There are still significant gaps in the coverage of empirical legal research. As the Genn Report said,
the number of empirical researchers working on any particular area is very small and the coverage of issues is thin and patchy, with entire areas largely untouched. There are many fields calling out for empirical research [and] … [t]he field is therefore wide open for researchers and the scarcity of empirical legal research virtually guarantees originality
Scholars have done significant work in some areas, but there is still significant potential for scholars to contribute to our understanding of law and its impacts.
The starting point of any research project must always be our research question – what is the most appropriate method for examining this specific question?
While empirical legal research potentially adds substantial value to legal doctrinal research methods, we need to be attuned to the limits of empirical methods, and clearly acknowledge the limitations of our study. The best empirical legal research will couch our findings and implications circumspectly, acknowledging the limits of our research.
If you would like to learn more, check out our resources for researchers.