Science and law are not obvious partners.  Scientists seek to discover the truths of the natural world, while lawyers interpret intricate rules enacted by government.  Practicing physicians treat the mind and body, while practicing lawyers protect clients from the power of the state.  Over the past two years, I’ve been involved in creating a new research collaborative between the Yale Law School and the Yale Child Study Center, which has brought law and science together in a common project:  to improve children’s developmental chances by articulating and advocating for public policies that reflect the best scientific understanding of what children need.  

            Begun in the summer of 2017, the ongoing collaboration has proved fruitful in generating original research and policy proposals.  Although we initially spoke different professional languages, we share a common core of concern with improving children’s life chances.  As we worked together, we discovered that some areas of law and public policy — family law, child welfare, and special education – are explicitly open to input from science. That is, in these areas of law, more so than (say) property or contract law, lawmakers express legal standards in terms of children’s best interests, well-being, and development. That makes these areas of law unusually ripe for – and able to benefit from – scientific insight. 

            Concretely, we have hosted two conferences on child development and law and have produced a book draft, Developing Families:  Science-Based Innovations to Support and Promote Early Relationships. Our draft book lays out what science has discovered about the impact of trauma, the importance of attachment, and the potential for resilience. Our legal and policy analysis builds on those insights to recommend a range of public policy initiatives centered on building (or re-building) two generations.  We also recommend reforms in the laws governing immigration detention, child welfare, and child custody.

 Whenever you go to your local public library, send mail via the post office, or visit Yosemite, you are taking advantage of a longstanding American tradition: the public option. These government-supported opportunities coexist peaceably alongside private options, ensuring equal access and expanding opportunity for all.

In our forthcoming book, THE PUBLIC OPTION, Ganesh Sitaraman and I challenge decades of received wisdom about the proper role of government and consider the improvements that could come from the expansion of public options. Public options hold the potential to transform American civic life, offering a wealth of solutions to seemingly intractable problems, from child care shortages to the escalating cost of higher education.

Imagine a low-cost, high-quality public option for child care. Or an extension of the excellent Thrift Savings Plan for federal employees to all Americans. Or every person having access to an account at the Federal Reserve Bank, with no fees and no minimums. From broadband internet to higher education, The Public Option reveals smart new ways to meet pressing public needs while spurring healthy competition. More effective than vouchers or tax credits, public 

can often co-exist with private pro

Check out posts by Jed Purdy, Amy Kapczynski, David Grewal, and me (among many others) here.