Law & Neuroscience

  • Read more: Athlete concussion under-reporting and pressure from stakeholders
    Article

    Athlete concussion under-reporting and pressure from stakeholders

    By Christine Baugh As concussions are increasingly seen as a public health problem, under-reporting and under-diagnosis of concussion is recognized as one barrier to improving the safety of sports participation. A number of studies have previously characterized the extent of under-reporting of concussions among athletes, particularly at the collegiate level. Furthermore, existing research has examined the applicability of theories…

  • Read more: TOMORROW at 12PM: Moral Decisions in the Law: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It?
    Article

    TOMORROW at 12PM: Moral Decisions in the Law: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It?

    Moral Decisions in the Law: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It? April 8, 2015 12:00 PM Harvard Law School Wasserstein Hall, Room 3019 1585 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridge, MA [Map] Law – particularly criminal law – is infused with moral judgment and calls upon prosecutors, judges, and jurors to make morally-informed decisions. But where does…

  • Read more: NEXT WEEK (4/8): Moral Decisions in the Law: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It?
    Article

    NEXT WEEK (4/8): Moral Decisions in the Law: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It?

    Moral Decisions in the Law: What’s the Brain Got to Do with It? April 8, 2015 12:00 PM Harvard Law School Wasserstein Hall, Room 3019 1585 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridge, MA [Map] Law – particularly criminal law – is infused with moral judgment and calls upon prosecutors, judges, and jurors to make morally-informed decisions. But where does…

  • Read more: The Curious Case of “Mr. Oft”
    Article

    The Curious Case of “Mr. Oft”

    by Zachary Shapiro In the course of my year-long project with Petrie-Flom, I am studying the potential impact of neuroimaging techniques on criminal law. During the course of my research, I found a story of an individual whose case presents difficult questions for our conceptions of criminal guilt and responsibility. [1] While this may be…

  • Read more: Problems with fMRI as a tool of lie detection
    Article

    Problems with fMRI as a tool of lie detection

    By Zachary Shapiro Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) evidence of lie detection has, appropriately, faced difficulty gaining evidentiary acceptance in criminal courts. While a comprehensive discussion of the case law is beyond the scope of this post, it is important to note that courts have repeatedly refused to admit such evidence, both under a Daubert test,…

  • Read more: Studies provide new insights into youth and adolescent concussion
    Article

    Studies provide new insights into youth and adolescent concussion

    By Christine Baugh In the past several weeks there have been two studies with important implications for youth and adolescent concussions. They are summarized briefly in this post. Post-Concussion Rest. Thomas and colleagues recently published a study in the journal Pediatrics examining whether standard of care (1-2 days rest) or 5 days of strict rest (both…

  • Read more: fMRI as a Tool of Lie-Detection
    Article

    fMRI as a Tool of Lie-Detection

    By Zachary Shapiro The United States legal system places a great deal of importance on juries. With this faith comes a belief that juries are effective and reliable in determining the credibility of witnesses that testify in front of them. However, research has found that people, while generally good at lying, are terrible at detecting…

  • Read more: Neuroimaging and the Law: Pitfalls
    Article

    Neuroimaging and the Law: Pitfalls

    By Zachary Shapiro While there is considerable enthusiasm for incorporating neuroimaging technologies in the courtroom, it must be balanced with an understanding of the very real limitations of available neuroimaging data at present. I will focus on the use and study of one such technology, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), to explore some of these…

  • Read more: Concussion laws lead to increase in health care utilization
    Article

    Concussion laws lead to increase in health care utilization

      By Christine Baugh Between 2009 and 2014 all U.S. States and the District of Columbia implemented concussion legislation. Generally modeled after Washington State’s Zachery Lystedt Law, most of these statutes require that youth and adolescent athletes are provided with information about concussions prior to sports participation, that they are removed from play if they are…

  • Read more: Upcoming Fairness Hearing in NFL Concussion Litigation
    Article

    Upcoming Fairness Hearing in NFL Concussion Litigation

    By Christine Baugh On November 19, Judge Anita Brody will hold a fairness hearing in the class action lawsuit of National Football League (NFL) Players v. NFL re: concussion injury. This is one of the final steps toward final approval (or rejection) of the settlement in the case. Before final approval Judge Brody must determine that…