Law Commons^™

Alternative Facts And The Post-Truth Society: Meeting The Challenge, S. I. Strong

Faculty Publications

In the hours following the 2017 U.S. presidential inauguration, the world was introduced to the concept of "alternative facts," a term that quickly became synonymous with a willingness to persevere with a particular belief either in complete ignorance of, or with a total disregard for, reality.' The increasing incidence of alternative facts in the popular and political arena creates a critical conundrum for lawyers, judges, legislators, and anyone interested in deliberative democracy, since it is unclear how rational debate can proceed if empirical evidence holds no persuasive value.

This Essay seeks to use empirical research to demonstrate that conventional means …

It’S Not About The Money: The Role Of Preferences, Cognitive Biases And Heuristics Among Professional Athletes, Michael Mccann

Law Faculty Scholarship

Professional athletes are often regarded as selfish, greedy, and out-of-touch with regular people. They hire agents who are vilified for negotiating employment contracts that occasionally yield compensation in excess of national gross domestic products. Professional athletes are thus commonly assumed to most value economic remuneration, rather than the love of the game or some other intangible, romanticized inclination.

Lending credibility to this intuition is the rational actor model, a law and economic precept which presupposes that when individuals are presented with a set of choices, they rationally weigh costs and benefits, and select the course of action that maximizes their …

The Reckless Pursuit Of Dominion: A Situational Analysis Of The Nba And Diminishing Player Autonomy, Michael Mccann

Law Faculty Scholarship

This Article examines required genetic testing of NBA players from a situational vantage point, integrating socio-psychological, legal, and ethical analyses. The core argument may be expressed as follows: required genetic testing of NBA players appears consistent with a broader and largely deleterious agenda by the NBA to control players. Since implementation of the rookie wage scale in 1995 through the recent imposition of a paternalistic player dress code, the NBA has increasingly usurped player autonomy. The NBA's capacity to do so largely rests in its adroit manipulation of the situational influences that influence fans and media. For instance, because of …

O.J. Simpson Verdict Raises Questions About Jury System, Aubrey Immelman

Psychology Faculty Publications

This opinion column examines whether conformity pressures, confirmation bias, and belief perseverance could have influenced jury deliberations and the verdict in The State of California v. O. J. Simpson.