List of Tables. 1. Words Matter 2. The Mechanics of Review 3. How Words Matter 4. Certiorari and Other Appeals 5. Policy Change 6. Agency Nonacquiescence 7. Why Words Matter. Appendix A: Interview Procedures. Appendix B: Measurement of Key Variables. Notes. Works Cited. Cases Cited. Administrative Actions Cited. Index.

Robert J. Hume is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Fordham University. He has published in the Law & Society Review, the Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, and Justice System Journal.

What impact do federal courts have on the administrative agencies of the federal government? How do agencies react to the decisions of federal courts? This book answers these questions by examining the responses of federal agencies to the U.S. Courts of Appeals, revealing what happens inside agencies after courts rule against them. Robert J. Hume draws upon dozens of interviews with current and former administrators, taking readers behind the scenes of these organizations to reveal their internal procedures, their attitudes about courts, and their surprising capacity to be influenced by a judge's choice of words. This fascinating study will be of interest to students and scholars of politics as well as those seeking great understanding of the intricacies of the US political system.