Workshop 11/21/19
Lawrence R. Grove Professor of Law
Harvard Law School
Born in 1974 in Hamburg, Germany
Studied Law at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and the University of Hamburg, and Law and Economics at Harvard University
In the hands of judges, the law suffers from split personality disorder. On the one hand, judges are bound by the law. On the other hand, judges make the law. How can judges be bound by something that they make? To be sure, the ability to "make" does not necessarily imply the ability to "unmake," so judges can be limited by their own past decisions. In reality, however, judges do seem able to sidestep past decisions. Cynics think judges are able to sidestep all past decisions, at least if they try hard enough. The data suggest that the cynics are more right than most people previously thought. On a theoretical level, law is expressed in language and hence necessarily partakes in its ambiguity. Worse, legal language demarcates conflicting interests that consciously and unconsciously warp the language's meaning. But the language resists. This tension holds the law's split personalities together. Modelling this tension promises deeper insight into the legal process.
Spamann, Holger (
Cambridge, Mass.,
2016)
Monetary liability for breach of the duty of care?
Spamann, Holger (
Chicago, Ill.,
2016)
Justice is less blind, and less legalistic, than we thought : evidence from an experiment with real judges
Spamann, Holger (
Palo Alto, Calif.,
2015)
Empirical comparative law
Workshop 11/21/19
Tuesday Colloquium12/10/19
How Does Law Bind?
Evening Colloquium02/19/20
Abendkolloquium