Courts, Congress and Public Policy, Part I: The FDA, the Courts and the Regulation of Tobacco
We test the public policy impact of court decisions relative to Congress and the executive by examining the FDA's proposals to regulate tobacco products. To measure impact we utilize an event study methodology that measures how a court decision affects the returns of selected publicly traded firms. This approach allows us to sort out the decisiveness of court decisions that occur in the shadow of the executive and congressional power, as well as to sort out the power of judges within the judicial hierarchy. We find that courts, including District Courts, have the ability to affect significantly the expected profits of firms.
Acknowledments Judgment Day: A Vignette Introduction: The Supreme Court Under the Media Lens 1 A Year in the Life of the Supreme Court 2 Equal in Alberta: The Vriend Case 3 Court and Spin Country: The Quebec Secession Reference 4 "Sea of Confusion": R. v. Marshall 5 "Parents Can Sleep Soundly": The Queen v. John Robin Sharpe 6 Judges and Journalists Conclusion: Reporting the Supreme Court through a Political Prism Appendix A: Interview Questions Appendix B: Method of Analysis -- Coding Instructions and Sample Code Sheet About the Authors Index