Undergraduate Research Project Uncovers Bias in Supreme Court Case Selection

Friday, 28 October 2011 19:05

The process may have been time-consuming and tedious, but political science senior Sydney Hawthorne's research into the types of cases selected for review by the Supreme Court yielded an intriguing discovery.


In short: cases submitted by the poor are about thirty percent less likely to be heard.

For the project, Hawthorne partnered with Assistant Professor Ryan Black and collected data on over 400 petitions to the Court's 1982 term. While many other scholars have studied factors that increase a case's chances of being reviewed, such as conflict in lower court decisions or lobbying by interest groups, Hawthorne decided to look for factors that had the opposite effect.

Her findings have gained notice. In addition to coverage in the Flint Journal and Lansing State Journal, Hawthorne received one of two grand prize awards at the 2011 University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum-no small feat, considering her competition included over 500 students presenting nearly 400 unique projects.

While the recognition is appreciated, Hawthorne hopes this research has increased understanding about the often secretive process behind case selection. And it has opened doors, too; Hawthorne hopes to continue research in law school. Still, she says "the best part of this project was that it brought to life the things I learned in the classroom."