The CLRP is an effort to increase knowledge about the role of civil courts in the United States and the nature and function of other institutions which deal with the sorts of disputes typically found in civil courts, as well as factors that influence decisionmaking in litigation. The introductory paper details what is meant by a disputes-focused approach, explains why CLRP adopted this perspective, and outlines the way in which the project developed the approach. The second section of papers deals with the survey as a method of research on disputes. The overall research strategy is explained, and a description is given of how a general orientation was translated into a concrete research strategy and survey design. The methodological lessons learned thus far are then discussed. Results are also reported from the first survey, which produced estimates of the incidence of civil grievances and disputes involving individuals. The third section of papers illustrates some of the conceptual and theoretical work done by CLRP. Then, three scholars outside CLRP comment on the papers produced thus far by CLRP. An afterword focuses on some of the issues identified by the disputes focus within CLRP and between CLRP and commentators outside the project. Footnotes accompany each paper.