This course examines the diverse legal and policy mechanisms--"public policy instruments"--used to address complex social problems. Instruments considered include criminal sanctions, administrative regulations, tort litigation, taxation, and public and private insurance and compensation systems. Students will evaluate these instruments across multiple dimensions, including effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, benefit-cost tradeoffs, unintended consequences, political feasibility, legitimacy, and competing conceptions of justice (distributive, procedural, and retributive). Policy instruments will be compared not only to each other, but also to two baseline alternatives: doing nothing (allowing problems to resolve through individual or market action) and relying on private sector solutions. Whereas many SLS courses examine particular instruments in depth, this course emphasizes broader analytic frameworks for comparing policy approaches across domains. Although relevant theories and normative perspectives will be discussed, students will focus on evaluating how these instruments function in practice--whether they achieve their intended goals in specific contexts. While multiple substantive areas will be considered, this year's offering will place particular emphasis on policies regarding psychoactive drugs like cannabis, the synthetic opioids, and psychedelic substances. After the term begins, students enrolled in the course can transfer from section (LAW 01) into section (LAW 02), which meets the R requirement, with consent of the instructor. Elements used in grading: Attendance, class participation, written assignments; final independent research paper (optional with instructor consent).
3 units · Law Honors/Pass/Restrd Cr/Fail
This course examines the diverse legal and policy mechanisms--"public policy instruments"--used to address complex social problems. Instruments considered include criminal sanctions, administrative regulations, tort litigation, taxation, and public and private insurance and compensation systems. Students will evaluate these instruments across multiple dimensions, including effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, benefit-cost tradeoffs, unintended consequences, political feasibility, legitimacy, and competing conceptions of justice (distributive, procedural, and retributive). Policy instruments will be compared not only to each other, but also to two baseline alternatives: doing nothing (allowing problems to resolve through individual or market action) and relying on private sector solutions. Whereas many SLS courses examine particular instruments in depth, this course emphasizes broader analytic frameworks for comparing policy approaches across domains. Although relevant theories and normative perspectives will be discussed, students will focus on evaluating how these instruments function in practice--whether they achieve their intended goals in specific contexts. While multiple substantive areas will be considered, this year's offering will place particular emphasis on policies regarding psychoactive drugs like cannabis, the synthetic opioids, and psychedelic substances. After the term begins, students enrolled in the course can transfer from section (01) into section (02), which meets the R requirement, with consent of the instructor. Elements used in grading: Attendance, class participation, written assignments; final independent research paper (optional with instructor consent).
Offered in Winter 2026 at Stanford University.