About Dr. James T. (Jim) Richardson and the Judicial Studies program

Dr. Richardson is a professor emeritus of sociology and judicial studies. He received his Ph.D. from Washington State University in 1968 and his J.D. from the Old College, Nevada School of Law in 1986. He taught at the University of Nevada, Reno from 1968 to 2016.

His areas of specialization include the sociology of law, the sociology of religion, social psychology of law, social movements, and social and behavioral science evidence. He is currently engaged in comparative research on law and religion, including use of courts to exert social control over minority religions, treatment of Muslims in court, evidentiary issues m courts, and new minority faiths around the world.

The major academic objective of the Judicial Studies program is to create, define, and develop a new academic field, Judicial Studies. To this end, the University of Nevada, Reno provides advanced graduate courses addressing judicially-related issues from an interdisciplinary liberal arts perspective. Judges study the humanities, social and behavioral sciences, natural sciences, and communication in order to research the many factors which impact the process of judicial decision making. The NJC along with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges provide a series of required and elective courses teaching technical subject matter immediately relevant to the courtroom.

NJC News

Download a PDF of our 2024 & 2025 course lists

Download