What is the Access to Justice Lab?
The Access to Justice Lab is a research clinic at Harvard Law School. The Lab runs randomized control trials in the legal system in order to assess how accessible various components are to pro se litigants – people without lawyers.
What studies are included here?
In order to be included, studies had to meet 5 criterion in order to be considered randomized control trials in the legal system: (1) They had to be conducted in the United States; (2) They must be field studies of real-world interventions; (3) They must randomly assign participants in the study to at least two conditions; (4) This randomization must replace the decision of a judge or lawyer; (5) They must be conducted with the purpose of producing knowledge.
How do I use this tool?
This interactive tool is meant to help you explore summaries of randomized control trials in the legal field.
Randomized Control Trial Summaries
| Citation | Author(s) | Year | Type of Publication | Criminal/Civil | Funder | Intervention Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James D. Greiner & Andrea Matthews, Randomized Control Trials in the United States Legal Profession, SSRN Electronic Journal 295 (2016). | James D. Greiner, Andrea Matthews | 2016 | Academic journal | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Brittany N. Rudd et al., Randomized control trial: Online parent program and waiting period for unmarried parents in Title IV-D court, 29 J Fam Psychol 679 (2015). | Brittany N. Rudd, Amy Holtzworth-Munroe, Jason G. Reyome, Amy G. Applegate, Brian M. D’Onofrio | 2015 | Academic journal | Civil | Indiana University, Bloomington | Waiting period, Online counseling |
| James D. Greiner, et al. The Limits of Unbundled Legal Assistance: A Randomized Study in a Massachusetts District Court and Prospects for the Future. 126 Harvard Law Review 901 (2013). | James Greiner, Cassandra Wolos Pattanayak, Jonathan Hennessy | 2013 | Law review | Civil | Boston Bar Foundation, Massachusetts Bar Foundation, Boston Foundation | Legal representation |
| Alan J. Tomkins, et al., An experiment in the law: studying a technique to reduce failure to appear in court, 48 Court Rev. 96 (2012). | Alan J. Tomkins, Brian Bornstein, Mitchel N. Herian, David I. Rosenbaum, Elizabeth M. Neeley | 2012 | Law review | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Pretrial release supervision |
| David Abrams & Chris Rohlfs, Optimal bail and the value of freedom: evidence from the Philadelphia bail experiment, 49 Economic Inquiry 750 (2011). | David Abrams | 2011 | Academic journal | Criminal | N/A | N/A |
| Melissa Labriola et al., Do Batterer Programs Reduce Recidivism?: Results from a Randomized Trial in the Bronx, 25 Justice Quarterly 252 (2008) | Melissa Labriola, Michael Rempel, Robert C. Davis | 2008 | Academic journal | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Batterer treatment program |
| Denise C. Gottfredson et al., How Drug Treatment Courts Work: An Analysis of Mediators, 44 Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 3 (2007). | Denise C. Gottfredson, Brook W. Kearley, Stacy S. Najaka, Carlos M. Rocha | 2007 | Academic journal | Criminal | Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services | Drug treatment court |
| John S. Goldkamp & Michael D. White, Restoring accountability in pretrial release: the Philadelphia pretrial release supervision experiments, 2 J Exp Criminol 143 (2006). | John S. Goldkamp, Michael D. White | 2006 | Academic journal | Criminal | Philadelphia Mayor’s Overcrowding Task Force | Pretrial release supervision |
| Melissa Labriola et al., Testing the Effectiveness of Batterer Programs and Judicial Monitoring: Results from a Randomized Trial at the Bronx Misdemeanor Domestic Violence Court (Center for Court Innovation) (2005), http://www.courtinnovation.org/sites/default/files/battererprogramseffectiveness.pdf. | Melissa Labriola, Michael Rempel, Robert C. Davis | 2005 | Non-profit publication (Center for Court Innovation) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Batterer treatment program |
| Denise Gottfredson et al., Effectiveness of Drug Treatment Courts: Evidence From a Randomized Trial, 2 Criminology & Public Policy 171 (2003) | Denise C. Gottfredson, Stacy S. Najaka, Brooke Kearley | 2003 | Academic journal | Criminal | Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services | Drug treatment court |
| Douglas Marlowe et al., Are Judicial Status Hearings a Key Component of Drug Court?: During-Treatment Data From a Randomized Trial, 30 Criminal Justice and Behavior 141 (2003). | Douglas B. Marlowe, David S. Festinger, Patricia A. Lee, Maria M. Schepise, Julie E. R. Hazard, Jeffrey C. Merrill, Francis D. Mulvaney, A. Thomas McLellan | 2003 | Academic journal | Criminal | National Institute on Drug Abuse | Drug treatment court |
| Lynette Feder & Laura Dugan, A test of the efficacy of court-mandated counseling for domestic violence offenders: The Broward experiment, 19 Justice Quarterly 343 (2002). | Lynette Feder, Laura Dugan | 2002 | Academic journal | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Batterer treatment program |
