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The Heuristics Of Intellectual Due Process: A Primer For Triers Of Science, Erica Beecher-Monas

Law Faculty Research Publications

Scientific evidence is an inescapable facet of modern litigation. The Supreme Court; beginning with the seminal case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc, and continuing with General Electric Co. v. Joiner and Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael, has instructed federal judges to evaluate the scientific validity of such evidence in determining the evidence's adinissibiliV. In this Article, Professor Erica Beecher-Monas argues that many judges ignore the science component of their "gatekeeping" duties, focusing instead on rules of convenience that have little scientific justification. As a result, size demonstrates that judges reject even scientifically uncontroversial evidence that would have litttlroeu …