Distributions of language rights in multilingual settings are analyzed from a normative viewpoint in this chapter. If the cost structure of providing rights is concave in the number of beneficiaries, then a critical-mass criterion for the determination of an optimal rights structure results. It...

The paper gives a short overview of economic theories of justice and applies this to linguistic rights. Linguistic rights are defined in terms of status planning in specific domains. The point of departure is cost-benefit analysis which is extended in order to take account of distributional issues

A suggestion is made, how to apply the ideas of justice as fairness to a discussion of rights in general and especially to the rights of linguistic minorities. It is argued that the naive use of the classical definition of fairness for this purpose is inadequate, and an extension thereof is...