9: The Impact of Judicial Decisions

Do court rulings actually change anything? This week we examine the impact of judicial decisions on policy, behaviour, the economy and public opinion. We pay particular attention to whether and when rulings move public opinion, sometimes in unintended directions.

Mandatory readings

Sternberg, Sebastian, Sylvain Brouard, and Christoph Hönnige. “The legitimacy-conferring capacity of constitutional courts: Evidence from a comparative survey experiment.” European Journal of Political Research 61, no. 4 (2022): 973-996. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6765.12480

Casas, Agustin, Federico Curci, and Antoni-Italo De Moragas. “Judicial Decisions, Backlash and Secessionism: The Spanish Constitutional Court and Catalonia.” The Economic Journal 134, no. 664 (2024): 3202-3231. https://doi.org/10.1093/ej/ueae041

Martinsen, Dorte Sindbjerg. “Judicial Influence on Policy Outputs? The Political Constraints of Legal Integration in the European Union.” Comparative Political Studies 48, no. 12 (2015): 1622-1660. https://doi.org/10.1177/0010414015592591

Optional readings

Rosenberg, Gerald N. The Hollow Hope: Can Courts Bring About Social Change? University of Chicago Press, 2023. https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226312507.001.0001

Kapiszewski, Diana, and Matthew M. Taylor. “Compliance: Conceptualizing, Measuring, and Explaining Adherence to Judicial Rulings.” Law & Social Inquiry 38, no. 4 (2013): 803-835. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-4469.2012.01320.x

Helfer, Laurence R., and Erik Voeten. “International Courts as Agents of Legal Change: Evidence from LGBT Rights in Europe.” International Organization 68, no. 1 (2014): 77-110. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020818313000398

Brinks, Daniel M., and Varun Gauri. “The Law’s Majestic Equality? The Distributive Impact of Judicializing Social and Economic Rights.” Perspectives on Politics 12, no. 2 (2014): 375-393. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592714000887

Gauri, Varun, Jeffrey K. Staton, and Jorge Vargas Cullell. “The Costa Rican Supreme Court’s compliance monitoring system.” The Journal of Politics 77, no. 3 (2015): 774-786. https://doi.org/10.1086/681260

Cohen, Harlan, and Ryan Powers. “Judicialization and Public Support for Compliance with International Commitments.” International Studies Quarterly 68, no. 3 (2024): sqae078. https://doi.org/10.1093/isq/sqae078

Hall, Matthew E.K. “The Semiconstrained Court: Public Opinion, the Separation of Powers, and the U.S. Supreme Court’s Fear of Nonimplementation.” American Journal of Political Science 58, no. 2 (2014): 352-366. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajps.12069

Casillas, Christopher J., Peter K. Enns, and Patrick C. Wohlfarth. “How Public Opinion Constrains the U.S. Supreme Court.” American Journal of Political Science 55, no. 1 (2011): 74-88. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-5907.2010.00485.x

Madsen, Mikael Rask, Juan A. Mayoral, Anton Strezhnev, and Erik Voeten. “Sovereignty, Substance, and Public Support for European Courts’ Human Rights Rulings.” American Political Science Review 116, no. 2 (2022): 419-438. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055421001143

Reis, José M., and Marcel Garz. “Media Attention and Compliance With the European Court of Human Rights.” Journal of Conflict Resolution 69, no. 5 (2025): 814-838. https://doi.org/10.1177/00220027241269897

Bailey, Christine M., Paul M. Collins, Jesse H. Rhodes, and Douglas Rice. “The Effect of Judicial Decisions on Issue Salience and Legal Consciousness in Media Serving the LGBTQ+ Community.” American Political Science Review 119, no. 1 (2025): 108-123. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003055424000030

Bhuller, Manudeep, Gordon B. Dahl, Katrine V. Løken, and Magne Mogstad. “Incarceration, Recidivism, and Employment.” Journal of Political Economy 128, no. 4 (2020): 1269-1324. https://doi.org/10.1086/705330

Chemin, Matthieu. “Can judiciaries constrain executive power? Evidence from judicial reforms.” Journal of Public Economics 199 (2021): 104428. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpubeco.2021.104428