The Economic Analysis of Civil Law

This comprehensive textbook provides a thorough guide to the economic analysis of law, with a particular focus on civil law systems. It encapsulates a structured analysis and nuanced evaluation of norms and legal policies, using the tools of economic theory.

Key Features:

• Examples and cases that illustrate central concepts of the economic analysis of law in relation to civil law doctrines
• Examination of the core areas of civil law: tort law, contract law, property law, intellectual property law as well as basic problems of insolvency law and corporate law
• In-depth analysis of the legal rules of statutory law and judge-made law, demonstrating the extent to which these rules are either based on economic criteria or run parallel to them – and the extent to which such criteria facilitate the application and further development of law

This substantially revised second edition presents the latest insights into legal economic research, including important empirical and behavioural deliberations. It will be a valuable guide for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students of law and economics.

Contents:

Introduction to The Economic Analysis of Civil Law PART I FUNDAMENTALS 1. Alternative decisions, consequences, and evaluations 2. Normative foundations – What is social welfare? Problems of social choice 3. Economics, property rights and economic analysis of law 4. Homo economicus, behavioural economics, and paternalism PART II ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF TORT LAW 5. Objectives and regulatory problems of tort law, the magic triangle of tort law 6. Fault liability and strict liability 7. Reciprocal and bilateral damages 8. Attribution of damage, causality 9. The scope of protection by tort law, liberal rights, pure economic loss, and non-pecuniary damage 10. Special problems of tort law: product liability, environmental liability, compensation for pain and suffering, vicarious liability, limits of civil liability PART III ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF CONTRACT LAW 11. On the economic analysis of contractual freedom and contract law 12. The fully specified contract and its reconstruction by default rules 13. Complementary contract interpretation, base of the contract, reconstruction of the fully specified contract, and fair distribution of the total surplus from a contract 14. Economic analysis of breach of contract, impossibility and delay 15. Liability for defects in sales contracts and contracts for work 16. Ignorance, trust, opportunism and efficiency 17. Legal protection of legitimate expectations in the law of exchange of goods and services PART IV PROPERTY RIGHTS (ABSOLUTE RIGHTS) 18. Concept, function and design of property rights 19. The transfer of rights by acquisition in good faith 20. Involuntary transaction of property through taking and regulatory taking 21. Insolvency and conflicting security interests of creditors 22. Incompatible use of land and efficient use of an area 23. Intellectual property rights, the generation of innovations PART V CORPORATE LAW 24. From contract to hierarchy 25. Basic structures and problems of company law Index