John W. Thibaut

Without making any claims as to how its conclusions have held up over time, this text describes an impressive research agenda to identify the traits that most people would deem as resolving disputes in a fair manner. "The adversary procedure produces greater satisfaction with the judgment, regardless of the outcome of the case and regardless of the parties' beliefs in their own guilt or innocence." This holds true whether the subjects' own backgrounds were in adversarial or inquisitorial legal systems. This is an important conclusion, and it is helpful to find such positions (familiar to those who read Rawls) argued as an empirical outcome rather than a philosophical preference.… (mer)