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Research

The American Bar Foundation seeks to advance the understanding and improvement of law through research projects of unmatched scale and quality on the most pressing issues facing the legal system in the United States and the world.

The Foundation is committed to broad dissemination of research findings to the organized bar, scholars, and the general public. The results are published in a wide range of forums, including leading academic journals, law reviews, and academic and commercial presses.

Our research program is implemented through the projects designed and conducted by the resident research faculty. A research project is undertaken only after completion of a very extensive review process, including review by the external review body, The Wheeler Committee, and by the ABF Board of Directors.

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Freedom Bound: Law, Labor, and Civic Identity in Colonizing English America, 1580-1865

Sep 25, 2012, Christopher L. Tomlins

Freedom Bound, published September 2010, is the end product of a project of research that has examined the legal history of work and labor, the history of colonizing, and the construction of civic…

Optimizing the Jury Instruction Process

Apr 18, 2012, Shari Seidman Diamond, Elizabeth L. Murphy

This project studies approaches courts can use in revising jury instructions.

Is It Fair?  Law Professors’ Perceptions of Tenure

Apr 2, 2012, Elizabeth Mertz, Katherine Barnes, University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law

This paper presents initial data from a major empirical study of U.S. law professors conducted under the auspices of the American Bar Foundation with additional funding from the Law School Admission…

Accessing Justice in Contemporary America: The Community Needs and Services Study

Apr 3, 2012, Laura Beth Nielsen, Rebecca Sandefur, Pascoe Pleasence

This community-sited, multi-method study investigates the American public’s experiences with problems that fall within the purview of the civil justice system.

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