This chapter surveys the theory of the public enforcement of law--the use of governmental agents (regulators, inspectors, tax auditors, police, prosecutors) to detect and to sanction violators of legal rules. The theoretical core of the analysis addresses the following basic questions: Should...

Can "competition of competition laws" be a feasible concept that should play an important role in an international order for the worldwide protection of competition? We introduce four different types of regulatory competition that allow for a more differentiated analysis of beneficial and...

Ein fehlerhaftes Testat führt oft zur Überbewertung des Unternehmens. Auf dem Sekundärmarkt, d.h. bei der Abschlussprüfung eines bereits börsennotierten Unternehmens, weiß ein uninformierter Anleger ex-ante nicht, ob er Käufer oder Verkäufer überteuerter Aktien sein wird. Er kann einen...

The concept of multiple-discrimination, particularly as found in the labor market, is fast becoming common parlance among policy-making circles. Understanding discrimination is no longer about uncovering simple and dualistic links between two social groups: it is increasingly apparent that the...

Open source methods for creating software rely on developers who voluntarily reveal code in the expectation that other developers will reciprocate. Open source incentives are distinct from earlier uses of intellectual property, leading to different types of inefficiencies and different biases in...

Legal rules governing the employer-employee relationship are many and varied. Economic analysis has illuminated both the efficiency and the effects on employee welfare of such rules, as described in this chapter. Topics addressed below include workplace safety mandates, compensation systems for...

In this essay, we discuss empirical research on the economic effects of the civil justice system. We discuss research on the effects of three substantive bodies of law--contracts, torts, and property--and research on the effects of the litigation process. We begin with a review of studies of...

This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the theoretical and empirical literature on the regulation of natural monopolies. It covers alternative definitions of natural monopoly, public interest regulatory goals, alternative regulatory institutions, price regulation with full...