We examine related case rules, which are local rules adopted by federal district courts to determine whether a newly filed civil action will be assigned to a judge presiding over a previously filed similar case or a randomly chosen judge. Districts have adopted divergent approaches to the definition of “relatedness” as well as to the process for determining whether a case satisfies the definition. We analyze how these design choices affect the ability of parties to strategically manipulate case assignments to gain an advantage in litigation. We also propose suggestions for the optimal design of the assignment rules for related cases.

中文翻译：

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法官购物

我们研究相关案件规则，这些规则是联邦地区法院采用的当地规则，用于确定新提起的民事诉讼是否将分配给主持先前提起的类似案件的法官或随机选择的法官。各地区对“相关性”的定义以及确定案件是否满足定义的过程采取了不同的方法。我们分析了这些设计选择如何影响当事方战略性地操纵案件分配以在诉讼中获得优势的能力。我们还为相关案例的分配规则的优化设计提出了建议。