We employ the conjectural approach to estimate the growth of GDP per capita for the colonies and states of the mid-Atlantic region (Del., NJ, NY and Penn). In contrast to previous studies of the region's growth that relied heavily on the performance of the export sector, the conjectural method...

We introduce a new, market-based and forward looking measure of political risk derived from the yield spread between a country's U.S. dollar debt and an equivalent U.S. Treasury bond. We explain the variation in these sovereign spreads with four factors: global economic conditions,...

We provide a synthesis of the theoretical models that study the use of escape clauses, also known as safeguards, in multilateral and preferential trade agreements. We consider models that explain this type of flexibility based on economic efficiency, political economy shocks, and...

While environmental and labour issues are not new to the GATT, nor to other trade policy fora, they are likely to have a more prominent role in trade policy discussions in the years ahead for the newly formed World Trade Organization (WTO). Many developing countries perceive the entwining of...

The international financial system has been the subject of much debate following the financial crises of the 1990s. While many reforms have been proposed for and implemented by mostly developing countries, few changes have been made to the international financial system itself. Fundamentally,...

This paper surveys the recent literature on sovereign debt and relates it to the evolution of the legal principles underlying the sovereign debt market and the experience of the most recent debt crises and defaults. It finds limited support for theories that explain the feasibility of sovereign...

The paper discusses the recent developments shown by Foreign Direct Investments in land in developing countries. Three issues are analyzed, the first being the available evidence on "land grabbing" and the associated question of the role of control over land in the internationalisation of the...

Investment treaty policy increasingly interacts with business responsibilities. This scoping paper first surveys the converging approaches to responsible business conduct (RBC) and business and human rights (BHR) as reflected in the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, the United...

Das deutsche System der industriellen Beziehungen weist im internationalen Vergleich gemeinhin ein hohes Mass an Verrechtlichung auf. Umso ueberraschender ist der Umstand, dass das Recht und seine Akteure, Institutionen und Verfahren in der Forschung ueber Arbeitsbeziehungen seit Jahrzehnten...

Following a Law and Economics methodology, the paper analyses the economic and empirical effects of the laws, which support the intervention of firms and private individuals in favour of the Arts, starting from the most traditional way that is identified with Maecenatism. Strengths and...