| Denise Gottfredson & Lyn Exum, The Baltimore City Drug Treatment Court: One-Year Results From a Randomized Study, 39 Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquincy 337–356 (2002) | Denise Gottfredson, Lyn Exum | 2002 | Academic journal | Criminal | Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services | Drug treatment court |
| Marvin Mandell & Andrea Marshall, The Effects of Court-Ordered Mediation in Workers’ Compensation Cases Filed in Circuit Court: Results From an Experiment Conducted in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland Institute for Policy Analysis and Research, UMBC (2002), https://courts.state.md.us/sites/default/files/import/macro/reports/baltcitywork ercompreportfinal.pdf | Marvin Mandell, Andrea Marshall | 2002 | Government publication (Maryland courts) | Civil | MACRO, The Maryland Judiciary’s Mediation and Conflict Resolution Office | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Carroll Seron et al., The Impact of Legal Counsel on Outcomes for Poor Tenants in New York City’s Housing Court: Results of a Randomized Experiment, 35 Law & Society Review 419 (2001). | Carroll Seron, Gregg Van Ryzin, Martin Frankel | 2001 | Academic journal | Civil | IOLA Fund of New York State | Legal representation |
| Nancy Thoennes, Permanent custody mediation: Lucas County Court of Common Pleas, juvenile division, Center for Policy Research 85 (2001). | Nancy Thoennes | 2001 | Think tank publication (Center for Policy Research) | Civil | United States Department of Health and Human Services | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Jayne Zuberbuhler, Early Intervention Mediation, 39 Family Court Review 203 (2001). | Jayne Zuberbuhler | 2001 | Academic journal | Civil | State Justice Institute | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Robert Davis et al., Does Batterer Treatment Reduce Violence? A Randomzied Experiment in Brooklyn, US Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, (2000), https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/180772.pdf. | Robert Davis, Bruce Taylor, Christopher Maxwell | 2000 | Government publication (National Criminal Justice Reference Service) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Batterer treatment program |
| Paula Hannaford-Agor et al., Permitting Jury Discussions During Trial: Impact of the Arizona Reform, Cornell Law Faculty Publications (2000). | Paula Hannaford-Agor, Value P. Hans, Nicole L. Mott, G. Thomas Munsterman | 2000 | Academic journal | Civil | State Justice Institute | Jury discussions |
| Adele Harrell et al., Evaluation of the D.C. Superior Court Drug Intervention Programs, National Institute of Justice (2000). | Adele Harrell, Shannon Cavanagh, John Roman | 2000 | Government publication (National Institute of Justice Research Brief) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Drug treatment court |
| James S. Kakalik et al., An Evaluation of Mediation and Early Neutral Evaluation Under the Civil Justice Reform Act, Institute For Civil Justice (1996). | James S. Kakalik, Terence Dunworth, Laural A. Hill, Daniel McCaffrey, Marian Oshiro, Nicholas M. Pace, Mary E. Vaiana | 1996 | Book | Civil | RAND Institute for Civil Justice | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Steven H. Clarke et al., Court Ordered Civil Case Mediation In North Carolina: An Evaluation Of Its Effects (1995). | Steven H. Clarke, Elizabeth D. Ellen, Kelly McCormick | 1995 | Non-profit publication (Institute of Governmentat University of North Carolina) | Civil | The State Justice Institute, Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Board of Trustees, North Carolina Bar Foundation Endowment, Broyhill Family Foundation, Hanes Family Foundation | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Elizabeth Piper Deschenes, et al., Drug Court or Probation?: An Experimental Evaluation of Maricopa County’s Drug Court, 18 The Justice System Journal 55 (1995). | Elizabeth Piper Deschenes, Susan Turner, Peter W. Greenwood | 1995 | Academic journal | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Drug treatment court |
| Larry Heuer & Steven Penrod, Juror notetaking and question asking during trials: a national field experiment. 18 Law Hum. Behav. 121 (1994). | Larry Heuer, Steven Penrod | 1994 | Academic journal | Civil, Criminal | State Justice Institute | Juror questions, Juror notetaking |
| Larry Heuer & Steven Penrod, Trial complexity: a field investigation of its meaning and its effects, 18 Law Hum. Behav. 29 (1994). | Larry Heuer, Steven Penrod | 1994 | Academic journal | Civil, Criminal | State Justice Institute | Juror questions, Juror notetaking |
| Peter W. Greenwood & Susan Turner, Evaluation of the Paint Creek Youth Center: A Residential Program for Serious Delinquents, 31 Criminology 263 (1993). | Peter W. Greenwood, Susan Turner | 1993 | Academic journal | Criminal | National Institute of Justice; Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice | Juvenille correctional program |
