Licking County Municipal Court: An Analysis of the Effects ·Economics has on Crime

Abstract

During the summer of 2008 I undertook an internship at the Licking County Municipal Court in Newark, Ohio. My main objective during this internship was to gain experience and learn more about a profession in law. I also wished to gain knowledge about the study of law and economics. In order to accomplish these goals I observed pre-trial hearings, trials, arraignments, and eviction hearings almost every day. While I was not in the courtroom observing, I completed tasks for the Judge, such as sorting through cases in order to learn more about the area of civil procedure. I also conducted some of my own research in areas of the court system in which I found interesting. By doing this, I got the chance to read cases in their entirety. From this I learned so much about different legal proceedings, while also learning new legal jargon. The Experiential Description of this paper first describes in more detail what I observed on a daily basis at the court. It then describes some of my tasks and also my mini-research endeavors. The Connections Essay portion of this text is the research I completed integrating the two subjects of law and economics. More specifically, I researched the connection between crime and economics and the impact economics could have on lawmaking. By doing so I found out that it is possible to have an optimal punishment for a certain crime, as well as an optimal amount of deterrence for crime. The availability of this information can help to reshape the legal system as new laws are passed and reformed so that efficiency can play a more essential role.