#11923. By the Letter of Law? The Effects of Administrative Adjudication for Resolving Disputes in NYC’s Restaurant Grading Initiative

July 2026publication date
Proposal available till 28-05-2025
4 total number of authors per manuscript0 $

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Journal’s subject area:
Sociology and Political Science;
Public Administration;
Marketing;
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Abstract:
Administrative adjudication can serve as a quasi-judicial forum for resolving disputes resulting from government regulations. Many cities recently required restaurants to post letter grades reflecting their compliance with food safety regulations and incorporated an easily accessible administrative adjudication system into its policy design. This study examines the implementation of this feature of the policy by using a regression discontinuity framework to explore the effects of the grading policy on adjudication processes and regulatory outcomes. Quantitative data included 222,527 food safety inspection records (20XX–20XX); qualitative data included interviews, observations, and document review. Restaurants were more likely to have violations reduced and grades improved at adjudication when grades were at stake. Professional representatives helped restaurants to negotiate the interpretation of rules in the quasi-judicial proceedings, softening rigidity of regulations. This study illuminates the ramifications of including alternative dispute resolution systems in the implementation of regulatory policies.
Keywords:
Administrative adjudication; policy implementation; restaurant grades

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