Race in Capital Cases: A Re-analysis of Data from the State of Maryland*

In this paper, we re-analyze data used to study the role of race in capital cases in the state of Maryland. We show that when alternative, and arguably more appropriate, statistical procedures are applied, the racial effects reported in early work turn out to be very fragile. The methodological point is more general: conventional causal modeling with observational data is not likely to produce robust results for a variety of criminal justice applications. Raymond Paternoster provided us with the data on which this paper is based and made a number of very helpful suggestions on a earlier draft of this paper. We very much appreciate both. The research was supported by a grant from the National Institute of Justice.     

管制犯社区矫正若干问题探讨——以《刑法第八修正案》为视角

2011年2月25日出台的《刑法第八修正案》规定：＂对判处管制的犯罪分子,依法实行社区矫正。＂当前在对管制犯的社区矫正实践中存在诸多问题亟须解决。例如,犯罪人对于社会来说是有危险的,在这种情况下,如何调动一般市民参与社区矫正的积极性？社区矫正实施过程中,城乡差异、公益劳动的寻找、经费保障、人员配备等问题,如何解决？十一...     

A randomized experiment of a prisoner reentry program: updated results from an evaluation of the Minnesota Comprehensive Offender Reentry Plan (MCORP)

Using a randomized experimental design, this study evaluated the effectiveness of the Minnesota Comprehensive Offender Reentry Plan (MCORP), a prisoner reentry pilot project implemented in 2008. In an effort to reduce recidivism, MCORP attempted to increase offender access to community services and programming by producing greater case management collaboration between caseworkers in prison and supervision agents in the community. Results from Cox regression models showed that MCORP significantly reduced four of the five recidivism measures examined, although the size of the reduction in hazard ratios was relatively modest (20–25%). The findings further suggested that MCORP reduced costs. Sensitivity analyses showed, however, that the cost avoidance estimates were not robust across all assumptions that were examined.     

Strategic silence as a third way. Political parties and transitional justice

How do political parties react to transitional justice (TJ) processes? Do they always have to choose between supporting and rejecting the punishment of the outgoing elite and their collaborators? While Huntington emphasized the existence of two major approaches to TJ – for and against – this article argues there is a third way that has been relatively understudied – strategic silence. It will be argued that, under certain conditions, political calculations can lead to the adoption of silence as a deliberate strategy by certain political actors in TJ processes. Focusing on the Portuguese case (1974–1976), the article explores why, and under what conditions, silence is perceived as the best strategy in dealing with the past following the defeat or breakdown of an authoritarian regime.     

Shaping Citizen Perceptions of Police Legitimacy: A Randomized Field Trial of Procedural Justice

Exploring the relationship between procedural justice and citizen perceptions of police is a well‐trodden pathway. Studies show that when citizens perceive the police acting in a procedurally just manner—by treating people with dignity and respect, and by being fair and neutral in their actions—they view the police as legitimate and are more likely to comply with directives and cooperate with police. Our article examines both the direct and the indirect outcomes of procedural justice policing, tested under randomized field trial conditions. We assess whether police can enhance perceptions of legitimacy during a short, police‐initiated and procedurally just traffic encounter and how this single encounter shapes general views of police. Our results show significant differences between the control and experimental conditions: Procedurally just traffic encounters with police (experimental condition) shape citizen views about the actual encounter directly and general orientations toward the police relative to business‐as‐usual traffic stops in the control group. The theorized model is supported by our research, demonstrating that the police have much to gain from acting fairly during even short encounters with citizens.     

Experimentation,Behaviour Change and Public Policy

Citizens will need to change their behaviour in pro‐social ways if governments are to address current challenges in public policy. But how best to promote behaviour change? The argument in this article is that a decentralised rather than a top‐down approach is particularly suitable, which can encourage innovation in the public sector and involve citizens in the implementation of policies. As a method of evaluating interventions, randomised controlled trials have a unique role to play in improving the design of policies, particularly if carried out responsively and adaptively. A culture of experimentation would value curiosity, feedback and the continual testing of interventions. The article includes three examples of experimentation: young people's political attitudes, voter turnout and donations for charity. As the popularity of ‘nudge’ interventions grows—shown by the success of the UK government's Behavioural Insights Team—the practice of experimentation in the public sector could become the norm.