Data, and the analysis of that data, has always played an important role in many legal disputes. With the exponential increase in data availability and the increased interest in data more generally, this role has increased and is likely to increase further. As a result, it is incredibly important for lawyers to understand how data can be used in legal cases and, more importantly, to be aware of how it is often misused by lawyers, judges, and experts to suggest far greater certainty than proper analysis would suggest. In this class, we will cover some of the most common ways in which data, probability, and statistics can be misunderstood, misused, and manipulated. Through the use of examples from cases and legal debates, we will illustrate these mistakes, explain them, and learn how to ask the questions that will help uncover them.
Wickelgren, Abraham Lee 