CSC214 | Statistics in the Courtroom

Data driven decisions will most likely become the norm or at the very least form an important dimension in court cases. Therefore, it is necessary for law students to have the relevant exposure to statistical science and its potential use / misuse in the courtroom. This would be a foundational course.

One of the recommended books for this course, Statistical Science in the Courtroom is a collection of articles written by statisticians and legal scholars who have been concerned with problems in the use of statistical evidence. Legal statistics has raised interesting statistical problems over the years, thereby necessitating further research.

For any serious student of law or practising lawyer, as data driven evidence becomes the norm, it is of vital importance to understand the relevance and need for statistical reasoning in the courtroom as an objective complement that aids in strengthening the case. The articles that comprise the primary reading material highlight these objectives.

The reading from the first recommended book is primarily drawn from court cases in US and UK courts where statistical experts were brought in to provide data driven testimony in landmark cases of discrimination (gender, race) as well as policies impacting the general public (cases against the pharmaceutical industry, supporting forensic science).

A number of articles describe DNA evidence and the difficulties of properly calculating the probability that a random individual’s profile would “match” that of the evidence, as well as the proper way to interpret the result. In addition to the technical issues, several authors describe their experience in court and with the legal process. Other articles describe the role of statistical evidence in cases concerning discrimination against minorities, product liability, environmental regulation, and the appropriateness and fairness of sentences.

Lectures and seminar style discussion and group work.

The course will start out by discussing a basic framework of case studies where statistics has been applicable and used in litigation under both US and UK law. We will then move to articles on the misuse of statistics as available in literature followed by a simple framework of basic statistics and jargon that resonates with a legal audience. Finally, the last week will conclude with a comprehensive synthesis of understanding how best legal experts can use the appropriate statistical tools in the right context and ultimately how the decision of the court may or may not use this information. It is important because independent of whether the statistical evidence is used or not, the expert witness and the lawyer need to present the correct statistical evidence to the court without prejudice.