This is the first book that tries to analyze law by showing how people actually behave. It emphasizes that people are frequently unselfish, have limited willpower and self-control, and often rely on mental short-cuts and rules of thumb. It offers important new insights and suggestions for legal reform.

Introduction Cass R. Sunstein; Part I. Overviews and Prospects: 1. A behavioral approach to law and economics Christine Jolls, Cass R. Sunstein and Richard Thaler; Part II. Heuristics and Biases: Shortcuts, Errors and Legal Decisions: 2. Context-dependence in legal decision making Mark Kelman, Yuval Rottenstreich and Amos Tversky; 3. A positive psychological theory of judging in hindsight Jeffrey J. Rachlinski; 4. Behavioral economics, contract formation, and contract law Russell Korobkin; 5. Organized illusions: a behavioral theory of why corporations mislead stock market investors (and cause other social harms) Donald C. Langevoort; 6. Reluctance to vaccinate: omission bias and ambiguity Ilana Ritov and Jonathan Baron; 7. Second-order decisions Cass R. Sunstein and Edna Ullmann-Margalit; Part III. Valuation: Values and Dollars in the Legal System: 8. Experimental tests of the endowment effect and the cause theorem Daniel J. Kahneman, Jack L. Knetsch and Richard H. Thaler; 9. Assessing punitive damages (with notes on cognition and valuation in law) Cass R. Sunstein, Daniel J. Kahneman and David Schkade; 10. Framing the jury: cognitive perspective on pain and suffering award Edward J. McCaffery, Daniel J. Kahneman and Matthew L. Spitzer; 11. Behavioral economic analysis of redistributive legal rules Christine Jolls; 12. Do parties to nuisance cases bargain after judgment? A glimpse inside the cathedral Ward Fransworth; Part IV. The Demand for Law: Why Law Is As It Is: 13. Some implications of cognitive psychology for risk regulation Roger G. Noll and James E. Krier; 14. Explaining bargaining impasse: the role of self-serving biases Linda Babcock and George Loewenstein; 15. Controlling availability cascades Timur Kuran and Cass R. Sunstein; 16. Cognitive theory and tax Edward J. McCaffery.

"Human psychology is complicated. The law and economics paradigm traditionally has treated it as simple. This volume splendidly marshals leading works by scholars whoin pursuit of realism--seek to add complexity to the traditional paradigm. A significant landmark in the field of law and social science." Robert C. Ellickson, Walter E. Meyer Professor of Property and Urban Law, Yale Law School"...this is a valuable contribution to the study of law and courts....This compilation serves to focus discussion on a set of particularly important theoretical challenges to the standard economic model. Thus, this book belongs on the shelf of any student of the law and courts who advocates or challenges the rational choice model of decision making on the courts." Paul J. Wahlbeck, The Law & Politics Book Review"...the essays in this book provide a clear and vivid introduction into a research program that promises to illuminate our understanding of how law influences behavior." New York Law Journal