This paper analyzes how judicially-determined liability assignments affect valuations and prices. On two occasions in 2007, a railway company caused a fire to break out in the State of Washington. The two fires burned down some of the neighboring properties’ timber. These two incidents led to two companion court cases that made it all the way to the Washington Supreme Court. The court rulings, both made on May 31, 2012, held that the railway company was not liable for timber damages under Washington’s timber trespass statute, despite having acted negligently. As a consequence of these decisions, economic theory predicts a decrease in the value of timber in those areas associated with higher risk of fire, and an increase in the value of Washington railway companies. Using a triple difference model and an event study, we test and find evidence supporting this prediction.

本文分析了司法确定的责任分配如何影响估价和价格。2007年，一家铁路公司两次在华盛顿州引发大火。两次大火烧毁了邻近物业的一些木材。这两个事件导致了两个陪审法院的案件，这些案件一直到华盛顿最高法院。法院于2012年5月31日作出的裁决认为，尽管华盛顿铁路公司采取了疏忽大意的行动，但对华盛顿州的木材非法侵入法规所造成的木材损失不承担任何责任。这些决定的结果是，经济学理论预测，与较高的火灾风险相关的地区的木材价值将下降，而华盛顿铁路公司的价值将上升。使用三重差异模型和事件研究，