Prof. Joanna M. Shepherd

Joanna Shepherd teaches Torts, Law and Economics, Analytical Methods for Lawyers, Statistics for Lawyers, and Legal and Economic Issues in Health Policy at the Emory University School of Law. Before joining Emory, Professor Shepherd was an assistant professor of economics at Clemson University. In addition to her position at the law school, she currently serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Emory Department of Economics.

Much of Professor Shepherd's research focuses on topics in law and economics, especially on empirical analyses of legal changes and legal institutions. Her recent research has empirically examined issues related to the healthcare industry, tort reform, employment law, litigation practice, and judicial behavior. She has published broadly in law reviews, legal journals and economics journals. Recent publications include: “Uncovering the Silent Victims of the American Medical Liability System” in the Vanderbilt Law Review; “The Partisan Foundations of Judicial Campaign Finance” in the Southern California Law Review; “The Partisan Price of Justice: An Empirical Analysis of Campaign Contributions and Judicial Decisions” in the New York University Law Review, “Products Liability and Economic Activity: An Empirical Analysis of Tort Reform’s Impact on Businesses, Employment, and Production” in the Vanderbilt Law Review, “Money, Politics, and Impartial Justice,” in the Duke Law Journal; “Tort Reform’s Winners and Losers: The Competing Effects of Care and Activity Levels,” in the UCLA Law Review; “Deterrence versus Brutalization: Capital Punishment’s Differing Impacts Among States,” in the Michigan Law Review; “Do Appointed Judges Vote Strategically,” in the Duke Law Journal; “The Influence of Retention Politics on Judges’ Voting,” in the Journal of Legal Studies and “Tort Reform and Accidental Deaths,” in The Journal of Law and Economics. Professor Shepherd also has published in The American Law and Economics Review, The Hastings Law Journal, The Florida Law Review, The Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law, The Review of Law and Economics, Criminal Law & Economics, Criminology and Public Policy, Economic Inquiry, The Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics, Foundations and Trends in Microeconomics, and The Antitrust Bulletin. In addition to publishing dozens of academic articles, Professor Shepherd is the author of two textbooks: The Economic Analysis of Law, and The Economics of Industrial Organization. She has been featured on several TV and radio programs and has been interviewed about her research in numerous newspapers including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. In addition, she has testified about her empirical work before the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, before the Committee on Law and Justice of the National Academy of Sciences, and before several state legislative committees.

Professor Shepherd has considerable experience as an economic and statistical expert. She has authored numerous expert reports, testified at deposition and at trial in both federal and administrative courts, and provided public policy research and white papers for many clients. Her expert work has examined issues relating to market power and competition, economic impact analyses of proposed regulations, enforcement actions by federal agencies, and damage computations. Professor Shepherd has also been invited to present her scholarly work by faculties at leading universities around the country including Stanford Law School, The University of Chicago Law School, NYU School of Law, The University of Michigan School of Law, Northwestern University School of Law, Duke Law School, Georgetown School of Law, and The University of Southern California School of Law. She also frequently teaches economics courses to law professors and federal and state judges.

Education: PhD, Emory University (Law and Economics, and Econometrics), 2002; BBA, Baylor University, 1997