Certiorari and Compliance in the Judicial Hierarchy

Jeffrey R. Lax
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Jeffrey R. Lax: University of California, San Diego, JLax@ucsd.edu

Journal of Theoretical Politics, 2003, vol. 15, issue 1, 61-86

Abstract: I develop a formal model of the interaction between auditing by the Supreme Court (certiorari) and compliance by the lower courts, presenting three challenges to the existing literature. First, I show that even discretionary certiorari (the Court can choose which cases to hear) only goes so far in inducing compliance. Second, the literature often treats the Court as a unitary actor, ignoring the Rule of Four (only four votes are needed to grant certiorari). This rule is generally assumed to limit majoritarian dominance - this is a puzzle given that the rule itself is subject to majority control. I show that it actually increases majority power by increasing lower court compliance. Finally, while sincere behavior is often taken for granted at the Supreme Court level, I show that potential non-compliance creates heretofore unrecognized incentives for the justices to conceal their true preferences, so as to induce greater compliance. They can exploit even minimal uncertainty to manipulate asymmetric information in a signaling game of strategic reputation building, further increasing compliance under the Rule of Four.

Keywords: compliance; hierarchy; rules; reputation; Supreme Court (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2003
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:jothpo:v:15:y:2003:i:1:p:61-86

DOI: 10.1177/0951692803151003

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