celebrity adjudication: comparative analyses of united states verdict rates for celebrity defendants

The effect of outside influences on judicial decision-making has a long and storied history. However, the impact of celebrity status as an outside influence on judicial decision-making has received very little attention in the literature. I examine 303 celebrity verdicts from 1998 to 2010 to shed light on whether celebrities are adjudicated in the same or a similar manner as non-celebrities. My findings suggest that celebrities do not receive any special treatment at trial, but in fact are convicted at a 12.1% higher rate than non-celebrity defendants.