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The Speed of Justice

Author

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  • Florence Kondylis

    (Development Impact Evaluation, World Bank)

  • Mattea Stein

    (University of Naples Federico II and Center for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF))

Abstract

Can procedural reforms improve judicial efficiency? And do improvements in judicial efficiency benefit firms? We combine the staggered rollout of a reform that required judges in Senegal to complete pretrials within four months with high-frequency caseload data and firm tax filings. The reform improved judicial efficiency, with no effect on quality. Firm monthly revenues drop by 8–11% upon entering pretrial and decline by on average 3.2–5.0% for every hundred days a case spends in pretrial. Survey results show firms are willing to pay higher legal fees to achieve postreform speed, suggesting positive benefits of the reform on firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Florence Kondylis & Mattea Stein, 2023. "The Speed of Justice," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 105(3), pages 596-613, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:tpr:restat:v:105:y:2023:i:3:p:596-613
    DOI: 10.1162/rest_a_01097
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    Cited by:

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    2. Matthieu Chemin, 2020. "Judicial Efficiency and Firm Productivity: Evidence from a World Database of Judicial Reforms," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 102(1), pages 49-64, March.
    3. Decarolis, Francesco & Mattera, Gianpiero & Menon, Carlo, 2020. "Delays at the Border: Court Efficiency and Delays in Public Contracts," CEPR Discussion Papers 14856, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. Chemin, Matthieu & Chen, Daniel L. & Di Maro, Vincenzo & Kimalu, Paul & Mokaya, Momanyi & Ramos-Maqueda, Manuel, 2022. "Data Science for Justice: The Short-Term Effects of a Randomized Judicial Reform in Kenya," TSE Working Papers 22-1391, Toulouse School of Economics (TSE).
    5. Joyce Sadka & Enrique Seira & Christopher Woodruff, 2018. "Information and Bargaining through Agents: Experimental Evidence from Mexico’s Labor Courts," NBER Working Papers 25137, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Philipp Barteska & Jay Euijung Lee, 2024. "Bureaucrats and the Korean export miracle," Discussion Papers 2024-11, Nottingham Interdisciplinary Centre for Economic and Political Research (NICEP).
    7. Woodruff, Christopher & Sadka, Joyce & Seira Bejarano, Enrique, 2018. "Information and Bargaining through Agents: Experimental Evidence from Mexico’s Labor Courts," CEPR Discussion Papers 13261, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. Aberra, Adam & Chemin, Matthieu, 2021. "Does legal representation increase investment? Evidence from a field experiment in Kenya," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    9. Chemin, Matthieu & Kimalu, Paul & Newman-Bachand, Simon, 2024. "Courts, Crime and Economic Performance: Evidence from a Judicial Reform in Kenya," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • K41 - Law and Economics - - Legal Procedure, the Legal System, and Illegal Behavior - - - Litigation Process
    • D73 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Bureaucracy; Administrative Processes in Public Organizations; Corruption
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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