| Craig A. McEwen, An evaluation of the ADR pilot project, 7 Maine Bar Journal (1992). | Craig A. McEwen | 1992 | Law review | Civil | Maine Judicial Council | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Roger A. Hanson & George W. Hersey, Appellate Court Congestion, or How Do You Spell R-E-L-I-E-F?, 1 Governing Florida 11 (1991). | Roger A. Hanson, George W. Hersey | 1991 | Academic journal | Civil | State Justice Institute | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Wayne Kobbervig, Mediation of civil cases in Hennepin county: An evaluation, Minnesota Judicial Center (1991). | Wayne Kobbervig | 1991 | Government publication (Office of the State Court Administrator Minnesota Judicial Center) | Civil | Office of the State Court Administrator, Minnesota Judicial Center | Alternative dispute resolution |
| James B. Eaglin, The pre-argument conference program in the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals: an evaluation (1990). | James B. Eaglin, Federal Judicial Center | 1990 | Government publication (Federal Judicial Center) | Civil | Federal Judicial Center | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Larry Heuer & Steven Penrod, Increasing Jurors’ Participation in Trials: A Field Experiment with Jury Notetaking and Question Asking, 12 Law and Human Behavior 231 (1988). | Larry Heuer, Steven Penrod | 1988 | Academic journal | Civil, Criminal | Judicial Council of Wisconsin | Juror questions, Juror notetaking |
| Anne Schneider, Restitution and Recidivism Rates of Juvenile Offenders: Results from Four Experimental Studies, 24 Criminology 533 (1986). | Anne Schneider | 1986 | Academic journal | Criminal | National Institute of Juvenille Justice | Juvenille restitution program |
| David C. Steelman & Jerry Goldman, The Settlement Conference: Experimenting with Appellate Justice, National Center for State Courts (1986). | David C. Steelman, Jerry Goldman | 1986 | Non-profit publication (National Center for State Courts) | Civil | National Science Foundation; Law Enforcement Assistance Administration of the U.S. Department of Justice; Charles E. Culpeper Foundation; Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency | Alternative dispute resolution |
| John Goldkamp & Michael Gottfredson, Judicial guidelines for bail: the Philadelphia experiment, U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, (1984). | John Goldkamp, Michael Gottfredson | 1984 | Government publication (National Institute of Justice Research Report) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Bail guidelines |
| Pearson and Thoennes, A preliminary portrait of client reactions to three court mediation programs, Conflict Resolution Quarterly 21 (1984). | Jessica Pearson, Nancy Thoennes | 1984 | Academic journal | Civil | Children’s Bureau | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Ernest Fazio et al., Evaluation of the Early Representation by Defense Counsel Field Test. Washington, D.C.: US Dep. Justice, Natl. Inst. Justice (1984). | Ernest Fazio Jr., Sandra Wexler, Thomas Foster, Dr. Michael J. Lowy, Dr. David Sheppard, Juliet A. Musso | 1984 | Government publication (National Criminal Justice Reference Service) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Early representation |
| Anthony Partridge & Allan Lind, A Reevaluation of the Civil Appeals Management Plan, Fed. Judic. Cent. (1983). | Anthony Partridge, Allan Lind | 1983 | Government publication (Federal Judicial Center) | Civil | Federal Judicial Center | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Stephen Weitzman, Early Representation by Defense Counsel in Shelby County, Tennessee 1982-1983, Final Report, National Institute of Justice Report (1983). | Stephen E. Weitzman | 1983 | Government publication (National Institute of Justice Research Report) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Early representation |
| Sally Hillsman Baker & Susan Sadd, Diversion of Felony Arrests: An Experiment in Pretrial Intervention, US Dep. Justice, Natl. Inst. Justice (1981). | Sally Hillsman Baker, Susan Sadd | 1981 | Government publication (National Criminal Justice Reference Service) | Criminal | National Institute of Justice | Pretrial diversion |
| Jerry Goldman, Ineffective Justice: Evaluating the Preappeal Conference (1980). | Jerry Goldman | 1978 and 1980 | Book | Civil | Federal Judicial Center | Alternative dispute resolution |
| William Vaughn Stapleton & Lee E. Teitelbaum, In Defense of Youth: A Study of the Role of Counsel in American Juvenile Courts (1972). | William Vaughn Stapleton, Lee E. Teitelbaum | 1972 | Book | Criminal | Ford Foundation, Russel Sage Foundation | Legal representation |
| Frances Margolin, Counseling in Contested Custody and Visiting in a Court Setting, 8 Family Court Law Review 11 (1970). | Frances M. Margolin | 1970 | Academic journal | Civil | Conciliation Court of San Diego | Alternative dispute resolution |
| Keith S. Ditman et al., A Controlled Experiment on the Use of Court Probation for Drunk Arrests, 124 Am. J. Psychiatry 160 (1967). | Keith S. Ditman, George G. Crawford, Edward W. Forgy, Herbert Moskowitz, Craig MacAndrew | 1967 | Academic journal | Criminal | State of California Department of Public Health | Alcohol addiction treatment |
| Charles E. Ares; Anne Rankin; Herbert Sturz, The Manhattan Bail Project: An Interim Report on the use of Pre-Trial Parole, 38 N.Y.U. L. Rev. 67, 95 (1963). | Charles E. Ares, Anne Rankin, Herbert Sturz | 1963 | Law review | Criminal | Vera Institute | Bail guidelines |