Modern developed nations are rich and politically stable in part because their citizens are free to form organizations and have access to the relevant legal resources. Yet in spite of the advantages of open access to civil organizations, it is estimated that eighty percent of people live in...

Before the middle of the nineteenth century most laws enacted in the United States were special bills that granted favors to specific individuals, groups, or localities. This fundamentally inegalitarian system provided political elites with important tools that they could use to reward...

Before the middle of the nineteenth century most laws enacted in the United States were special bills that granted favors to specific individuals, groups, or localities. This fundamentally inegalitarian system provided political elites with important tools that they could use to reward...

Intro -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction / Naomi R. Lamoreaux and John Joseph Wallis -- 1. The East Indian Monopoly and the Transition from Limited Access in England, 1600-1813 / Dan Bogart -- 2. Adam Smith's Theory of Violence and the Political Economics of Development / Barry R....