The paper deals with with one possible Utopian model, according to which law is an important part of the speculative Utopian Myth. This model is illustrated by using two narratives, created centuries apart. Both stories, from Hebrew sources, refer, in some detail to imaginary societies. Both...

This paper assesses the impact of judicial independence on equity markets. North and Weingast (1989) argue that judicial independence and other institutional changes inaugurated by the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89 allowed the English government credibly to commit to repay sovereign debt and...

The paper identifies problems with the ordered breakup of Microsoft that seem to have been completely overlooked by the government, the judge, and the commentators. The breakup order prohibits Bill Gates and other large Microsoft shareholders from owning shares in both of the companies that...

President Theodore Roosevelt was famous for remarking that one should quot;talk softly and carry a big stick.quot; Justice Powell did not need a big stick, garnering long-term acceptance of his views by writing soft-spoken concurrences that served to limit the reach of broadly framed majority...

This paper outlines a framework for evaluating the effect of traded options on aggregate damages in class action litigation brought under The Securities and Exchange Commission's rule 10b-5. Although buyers of call options and sellers of put options are sometimes included in the class, it is far...

This paper goes through the existing relationship between the concept of economic development and the jurisdiction of the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes. It demonstrates how the absence of a contribution by the so called quot;investmentquot; to the development of...

Stare decisis allows common law to develop gradually and incrementally. We show how judge-made law can steadily evolve and tend to increase efficiency even in the absence of new information. Judges' opinions must argue that their decisions are consistent with precedent: this is the more costly,...

While the question why we Americans name our statutes is rarely asked and not obvious, it turns out to be extremely interesting and, at least in the case discussed in this essay, illuminating. Namely, it appears to have occurred to someone on Capitol Hill that there is something to be gained by...