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| Semester | spring semester 2020 |
| Course frequency | Every spring sem. |
| Lecturers | Geoffrey Miller (geoffrey.miller@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | Law and economics – or economic analysis of law – has two general features. First, it consists of the application of economic principles and reasoning to legal data. In some cases the analysis is empirical. Just as a standard economic study might use statistical instruments to estimate the elasticity of demand in a market based on a data set of prices and other variables, a law-and-economics study might look at data on cigarette prices in order to estimate the effect of a law restricting the marketing of these items. In other cases the analysis is theoretical. A standard economic model presents a simplified picture or model of an area of economic activity in order to understand how the variables in the model are likely to relate to one another. A theoretical law-and-economics study, similarly, might present a theoretical model of the relationship between the amount of a fine for violations and the level of compliance with a rule. Just as in conventional economics, theory and observation are linked in the field of law-and-economics; the researcher first develops a theory of how legal institutions will affect behavior, and then may elect to test the theory by compiling data and performing a statistical analysis. This first side of law and economics is basically an application of economics to an unusual set of data and problems. The other side of law and economics is a bit different. It sees the relationship between economics and law as a partnership between autonomous disciplines. Just as lawyers have a great deal to learn from economists about how to analyze legal rules and principles, economists have a great deal to learn from lawyers about how these rules and principles actually function in the real world. Economics supplies the analytic rigor; law supplies the institutional knowledge. No analysis of legal phenomena is likely to generate useful results without marrying both of these disciplines. Law and economics has a long history tracing back to Jeremy Bentham, Adam Smith, John Stewart Mill, and Karl Marx; but the modern discipline owes most to Ronald Coase, the winner of the 1991 Nobel Prize in Economics. Coase’s foundational paper, The Problem of Social Cost (1960), forms the intellectual core of this course. Although we do not read the paper, we will work through the essential ideas behind the Coase Theorem, the thesis that under certain conditions the allocation of legal rights has no impact on social wealth (although it does have an impact on how that wealth is distributed). The class will examine how the fundamental insight of the Coase Theorem applies in legal contexts such as accident law, contract law, property law, criminal law, and consumer law. Law and economics, as a field, does not depend on the law of any particular country or jurisdiction. Any country’s laws can be analyzed through an economic lens. This course will look primarily at cases from the United States and the UK, but attention will be given to principles of Swiss and German law as well. |
| Learning objectives | Students should come away with an enhanced understanding of the economic dimensions of legal rules, and an ability to understand the possible welfare implications of different regulatory approaches to social problems. |
| Bibliography | See syllabus on ADAM workspace. |
| Comments | This course is part of the Summer School, which offers the opportunity to learn more about Law, Business and Economic Policy within an interdisciplinary and intercultural perspective. |
| Weblink | Weblink |
| Admission requirements | Recommended Prerequisites: Introduction to Economics (Einführung in die Volkswirtschaftslehre, 10130) |
| Course application | There will be an orientation for all Summer School courses an 19 February 2020, 6-7 pm in room S15, Economics Department. All applications have to be processed through the Summer School office. Please fill in the application form, which can be found on the weblink: https://wwz.unibas.ch/de/summer-school/howtoapply/ |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | Online course |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|
No dates available. Please contact the lecturer.
| Modules |
Electives Bachelor Business and Economics: Recommendations (Bachelor's Studies: Business and Economics) Electives Bachelor Business and Economics: Recommendations (Bachelor's degree subject: Business and Economics) Modul: Wirtschaft in Osteuropa (Bachelor's degree subject: Eastern European Cultures) Modul: Wirtschaft in Osteuropa (Bachelor's degree program: Eastern European Studies) |
| Assessment format | end-of-semester examination |
| Assessment details | Grading will be based on your performance in class participation and a final exam. The grading weights are as follows: Class Participation 30% Final Exam 70% Date of final exam: 10 July 2020, 14:00 - 16:00 |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Registration/deregistration: faculty |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | 1-6 0,1 |
| Repeated registration | as often as necessary |
| Responsible faculty | Faculty of Business and Economics , studiendekanat-wwz@unibas.ch |
| Offered by | Faculty of Business and Economics |