In an earlier paper, the authors presented a mathematical exposition of a theory that demonstrated that mass privatization without institutions to limit asset-stripping may not lead to a demand for the rule of law ["After the Big Bang? Obstacles to the Emergence of the Rule of Law in...

This paper provides an alternative way of testing the theory of legal origins, one based on a firm's perception of how helpful the government is for doing business. The author argues that an approach based on firm perceptions offers a number of advantages over existing studies. Specifically, the...

The authors use a sample of 147 countries to investigate the link between democracy and reforms. Democracy may be conducive to reforms, because politicians have the incentive to embrace growth-enhancing reforms to win elections. By contrast, authoritarian regimes do not have to worry as much...

The author assesses the importance of the regulatory framework as a determinant of private sector investment in infrastructure. She uses recently compiled data on private and public sector investment in the water, power, telecommunications, railroads, and roads sectors between 1980 and 1998 in...

Drawing on the new institutional economics, the authors examine the impact on businesses of Brazil's relatively complex, nontransparent legal and regulatory institutions and compare their costs with those of Chile's institutions, which are relatively simple. They examine four basic areas where...

Westeners often complain that laws are not enforced in developing countries."Good"laws are on the books, but in reality individuals and firms evade them with impunity. For example taxes are uncollected, bankruptcy laws unenforced, environmental controls ignored and trade restrictions evaded....

For a foreign"issuer,"the benefits of cross-listing in the United States are extensively documented in the literature. However it is not clear what motivates"investors"to hold American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) rather than the underlying stock of these issuers. The authors address the...

The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), established in 1988, is part of the World Bank Group. Its mandate is to promote foreign investment in its member countries by providing political risk insurance and technical assistance to promote investment. In developing this case study of...

A major objective of Viet Nam's transition to a market economy has been to reactivate the private sector in a mixed economy. Several new laws have been introduced in the past five years to implement this policy and to create an enabling environment for the private sector. The author reviews some...

Hungary adopted a tough new bankruptcy law in late 1991 that took effect on January 1, 1992. It required managers of firms with arrears over 90 days to any creditor to file for either reorganization or liquidation within eight days (the so-called"automatic trigger") and provided a rather...