There is widespread concern among scholars, court actors, and policy makers that the number of pro se litigants is increasing. However, we have little empirical evidence of the scope of pro se litigation, especially in the federal court system. Using data from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts on all civil case filings since 1999, we investigate the prevalence and rate of pro se litigation in federal district courts. We find no evidence of a dramatic rise in pro se litigation, but we document substantial variation in rates of pro se litigation by type of case and circuit of filing. The results have implications for our understanding of self-representation and for the development of policies addressing access to civil justice.

中文翻译：

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(Un) 改变联邦法院 Pro Se 诉讼的比率

学者、法院行为者和政策制定者普遍担心，自诉诉讼人的数量正在增加。然而，我们几乎没有关于自诉诉讼范围的经验证据，尤其是在联邦法院系统中。使用美国法院行政办公室自 1999 年以来所有民事案件提交的数据，我们调查了联邦地区法院中诉讼的普遍性和比率。我们没有发现自诉诉讼急剧增加的证据，但我们记录了自诉诉讼的比率因案件类型和申请巡回而存在显着差异。这些结果对我们对自我代表的理解和制定解决获得民事司法的政策具有重要意义。