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Article
Insurers, Illusions of Judgment & Litigation
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
  • Chris Guthrie, Vanderbilt University Law School
  • Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Cornell Law School
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-1-2006
Abstract

Insurers play a critical role in the civil justice system. By providing liability insurance to parties who would otherwise be untenable as defendants, insurers make litigation possible. Once litigation materializes, insurers provide representation, pay legal fees, and often play a central role in resolving disputes through settlement or adjudication. In this paper, we explore empirically how these key litigation players make important decisions in the litigation process, like evaluating a case, deciding whether to settle, and if so, on what terms. We find that insurers that have been shown to distort litigation decision making, appear to make decisions in a more economically rational fashion than other litigation players. This finding, though preliminary, casts new light on litigation theory and practice.

Publication Citation
Published in: Vanderbilt Law Review, vol. 59, no. 6 (November 2006).
Citation Information
Chris Guthrie and Jeffrey J. Rachlinski. "Insurers, Illusions of Judgment & Litigation" (2006)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/chris-guthrie/34/