The fourth edition of the Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence was quietly released in the waning hours of 2025, in the twilight of American democracy.[1] The Manual had been slated to be published in 2023, but that date slid to 2024, and then to 2025. Perhaps the change in directorship of the Federal Judicial Center slowed things up. (Judge Robin Rosenberg of Zantac fame is now the Director)
The new volume is available for download at:
https://www.nationalacademies.org/publications/26919
Although I was a reviewer of one chapter of the Manual, I am just seeing this new edition for the first time today. The basic structure of the volume has not changed, although it has now grown to over 1,600 pages. Many of the key chapters on statistics, epidemiology, toxicology, and medical testimony are carried over from previous editions, with some new authors added and some previous authors no longer participating. In addition, there are some new chapters on exposure science, artificial intelligence, climate science, mental health, neuroscience, and eyewitness identification.
The individual chapters and authors in the new edition of the Manual are:
Liesa L. Richter & Daniel J. Capra, The Admissibility of Expert Testimony, at 1.
Michael Weisberg & Anastasia Thanukos, How Science Works, at 47
Valena E. Beety, Jane Campbell Moriarty, & Andrea L. Roth, Reference Guide on Forensic Feature Comparison Evidence, at 113
David H. Kaye, Reference Guide on Human DNA Identification Evidence, at 207
Thomas D. Albright & Brandon L. Garrett, Reference Guide on Eyewitness Identification, at 361
David H. Kaye & Hal S. Stern, Reference Guide on Statistics and Research Methods, at 463
Daniel L. Rubinfeld & David Card, Reference Guide on Multiple Regression and Advanced Statistical Models, at 577
Shari Seidman Diamond, Matthew Kugler, & James N. Druckman, Reference Guide on Survey Research, at 681
Mark A. Allen, Carlos Brain, & Filipe Lacerda, Reference Guide on Estimation of Economic Damages, at 749
Prologue to the Reference Guide on Exposure Science and Exposure Assessment, the Reference Guide on Epidemiology, and the Reference Guide on Toxicology, at 829i
Elizabeth Marder & Joseph V. Rodricks, Reference Guide on Exposure Science and Exposure Assessment, at 831
Steve C. Gold, Michael D. Green, Jonathan Chevrier, & Brenda Eskenazi, Reference Guide on Epidemiology, at 897
David L. Eaton, Bernard D. Goldstein, & Mary Sue Henifin, Reference Guide on Toxicology, at 1027
John B. Wong, Lawrence O. Gostin, & Oscar A. Cabrera, Reference Guide on Medical Testimony, at 1105
Henry T. Greely & Nita A. Farahany, Reference Guide on Neuroscience, at 1185
Kirk Heilbrun, David DeMatteo, & Paul S. Appelbaum, Reference Guide on Mental Health Evidence, at 1269
Chaouki T. Abdallah, Bert Black, & Edl Schamiloglu, Reference Guide on Engineering, at 1353
Brian N. Levine, Joanne Pasquarelli, & Clay Shields, Reference Guide on Computer Science, at 1409
James E. Baker & Laurie N. Hobart, Reference Guide on Artificial Intelligence, at 1481
Jessica Wentz & Radley Horton, Reference Guide on Climate Science, at 1561
Some quick comments on changes in authorship in some of the chapters. Bernard Goldstein, a member of the dodgy Collegium Ramazzini, remains an author of the toxicology chapter in the new edition. David Eaton, however, has been added. Professor Eaton was the president of the Society of Toxicology for many years, and perhaps he has brought some balance to the new edition’s work on toxicology.
An author of the statistics chapter, David Kaye, is also the sole author of the chapter on DNA evidence. Professor Kaye is a distinguished scholar of DNA evidence with serious statistical expertise. David Freedman had been a co-author of the statistics chapter in the third edition, but sadly Professor Freedman died before the third edition was published. Freedman is replaced by Hal Stern, an accomplished statistician from the University of California.
The chapter on epidemiology lost Leon Gordis, who died in 2015. The chapter in the fourth edition has the return of law professors Steve C. Gold and Michael D. Green, whose pro-plaintiff biases are well known, along with two new authors, epidemiology professors Jonathan Chevrier, & Brenda Eskenazi. Like Goldstein, Eskenazi is a fellow of the Collegium Ramazzini.
The Reference Manual, for better or worse, has had substantial influence on the litigation of scientific and technical issues in federal court, and in some state courts as well. I hope to write more substantively about the new edition in 2026.
[1] National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine & Federal Judicial Center, Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence (4th ed. 2025).
