Empirical Analysis of Legal Theory: In Honor of Theodore Eisenberg

This paper explores the potential of using empirical data to illuminate long-standing issues in legal theory. Sophisticated parties often include dispute-resolution clauses in major contracts. Because these terms are agreed to ex ante, they may represent the parties' mutual best judgment about efficient mechanisms for dispute resolution. Empirical data can thus provide useful information pertinent to a number of ongoing theoretical debates. This paper discusses the concept of the empirical analysis of legal theory and describes results of a series of articles on this topic coauthored with the late Professor Theodore Eisenberg.