Valerie Hans

Valerie P. Hans, Charles F. Rechlin Professor of Law, conducts empirical studies of law and the courts, and is one of the nation's leading authorities on the jury system. Trained as a social scientist, she has carried out extensive research and lectured around the globe on juries and jury reforms as well as the uses of social science in law.

She is the author or editor of 10 books and over 150 research articles. Recent writings on the jury system include analysis of the connection between jury trials and democracy, and recommendations for fair jury trials. Professor Hans is also studying the diverse forms of citizen participation in legal decision making in other countries. Her research and that of others are summarized in a coedited book, Juries, Lay Judges, and Mixed Courts: A Global Perspective (2021). Other books include: The Psychology of Tort Law (2016); American Juries: The Verdict (2007); The Jury System: Contemporary Scholarship (2006); Business on Trial: The Civil Jury and Corporate Responsibility (2000); and Judging the Jury (1986).

Professor Hans is coeditor of the Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, past president of the Law and Society Association, and a member of the American Law Institute.